The Optics and Quantum Electronics Seminar Series Presents:
Fields and Photons in Optical Fibers: In the Footsteps of a Visionary
Prem Kumar,
AT&T Professor of Information Technology, Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, and Professor of Physics and Astronomy, Northwestern University
Prem Kumar is AT&T Professor of Information Technology in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at Northwestern University and Director of the Center for Photonic Communication and Computing. He is also a Professor of Physics and Astronomy. Currently, he is on leave to DARPA as a program manager in the Defense Sciences Office. He received his Ph.D. (1980) in physics from SUNY Buffalo and joined the faculty at Northwestern in 1986 after five years at MIT.
Prof. Kumar’s research focuses on photonic devices and applications utilizing the principles of nonlinear and quantum optics. Areas of current activities include generation, distribution, and ultrafast processing of quantum entanglement for cryptography and computing; novel optical amplifiers and devices for networked communications; and quantum light states for precision measurements and imaging.
Prof. Kumar is a Fellow of the OSA, APS, IEEE, IoP (UK), AAAS, and SPIE. In 2004 he received the 5th International Quantum Communication Award from Tamagawa University, Tokyo, Japan and in 2006 the Martin E. and Gertrude G. Walder Research Excellence Award from Northwestern University. He is actively engaged in professional society activities, was a Distinguished Lecturer for the IEEE Photonics Society during 2008–2010, and recently was a co-author of the 2012 National Academy of Sciences report “Optics & Photonics: Essential Technologies for Our Nation.”