Widely considered one of the greatest mathematicians of the last century, Atiyah served both as president of the Royal Society and founding director of the Isaac Newton Institute. He was knighted in 1983 and made a member of the Order of Merit in 1992.  

Dr. Atiyah spent much of his teaching career at Oxford and Cambridge, but held an honorary professorship in the School of Mathematics at the University of Edinburgh after retiring. He is recognized for his extraordinary body of work from his first major contribution on topological K-theory to remarkable advances in quantum theory. 

He was revered by the scientific community for his collaborations that inevitably bridged gaps between mathematics and physics. The Atiyah-Singer Index Theorem, proved jointly with Isadore Singer in 1963, showed a link between a topological index and the solutions of a differential equation. The theorem had widespread implications and applications for both mathematicians and physicists.

Atiyah was the recipient of a Fields Medal, the Abel Prize, and the American Philosophical Society’s Benjamin Franklin Medal, among many other honours. He is survived by his sons David and Robin.

Photo by Pablo Costa at International Congress of Mathematicians 2018.