Nobel Prize-winning physicist Peter Higgs dies at 94

LONDON, April 10 (Xinhua) -- Nobel Prize-winning physicist Professor Peter Higgs, whose pioneering theory led to the discovery of the "God Particle", has died aged 94.

Higgs' death was announced by Edinburgh University, which said he had passed away "peacefully at home on Monday 8 April following a short illness."

Professor Peter Mathieson, the university's principal and vice-chancellor, said: "Peter Higgs was a remarkable individual - a truly gifted scientist whose vision and imagination have enriched our knowledge of the world that surrounds us.

"His pioneering work has motivated thousands of scientists, and his legacy will continue to inspire many more for generations to come."

Professor Higgs first predicted the existence of the "Higgs boson particle" in 1964, and it took almost 50 years to confirm.

Experiments at the Large Hadron Collider at CERN eventually proved Higgs' theory in 2012, and the following year he was jointly awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics along with Francois Englert.