Career
He and his collaborator Akito Arima are the creators of the "Interacting Boson Model". Since 1978 he has been at Yale University, where he is at present J. West. Gibbs professor for physics and chemistry. He has honorary doctorates from the University of Ferrara, the University of Seville, and the Chung Yuan University in China.
Iachello is famous for the application of algebraic methods (Lie algebras) to the investigation of the spectra of atomic nuclei and molecules.
In 1974 with Akito Arima he introduced the "Interacting Boson Model" into nuclear physics. This important model describes collective nuclear states with the help of the unitary group U(6).
The underlying concept is to derive a model with pairs of neutrons and protons instead of unpaired nucleons. The pairs are treated as bosons with different quantum spin (sand dbosons, as named according to spin 0 and 2).
In an extension of the model, the analogous effect with unpaired fermions has a description using supersymmetrical algebras.
In recent times he has worked mainly on the investigation of the quantum mechanical dynamics of molecules (eg quantum phase transitions, polymer dynamics) with algebraic methods, on which Iachello already began to work in 1981 (Vibron Model).
