Jérôme Faist awarded the 2019 Julius Springer Prize for Applied Physics

The 2019 Julius Springer Prize for Applied Physics will be awarded to ETH physics professor Jérôme Faist, head of the Quantum Optoelectronics Group at the Institute for Quantum Electronics

by Andreas Heinz Trabesinger
Enlarged view: Jérôme Faist
Jérôme Faist (Photo: ETH Zurich/Heidi Hostettler)

Professor Faist is honored for his work on quantum cascade lasers (QCLs), which he co-invented. QCLs employ a carefully engineered layered structure to overcome the limitations of natural-material semiconductor lasers. This stacked arrangement enables the QCL to emit coherently at wavelengths ranging from the mid- to far-infrared.

QCLs emitting different colors of electromagnetic radiation have efficiently been used to perform rotational and vibrational spectroscopy of gases, liquids and solids. Applications of these devices span across a broad range of domains enabling sensitive detection of greenhouse gases and atmospheric pollutants in programs such as the NASA Airborne Science Program, biochemical imaging for tumor detection, or submillimeter astronomy to study interstellar medium and planetary objects.

Jérôme Faist obtained his Ph.D. in Physics at EPF Lausanne in 1989. Following a postdoctoral stay at IBM Rüschlikon, he joined Bell Laboratories in 1991, where he worked first as a postdoc and then as a member of technical staff. From 1997 to 2007, he was professor in the Physics Institute of the University of Neuchâtel. In 2007, he became professor in the Institute for Quantum Electronics of the ETH Zurich.

His central role in the invention and first demonstration of the QCL laser in 1994 was recognised by the IEE premium award (1995), the IEEE/LEOS William Streifer award (1998), the Michael Lunn award (1999), the ISCS "Young Scientist" award (1999) and the Swiss National Latsis Prize (2003).

Professor Faist's present interests are the development of high performance QCLs in the mid- and far-infrared and the physics of coherence in intersubband transitions in the presence of strong magnetic fields.

(With material from a external pageSpringer media release)

The Julius Springer Prize for Applied Physics  

The Julius Springer Prize for Applied Physics began in 1998 and recognizes researchers who have made an outstanding and innovative contribution to the field of applied physics. In even years the Editors-in-Chief of the journal Applied Physics A – Materials Science & Processing select a winner, and in odd years the Editors-in-Chief of Applied Physics B – Lasers and Optics make the selection. 

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