The 2009 Nobel Prize in Physics went to Charles K. Kao, Willard S. Boyle and George E. Smith, all from the United States, on Tuesday. Kao was awarded 'for groundbreaking achievements concerning the transmission of light in fibers for optical communication,' and Boyle and Smith were awarded 'for the invention of an imaging semiconductor circuit -- the CCD sensor,' the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences said. Among the three, Kao is a Chinese-American who also holds British citizenship, while Boyle is a Canadian dual national. 