2026 EPS Europhysics Prize goes to Jairo Sinova, Libor Šmejkal and Tomáš Jungwirth – award for the discovery of altermagnetism
The European Physical Society (EPS) has announced that the 2026 Europhysics Prize for Outstanding Achievement in Condensed Matter Physics will be awarded to the Spin+X members Prof. Dr. Jairo Sinova (Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz) and Dr. Libor Šmejkal (Max Planck Institute for the Physics of Complex Systems in Dresden) as well as to Prof. Dr. Tomáš Jungwirth (Institute of Physics of the Czech Academy of Sciences). The prize recognises their discovery of altermagnetism. It ranks among the most prestigious European awards in the field of condensed matter physics.
For more than a century, the division into ferromagnets and antiferromagnets was considered complete. Altermagnets combine properties of both classes that had until then been regarded as mutually exclusive: they have no net magnetisation and nevertheless generate strongly spin-polarised currents that remain usable up to terahertz frequencies. This opens a path towards particularly fast and energy-efficient memory concepts. The discovery has fundamentally changed how magnetic materials are classified and has established unconventional magnetism as a new field of research.
Jairo Sinova and Libor Šmejkal are both PIs of CRC/TRR 173 Spin+X, jointly leading the Spin+X subproject A03. Sinova is a Humboldt Professor at Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz (JGU) and heads the Interdisciplinary Spin Phenomena Center (SPICE).
The Europhysics Prize has been awarded by the Condensed Matter Division of the EPS since 1975 and is presented for the 42nd time this year. It honours clearly identifiable discoveries and breakthroughs that, in the view of the selection committee, represent scientific excellence and were carried out substantially in Europe. The prize will be presented on 22 September 2026 during the Awards Session of the 32nd General Conference of the EPS Condensed Matter Division (CMD32) in Graz, organised jointly with the Austrian Physical Society.
Link to the official prize announcement: 2026 EPS Europhysics Prize for Outstanding Achievement in Condensed Matter Physics announced – European Physical Society