Events Calendar

Munushian Seminar, "Harnessing Disorder for Photonics" - Hui Cao

Speaker: Hui Cao, Department of Applied Physics, Yale University

Talk Title: Harnessing Disorder for Photonics

Abstract: For device applications disorder and scattering have long been considered annoying and detrimental features that were best avoided or minimized. In this talk, I will show that disorder and complexity can be harnessed for photonics application, in particular, to provide unique functionalities of photonic devices. We recently developed an on-chip random spectrometer that combines high resolution with small footprint. In addition, we incorporated disorder to a laser to reduce the spatial coherence for free-speckle full-field imaging.

Biography: Hui Cao is a Professor of Applied Physics and of Physics at Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut. She received her B.S. degree (1990) in Physics from Peking University, and her Ph.D. degree (1997) in Applied Physics from Stanford University. Her doctoral research was in the area of semiconductor microcavity quantum electrodynamics. Prior to joining the Yale faculty in 2008, Professor Cao was on the faculty of the Department of Physics and Astronomy at Northwestern University. Her technical interests and activities are in the areas of complex photonic materials and devices, nanophotonics, and biophotonics. She has co-authors one book and ten book-chapters, and has published more than 200 research papers in the area of random lasers, optical microcavities, photonic crystals, and structural coloration. She is the recipient of the NSF CAREER award, Packard Fellowship, Sloan Fellowship, Maria Goeppert-Mayer Award and Guggenheim Fellowship. She is also a fellow of the American Physical Society, a fellow of the Optical Society of America, and a member of Connecticut Academy of Science & Engineering.

Host: EE-Electrophysics

Location: Hughes Aircraft Electrical Engineering Center (EEB) - 132

Audiences: Everyone Is Invited

Contact: Marilyn Poplawski