Dr. Yi Guo Synchronizes Semiconductor Laser Arrays At
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AcAdemic communicAtions & Assessment Provost office stevens institute of technology buzz.stevens.edu facebook.com/StevensRE twitter.com/RE_Stevens Dr. Yi Guo Synchronizes Semiconductor Laser Arrays at Stevens with NSF Grant The National Science Foundation has contemporary and future applications announced funding for Dr. Yi Guo’s to science and industry,” says Dr. Yu- research at Stevens Institute of Tech- Dong Yao, Director of the Electrical and nology into a rigorous mathematical Computer Engineering Department at approach to the analysis and control of Stevens. “Through their focused, math- coupled semiconductor laser systems. Dr. ematical approach, Dr. Guo and her re- Guo, from the Department of Electrical search colleagues will also contribute to and Computer Engineering, will partner our understanding of collective behavior with Dr. Leonid Bunimovich at Geor- benefiting scientists in many disciplines.” gia Institute of Technology, Dr. Yehuda Coupled lasers act as collective struc- Braiman of Oak Ridge National Labo- tures since the devices, each operat- ratory (ORNL), and graduate students ing with a different intrinsic frequency, at Stevens, Georgia Tech, and the Uni- must be synchronized with one another versity of Tennessee-Knoxville. to derive the exponential results offered Dr. Guo and her team are approaching by phase-locked beams. Furthermore, Dr. Yi Guo semiconductor laser arrays as complex a phase-locked system is not necessar- systems exhibiting collective behaviors ily steady, and the synchronization may that can be measured and manipulated degenerate to incoherence. Despite these institutions, and will apply this cutting to achieve desirable results. Since the complexities, laser arrays are also inter- edge research to classroom instruction. 1950s, diverse researchers have been active and controllable, with distinctly Dr. Braiman’s laser facility at ORNL will studying collective systems and structures measurable outputs and results. Syn- also provide the research team’s associate to observe and quantify behavior at the chronizing the arrays thus provides the graduate students with unique hands-on individual agent and system levels. De- research team an opportunity to system- learning experiences. Dr. Guo is espe- spite recent progress in the study of these atically test their mathematical model of cially invested in encouraging women to system behaviors, analysis has historically collective behavior while solving the real- pursue careers in science and engineer- been limited to organizations and struc- world problem of collective synchroniza- ing, and will continue to provide men- tures that produce feedback linearly or tion of laser devices. toring and leadership to female scientists offer static observations. Research in laser “The potential applications of this re- at Stevens and elsewhere. arrays has also demonstrated limitations search go beyond the boundaries of Dr. in the science, as many studies assume all Guo’s own research and could be applied devices in a system are identical, which is widely to predict behavior in complex not an accurate representation of realistic systems studied by biologists, physicists, scenarios. computer scientists, and other scholars,” Collective behavior is a complex but says Dr. Michael Bruno, Dean of the familiar phenomenon, observable in gene Charles V. Schaefer, Jr. School of En- and neuron development, the flocking of gineering and Science. “Her work puts birds, and the operation of man-made Stevens at the cutting edge of multiple structures such as large power distribu- developing research fronts.” tion systems, transportation networks, In addition to the research component and computer sensor components. Al- of the NSF grant, Dr. Guo and the other though relationships between objects researchers will conduct educational in these complex systems have been de- outreach to K-12 teachers and students Additional information about Dr. Guo’s scribed, the possibility of working with a through the Center for Innovation in ground-breaking research is available at laser array presents a unique opportunity Engineering and Science Education at her research profile. Students wanting to to precisely analyze collective behavior in Stevens. Dr. Guo and Dr. Bunimovich pursue careers in this exciting field are en- a highly-controlled environment. both teach fundamental undergraduate couraged to visit the Electrical and Com- “Semiconductor lasers have many and graduate courses at their respective puter Engineering website or Admissions. ©2010 Stevens Institute of Technology • Castle Point on Hudson • Hoboken, NJ 07030 • [email protected].