Peter Hegemann

Peter Hegemann is a German biophysicist, Professor of Experimental Biophysics and Hertie Senior Research Chair for Neurosciences at Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin. He is best known for discovering channelrhodopsins, light-gated ion channels from green algae, which laid the foundation for optogenetics, a technique that uses light to control the activity of specific cells and has transformed neuroscience. In 2026 he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, shared with Karl Deisseroth and Georg Nagel, for their discoveries concerning light-gated ion channels and optogenetics. His earlier honours include the Albert Lasker Basic Medical Research Award (2021) and the Shaw Prize in Life Science and Medicine (2020).