Faculty News

Hong Hua, inventor and professor of optical sciences, has been featured in the Bayh-Dole Coalition's 2024 "Faces of American Innovation" report. The Coalition has recognized her for her development of a revolutionary vision correction device that helps many legally blind people to see.

The very first Arizona Quantum Boot Camp at the University of Arizona was a resounding success. Undergraduate and high school students came from across Arizona to explore the fundamentals of quantum science. The summer camp was also one of the first events held in the newly opened Grand Challenges Research Building, a fitting location to discuss the challenges presented by quantum sciences with the next generation of scientists and innovators.

Wyant College of Optical Sciences itself saw 71 invention disclosures (out of 307, campus-wide), five exclusive licenses and options (out of 75), 108 patents filed (out of 367), and 26 patents issued (out of 78). Congratulations to all the innovators and researchers who made these steps forward possible this financial year!

Meredith Kupinski has received the NSF CAREER Award for her proposal, "Towards Real-Time Polarimetric Synthesis from Probabilistic Representations." This award is one of the most prestigious honors for pre-tenure faculty, recognizing those who can be academic role models and lead advancements in their field. Prof. Kupinski has since been promoted to Associate Professor of Optical Sciences with tenure. Kupinski said, “all students in this research group: former, current, and future will benefit from this award. Thank you to my colleagues and mentors for bringing out the best in me.”

The Quantum Toolbox project at the University of Arizona's Wyant College of Optical Sciences is an exciting new initiative recently funded through a $25,000 grant from the UArizona Foundation Small Grants Committee. Made possible by the efforts of Dalziel Wilson, Associate Professor of Optical Sciences, and Kaye Rowan, Executive Director of Development, the project creates an independent study course with official enrollment slated for fall 2025. This will be the university's first hands-on quantum course, providing vital experiential learning opportunities for students passionate about quantum science and the growing availability of innovative careers in the quantum field. 

It is with great pleasure that the Wyant College of Optical Sciences announces that two Endowed Chairs in Optical Sciences have been awarded. The establishment of these endowed chairs has been made possible through the generous donations made by Optica and the Thomas R. Brown Family Foundation, and the $20+ million matching pledge made by the late founding dean of the college, Emeritus Professor James C. Wyant, and his family.

At the recent 2024 Wavefront Congress, the late Professor Emeritus Jim Schwiegerling, Robert Shannon Endowed Chair in Optical Sciences, was remembered in a special presentation led by two alumni that he advised. The presentation given on March 8, 2024 was called, "Jim Schwiegerling: The Nicest Professor in the College Also Happens to be Brilliant" and was organized and given by Nathan Lewis, PhD (OSC 2011) and Deanna Moschitta, MS (OSC 2022).

The Wyant College of Optical Sciences announces the establishment of the James T. Schwiegerling Graduate Student Scholarship in Optical Sciences in honor of the late Emeritus Professor of Optical Sciences, Dr. James T. Schwiegerling, Robert Shannon Endowed Chair in Optical Sciences. The deadline for submitting an application for this and other scholarships held at the College is March 17, 2024.

SPIE and Optica have announced Ronald G. Driggers (University of Arizona), Melvin H. Friedman (George Mason University), John W. Devitt (RVS Tactical Products), Orges Furxhi (imec), and Anjali Singh as the 2024 recipients of the Joseph W. Goodman Book Writing Award for their Introduction to Infrared and Electro-Optical Systems, Third Edition. The professional societies have announced the award via press release. Congratulations, to Prof. Ron Driggers and all the authors of the 2024 Joseph W. Goodman Book Writing Award. 

The National Academy of Inventors has named five University of Arizona faculty members as Class of 2024 Senior Members, one of which was Saikat Guha, Professor of Optical Sciences and holder of the Nasser Peyghambarian Endowed Chair in Optical Sciences, as well as Director of the NSF Engineering Research Center for Quantum Networks.