British trio win Nobel prize in physics 2016 for work on exotic states of matter

The 2016 Nobel Prize in Physics has been awarded for discoveries about strange forms of matter, the BBC reports.

Three Britons, David Thouless, Duncan Haldane and Michael Kosterlitz, will share the 8m kronor prize.

They were named at a press conference in Sweden, and join a prestigious list of 200 other Physics laureates recognised since 1901.

The Nobel Committee said this year’s laureates had “opened the door on an unknown world”.

In this mysterious realm, matter can exist in strange states.

Their discoveries had helped scientists designing new materials.

Prof Haldane commented: “I was very surprised and very gratified.”

He said the work had been carried out a long time ago, but that its applications were only now starting to be seen.