Allen Goldman

Allen Marshall Goldman, a pioneer in the field of thin-film superconductivity, passed away peacefully on 16 May 2025 at the age of 87. Allen was born in the Bronx, New York, on 18 October 1937 and graduated from the Bronx High School of Science in 1954. He earned a bachelor’s in physics and chemistry from Harvard University in 1958 and a PhD in physics at Stanford University in 1965 under the guidance of William Fairbank. The same year, Allen joined the faculty at the University of Minnesota, where he was an active member of the faculty until his retirement in 2020.

Allen’s long career in physics began with studies of the Josephson effect and dynamics of the superconducting order parameter. That work led to the discovery of the propagating collective modes in superconducting thin films, now known as Carlson–Goldman modes, with his graduate student, Richard Carlson. Other major contributions include his investigations of vortex–antivortex unbinding in the Kosterlitz–Thouless transition; the investigation of the interplay between localization, global superconducting phase coherence, and dissipation in ultrathin granular films; and the superconductor–insulator quantum phase transition in the 2D limit. Allen devoted much effort to the growth of thin and ultrathin films over the years. He pioneered combining molecular-beam epitaxy, quench deposition, and in situ experimental exploration of ultrathin films of superconducting metals, and, after the discovery of high-temperature superconductivity, the molecular-beam epitaxy synthesis of complex oxides utilizing ozone.

Allen was recognized for his research accomplishments with a number of honors. He was a recipient of the Fritz London Memorial Prize in Low Temperature Physics in 2002 for “his contributions to the physics of superconductors, particularly the discovery of gapless collective modes, and for his inventive work on superconductor–insulator transitions in ultrathin films.” He received the prestigious Oliver E. Buckley Prize in Condensed Matter Physics in 2015 for “discovery and pioneering investigations of the superconductor–insulator transition, a paradigm for quantum phase transitions.” Allen was elected a Fellow of both the American Association for the Advancement of Science (1982) and the American Physical Society (1984) and was elected to the National Academy of Sciences in 2007. In 2008, he received the title of Regents Professor, the highest academic honor at the University of Minnesota.

Allen was a superb scientist and also an extraordinary mentor. Over his career, he mentored over 60 PhD students and postdocs, many of whom have gone on to notable careers in academia and industry. A key to his success as a mentor was his ability to always see the best in the ideas of his students and postdocs and then to guide them to realize the potential of their ideas. He applied the same positive approach to his research. He loved the scientific method and was most excited when experimental results did not match established wisdom and his own predictions. His infectious excitement about discovering the unexpected taught his students to never shy away from confronting data that challenged their understanding. Allen was never satisfied with just presenting the data. He always looked for the physical explanation (the physics) underlying the data. He would not just ponder the results but would discuss the data and explanations with a wide range of colleagues and visitors. This not only made him a wonderfully stimulating colleague but also meant that these discussions would spawn new and fruitful research directions for himself and those around him.

Allen was not only a great colleague but also a committed citizen of the university and of the field of physics. He served in numerous roles in the department, the college, the university, and in AAAS, APS, and at the NAS. He also served selflessly as the head of the School of Physics and Astronomy for over a decade, from 1996 to 2009.

For over 50 years, Allen pushed our science and all who worked with him and around him forward. He will be greatly missed.

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