Yakir Aharonov is an Israeli physicist specializing in quantum physics. He has been a Professor of Theoretical Physics and the James J. Farley Professor of Natural Philosophy at Chapman University in California since 2008. He was a distinguished professor in the Perimeter Institute between 2009-2012 and is a professor emeritus at Tel Aviv University and at University of South Carolina. He is president of the IYAR, The Israeli Institute for Advanced Research.

Chapman University is a private research university in Orange, California. Encompassing eleven colleges, the university is classified among "R2: Doctoral Universities – High research activity". The school maintains its founding affiliations with the Christian Church and the United Church of Christ, but is a secular university.