Robert L. Byer

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Robert L. Byer

Robert L. Byer (born May 9, 1942 in Glendale , California ) is an American physicist who studies laser physics and nonlinear optics.

Life

Byer studied at the University of California, Berkeley (including in the laboratory of Sumner P. Davis), with a bachelor's degree in 1964 and (after working at Spectra Physics in Mountain View 1964/65) at Stanford University with a master's degree in Applied Physics in 1967 and PhD in 1969 with Stephen E. Harris . In the same year he became an Assistant Professor , 1974 Associate Professor and 1979 Professor at Stanford. In 1974 he became a Sloan Research Fellow . From 1980 to 1983 and from 1999 to 2002 he headed the Department of Applied Physics. From 1987 to 1992 he was Vice Provost and Dean for Research and from 1992 to 2000 Director of the Center for Nonlinear Optical Materials . From 1997 to 2006 he was director of the Hansen Experimental Physics Laboratory and from 2006 to 2009 of the Edward L. Ginzton Laboratory . Since 2000 he has been co-director of the Stanford Photonics Research Center.

He is married and has four kids. From 1989 to 1992 he served on the editorial board of the Journal of Applied Physics and Applied Physics Letters and from 2002 to 2006 of the Proceedings of the IEEE .

plant

He demonstrated the first tunable parametric oscillator in the visible spectrum ( optical parametric oscillator , OPO) and developed an Nd: YAG laser (neodymium-doped yttrium-aluminum-garnet laser) with an unstable resonator and Q-switch , which Quanta Ray uses in lasers found for remote observation, and precision spectroscopy with coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering ( Coherent Anti Stokes Raman Scattering , CARS).

In 1984 he developed a Nd: YAG laser with a non-planar ring oscillator (NPRO). Its frequency stability has been used, for example, in lasers for gravitational wave detectors. Also in 1984 he developed diode laser-pumped Nd: YAG lasers.

He researches nonlinear optical materials and solid-state lasers pumped with diode lasers with applications on gravitational wave detectors ( LIGO , LISA ) and particle acceleration with lasers ( Laser Electron Accelerator Program , LEAP).

He has published over 500 scientific articles (2011) and holds around 50 patents. He co-founded Lightwaves Electronics Corporation in 1984, Quanta Ray Incorporated in 1975, and Mobius Photonics in 2005 .

Honors and memberships

From 2010 he was Vice President of the American Physical Society , of which he has been a Fellow since 1992. He is a member of the National Academy of Sciences (2000), the National Academy of Engineering (1987), the American Association for the Advancement of Science (1992) and Fellow of the Optical Society of America (1976), of which he was President in 1994/95 , and the IEEE ( Laser and Electro-optics Society of the IEEE, of which he was President 1984/85).

From 1995 to 1999 he chaired the California Council for Science and Technology (CCST), which he co-founded in 1989.

He has served on the National Ignition Facility's Advisory Board since 2000 and on the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory's Program Committee from 1992 to 1995.

literature

  • Byer, Surfing Lightwaves, Frederic Ives Lecture, Frontiers in Optics, 2009, Online, pdf, 12 MB

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ S. Brosnan, R. Byer: Optical parametric oscillator threshold and linewidth studies . In: IEEE Journal of Quantum Electronics . tape 15 , no. 6 , June 1979, pp. 415-431 , doi : 10.1109 / JQE.1979.1070027 . An Nd: YAG-pumped LiNbO 3 -OPO with a wavelength of 1.4 to 4.3 micrometers that can be tuned in the infrared. It was used in atmospheric measurements.
  2. ↑ RL Herbst, H. Komine, RL Byer: A 200 mJ unstable resonator Nd: YAG oscillator . In: Optics Communications . tape 21 , no. 1 , April 1977, p. 5-7 , doi : 10.1016 / 0030-4018 (77) 90063-3 .
  3. ↑ He dealt with OPOs in the early 1970s, e. BH Kildal, RL Byer: Comparison of laser methods for the remote detection of atmospheric pollutants . In: Proceedings of the IEEE . tape 59 , no. December 12 , 1971, p. 1644-1663 , doi : 10.1109 / PROC.1971.8522 .
  4. ↑ Thomas J. Kane, Robert L. Byer: Monolithic, unidirectional single-mode Nd: YAG ring laser . In: Optics Letters . tape 10 , no. 2 , February 1, 1985, p. 65-67 , doi : 10.1364 / OL.10.000065 .
  5. ↑ Bingkun Zhou, Thomas J. Kane, George J. Dixon, Robert L. Byer: Efficient, frequency-stable laser-diode-pumped Nd: YAG laser . In: Optics Letters . tape 10 , no. 2 , February 1, 1985, p. 62-64 , doi : 10.1364 / OL.10.000062 .
personal data
SURNAME Byer, Robert L.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American physicist
DATE OF BIRTH May 9, 1942
PLACE OF BIRTH Glendale , California