Olav Solgaard

Olav Solgaard earned his Ph.D. degree from Stanford University in 1992. His doctoral dissertation: “Integrated Semiconductor Light Modulators for Fiber-optic and Display Applications” was the basis for the establishment of a Silicon Valley firm Silicon Light Machines (SLM), co-founded by Dr. Solgaard in 1994. From 1992 to 1995 he carried out research on optical MEMS as a Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of California, Berkeley, and in 1995, he joined the Electrical Engineering faculty of the University of California, Davis. His work at UC Davis led to the invention of the multi-wavelength, fiber-optical switch, which has been developed into commercial products by several companies. In 1999 he joined Stanford University where he is now Professor of Electrical Engineering and the Director of the Edward L. Ginzton Laboratory. Professor Solgaard’s research interests include Optical MEMS, Photonic Crystals, Atomic Force Microscopy, and solar energy conversion. He has authored more than 300 technical publications and holds 50 patents. Professor Solgaard came to Stanford with the support of a Royal Norwegian Council for Scientific and Industrial Research Fellowship in 1986 and was named a Terman Fellow at Stanford for the period 1999-2002. He is a Fellow of the Optical Society of America, the Royal Norwegian Society of Sciences and Letters, and the Norwegian Academy of Technological Sciences.