India, June 19 -- Professor Jainendra K. Jain, a Rajasthan-born theoretical physicist whose discovery of composite fermions transformed the understanding of quantum matter, has become the first Indian to receive the prestigious Wolf Prize in Physics.

The award was presented to Jain by Israeli President Isaac Herzog at a ceremony in the Knesset on June 18.

"I am deeply honoured by this recognition. Physics has given me far more than I could ever have imagined when I began this journey as a young boy growing up in rural Rajasthan. I feel immensely fortunate and am grateful to my teachers, students, collaborators, family, and friends, and to the many scientists whose work laid the foundation for my own," said Jain.

Jain, who grew up in Sa...