Wien, Wilhelm (1864-1928), a German physicist, made important discoveries on the heat radiated by what he called a black body--an object that entirely absorbs all radiations. Wien attempted to find a formula for the composition of the radiation of a black body, which resulted in 1896 in the formula of Wien. Scientists later proved that this formula was only applicable to short waves, but Wien's work later helped German physicist Max Planck in his work on the problem of black body radiation, and his formulation of the quantum theory, which revolutionized physics. See Planck, Max; Radiation. Wien also contributed to the study of cathode rays and X rays. He was awarded the 1911 Nobel Prize for physics.