Martini contributes major article to Optics Encyclopedia

HOBOKEN, N.J. - A Stevens Institute of Technology Assistant Professor of Physics/Engineering Physics will contribute a major article to the 2004 edition of the prestigious Encyclopedia of Modern Optics, to be published next August in a five-volume set (and online) by Elsevier Science.

Dr. Rainer Martini will contribute an article of 3,000-4,000 words on the topic of "free space optical communications," an area that is his research specialty at Stevens. Martini is currently the director of the Ultrafast Laser Spectroscopy and High-Speed Communication Lab, which seeks to advance the next generation of mid-infrared, laser-based telecommunications technology.

"We are proud that a member of our department was called upon to share his expertise in the Encyclopedia," said Dr. Kurt Becker, Director of Stevens' Department of Physics/Engineering Physics. "Rainer's background in both industry and academia is a tremendous asset to Stevens; and, increasingly, it is recognized internationally."

Martini has been closely involved in research to advance Quantum Cascade Laser (QCL), technology, a field that is exactly 10 years old. QCL was first proposed and demonstrated in 1993 at Bell Labs, New Providence, N.J., by Dr. Federico Capasso, now at Harvard University, who remains the premier expert in the field. Five years ago, Cappasso hired Martini to work at Lucent-Bell Labs. Simultaneously, Martini began his relationship with Stevens' Physics/Engineering Physics Department, having come to the United States from the Rhein-Westphalian Technical Institute in Aachen, Germany, where he performed pioneering work in Terahertz radiation and earned his doctorate. He has worked closely at Stevens with Dr. Ed Whittaker in the Physics Department, in collaboration with teams of outside experts.

Other major applications for QCL are in the areas of spectroscopy and materials testing - promising revolutionary advances also in these fields.

For more on the work of Dr. Martini and his team, please visit 155.246.65.27

Included in the Encyclopedia of Modern Optics will be coverage of the principles of light and optics, lasers, optical fibers, and optical fiber systems, optical materials and LED's, and applications of all these in control and manufacturing, data processing and storage, as well as applications in environment, engineering, defense, ocean study, medicine and biology.

The encyclopedia will be divided into 3000-4000 word articles with large subject areas being sub-divided and covered by a number of articles. Each article is explained at a level intended to be understood by an undergraduate and 'educated lay-person,' and information will be presented with extensive cross-referencing and a list of further reading to point users to more in-depth or advanced material.

About Stevens Institute of Technology

Founded in 1870, Stevens Institute of Technology is one of the leading technological universities in the world dedicated to learning and research. Through its broad-based curricula, nurturing of creative inventiveness, and cross disciplinary research, the Institute is at the forefront of global challenges in engineering, science, and technology management. Partnerships and collaboration between, and among, business, industry, government and other universities contribute to the enriched environment of the Institute. A new model for technology commercialization in academe, known as Technogenesis®, involves external partners in launching business enterprises to create broad opportunities and shared value.

Stevens offers baccalaureates, master’s and doctoral degrees in engineering, science, computer science and management, in addition to a baccalaureate degree in the humanities and liberal arts, and in business and technology. The university has a total enrollment of 2,150 undergraduate and 3,500 graduate students, with about 250 full-time faculty. Stevens’ graduate programs have attracted international participation from China, India, Southeast Asia, Europe and Latin America. Additional information may be obtained from its web page at www.stevens.edu.  

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