Mott

Mott is a surname of English origin that is also used as a place name and appears in scientific terminology. It is associated with several notable individuals and various institutions, as well as concepts in physics.

Notable people with the surname include John R. Mott (1865–1955), an American ecumenical Christian leader who was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1946; Nevill F. Mott (1905–1996), a British physicist whose work in condensed matter physics helped establish the concept of the Mott insulator and the metal–insulator transition, and who shared the 1977 Nobel Prize in Physics; and Charles Stewart Mott, an American industrialist and philanthropist whose foundation supported civic projects in Michigan and for whom Mott Community College is named.

In science, the term Mott most often appears in reference to the Mott insulator and the Mott transition. These concepts describe how strong electron interactions can cause materials that would otherwise conduct electricity to become insulating, a central topic in condensed matter physics and strongly correlated electron systems, named after Nevill Mott.

Places and institutions bearing the name include Mott Community College in Flint, Michigan, named for Charles Stewart Mott. There are also several towns and localities in the United States that carry the name Mott, reflecting its use as a place name in various regions.

In culture, Mott appears in the name of Mott the Hoople, an English rock band formed in the 1960s, illustrating the surname’s broader cultural footprint.