American engineer (born 1959)
Peter J. Delfyett Jr (born March 8, 1959) is an American engineer and Pegasus Professor and Trustee Chair Professor of Optics, ECE & Physics at the University of Central Florida College of Optics and Photonics .
He was awarded the 1996 Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers .
He is a Fellow of the American Physical Society and The Optical Society . Delfyett was also elected a member of the National Academy of Engineering in 2021 for contributions to development and commercialization of low-noise, high-power ultrafast semiconductor lasers.
Early life and education
Delfyett, who is African-American , was born in Queens, New York .[ 1] When he was in his first grade he was taken to see the film Journey to the Beginning of Time .[ 2] As a child he played the drums and basketball .[ 2] He attended the City College of New York , where he studied electrical engineering . Whilst he was a sophomore Delfyett became interested in optics.[ 3] He was mentored by Robert Alfano .[ 2] He moved to the University of Rochester for his graduate studies, where he earned a master's degree in 1983. After graduating he returned to the City College of New York for a doctoral degree, re-joining the laboratory of Alfano .[ 2] [ 4] His doctoral research focussed on ultrafast spectroscopy. After graduating, Delfyett joined Bell Communication Research (now Iconectiv ) where he worked on semiconductor lasers .[ 5] At Bellcore, Delfyett created the highest power mode-locked diode laser in the world.[ 5] [ 6]
Research and career
In 1993 Delfyett moved to the University of Central Florida College of Optics and Photonics (CREOL), where he was made the Professor of Optics and Photonics.[ 1] [ 7] Here he established an Ultrafast Photonics group who worked on semiconductor lasers . He developed the semiconductor laser diode that could achieve the shortest and most intense laser pulse in the world.[ 2]
Academic service
Delfyett was a founding member of the National Science Foundation Scientists and Engineers in the School Program. He has served as Editor-in-Chief of the IEEE Journal of Selected Topics in Quantum Electronics and the IEEE Photonics Technology Letters. From 2005-2007 Delfyett served as Director at Large on The Optical Society Board of Directors. In 2020 Delfyett joined the Optica Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Rapid Action Committee.[ 8]
Awards and honors
Selected publications
Delfyett, Peter J.; Gee, Sangyoun; Choi, Myoung-Taek; Izadpanah, Hossein; Lee, Wangkuen; Ozharar, Sarper; Quinlan, Franklyn; Yilmaz, Tolga (2006-07-01). "Optical Frequency Combs From Semiconductor Lasers and Applications in Ultrawideband Signal Processing and Communications" . Journal of Lightwave Technology . 24 (7): 2701. Bibcode :2006JLwT...24.2701D . doi :10.1109/JLT.2006.875948 . S2CID 42753039 .
Delfyett, P.J.; Florez, L.T.; Stoffel, N.; Gmitter, T.; Andreadakis, N.C.; Silberberg, Y.; Heritage, J.P.; Alphonse, G.A. (1992). "High-power ultrafast laser diodes" . IEEE Journal of Quantum Electronics . 28 (10): 2203– 2219. Bibcode :1992IJQE...28.2203D . doi :10.1109/3.159528 . ISSN 1558-1713 .
Shi, H.; Finlay, J.; Alphonse, G.A.; Connolly, J.C.; Delfyett, P.J. (1997). "Multiwavelength 10-GHz picosecond pulse generation from a single-stripe semiconductor diode laser" . IEEE Photonics Technology Letters . 9 (11): 1439– 1441. Bibcode :1997IPTL....9.1439S . doi :10.1109/68.634701 . ISSN 1941-0174 . S2CID 40556512 .
References
External links
International National Academics