Erich Vogt

Who is Erich Vogt?

Erich Wolfgang Vogt, OC OBC FRSC was a Canadian physicist. He died on February 19, 2014.

Born in Steinbach, Manitoba, he received a Bachelor of Science degree in 1951 and a Master of Science degree in 1952 from the University of Manitoba. He received a Ph.D. from Princeton University in 1955 under the direction of Eugene Wigner.

In 1965, he started teaching at the University of British Columbia. From 1975 to 1981, he was the Vice President. He retired in 1994, although he came back in 2002 to teach several 100 level physics courses. He is best known as one of the founders of TRIUMF, Canada's national laboratory of nuclear and particle physics, which utilizes a particle accelerator, located on the University of British Columbia. He was the director from 1981 to 1994.

In 1976, he was made an Officer of the Order of Canada for his "role in the creation the new multi-million dollar cyclotron at the University of British Columbia, which is a major achievement in Physics in Canada". In 2006, he was awarded the Order of British Columbia. In 1970, he was made a Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada.

He has received honorary degrees from the University of Manitoba, Queen’s University, University of Regina, Carleton University, Simon Fraser University, and University of British Columbia.