John Bowers: We are still at the dawn of photonics

Professor John Bowers has been a key contributing figure in the development of silicon photonics. In an interview, he reflects on his career, the technical advancements shaping silicon photonics, and its expanding role.

After 38 years at the University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB), Professor John Bowers (pictured) is stepping away from teaching and administrative roles to focus on research.

He welcomes the time it will free for biking and golf. He will also be able to linger, not rush, when travelling. On a recent trip to Saudi Arabia, what would have centered around a day-event became a week-long visit.

Bowers' career includes significant contributions to laser integration and silicon photonics, mentoring some 85 PhD students, and helping found six start-ups, two of which he was the CEO.

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Mario Paniccia: We are just at the beginning

Silicon photonics luminaries series

Interview 2: Mario Paniccia

 

Talking about his time heading Intel’s silicon photonics development programme, Mario Paniccia, spotlights a particularly creative period between 2002 and 2008.  

 

During that time, his Intel team had six silicon photonics papers published in the science journals, Nature and Nature Photonics, and held several world records - for the fastest modulator, first at 1 gigabit, then 10 gigabit and finally 40 gigabit, the first pulsed and continuous-wave Raman silicon laser, the first hybrid silicon laser working with The University of California, Santa Barbara, and the fastest silicon germanium photo-detector operating at 40 gigabit.

 

“These [achievements] were all in one place, labs within 100 yards of each other; you had to pinch yourself sometimes,” he says.

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