Optica Appoints Judith Dawes to Editorial Role: People in the News: 2/7/24

Optica has appointed Judith M. Dawes as the editor-in-chief of Optics Continuum, effective March 1. Dawes takes over for Takashige Omatsu, who led the journal as the founding editor since 2018. Dawes is a professor of physics at Macquarie University in Sydney with research interests in laser physics, nanophotonics, and laser applications in medicine and communications. She has made significant contributions to research on Yb:YAB crystals and the invention of a laser-cured protein solder for laser microsurgery. She is a fellow of SPIE, the Royal Society of New South Wales, and Optica, as well as its director-at-large.

Judith M. Dawes. Courtesy of Optica.

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Sir Peter L. Knight has been named an Optica Honorary Member for his contributions to quantum optics. His investigations of quantum optics, strong field physics, and nonclassical properties of light culminated in the theoretical foundations of quantum computing and quantum information science. Knight is currently an emeritus professor of physics at the Imperial College of London, and serves as chair of the U.K. National Quantum Technology Programme Strategic Advisory Board, and chair of the National Physical Laboratory Quantum Metrology Institute. Honorary Membership is awarded by a unanimous vote of the Optica board of directors to individuals who have made seminal contributions to the field of optics.

Sir Peter L. Knight. Courtesy of Optica.

ORLANDO, Fla. — Photonics technology company LightPath Technologies added former Space Force CTO Kim Crider to its board of directors. Crider has served as a member of the board of directors for the National Cybersecurity Center since July 2021, and for the Catalyst Campus for Technology & Innovation since January 2022. She also serves as a board advisor for Aalyria Technologies, Inc., a position she has held since January 2022. She is a founding partner of Elara Nova Space Consultancy and has served as co-CEO since its inception in May of last year.

ZURICH — ABB’s board of directors will propose Johan Forssell and Mats Rahmström as members for election at the company’s annual general meeting on March 21. Forssell most recently served as president and CEO of Investor AB before transitioning to an industrial advisor. Rahmström most recently served as president and CEO of Atlas Copco Group. The proposition comes after board members Jacob Wallenberg and Gunnar Brock decided not to stand for reelection.

SOMERVILLE, Mass. — NODAR, a developer of stereo vision technology for autonomous vehicles, added Ingo Stuermer to its advisory board. Stuermer previously served as senior vice president of advanced driver-assistance systems/autonomous driving at CARIAD, and was also the head of the Bosch/Volkswagen software alliance for SAE Level 2+ and Level 3 automated driving for electric vehicles. He has also served as vice president of operations at Artemis GmbH.