Session U28: Innovations from Industry

From Innovation to the Marketplace: The Role of a Physicist

Science has and continues to change the world. The process through which this happens is varied, complex, and fascinating. I believe that a physics education equips one to navigate and expedite this process, from innovation, to technology maturation, and ultimately to production and commercialization. Furthermore, I feel that this is especially true in an entrepreneurial, small business setting. As a physics Ph.D., then co-founder and now CEO of Vescent Photonics, I have been a part of each step. I will share examples from my personal professional journey that illustrate this progression. Examples will include non-mechanical laser beamsteerers, first invented in my garage and then sold to a large public company for automotive markets, laser systems for quantum systems such as clocks and computers, and a variety of electronic and electro-optic technologies. I will highlight examples where my physics training proved invaluable in both obvious but also less obvious ways. Participating in the journey from the spark of an idea to a manufacturing line could not be more meaningful. I continue to rely on the physics training of both myself and my employees to play and profit in this process.   

Google Quantum Computing’s Many Paths

TBD   

Pake Prize: A Physics Career in Industry

I speak about my own experiences as a physicist in industry (GE) for 45 years. I begin with a general look at US R&D expenditures in industry compared to academia and government in the recent past and how these expenditures divide among basic research, applied research, and development. I then focus down to physics: recent US expenditures and how physicists have chosen and think about their career in the recent past. Then I focus further to my own career in industry and my learnings. Finally, I use superconductivity and MRI (magnetic resonance imaging) to illustrate examples of my learnings as a physicist in industry.   

Academia to Entrepreneurship- Who is this for?

There has been a sea change over the last few decades in the way academic institutions view entrepreneurial activities of the faculty and the role of the Institution in fostering an ecosystem conducive to such activities. This has become a global phenomenon and many of the leading Institutions in Europe and Asia are also beginning to replicate the model of the Boston or Silicon Valley academic Institutions. This clearly presents a wonderful opportunity for those who want to strike out on their own as opposed to waiting for someone else to offer them a job. This is the transition from a job seeker to a job creator. Are entrepreneurs born or made? In my observation, a much higher proportion of graduate students/ post docs ought to become entrepreneurs as the qualities required for a successful entrepreneur are possessed by a fairly large proportion of students than they realize. In my talk I will discuss a variety of models that are available to the academic entrepreneur, their pluses and minuses and also some of the critical knowledge one needs to understand about the world of entrepreneurship in general. I will use examples from several of my students and colleagues’ startups and my own experience in running a company for over three decades amidst an academic career.
  

Rocket Science is Just Cool

Why yes, this is rocket science…

How do astronauts, satellites, and payloads get into space? What does NASA’s mission to Mars look like? What does a rocket scientist really do? This presentation will provide a behind the scenes look at the engineering and physics of past and current space missions using solid rocket motors from the perspective of a rocket scientist. Learn about the ins and outs of her career path and discover what it really takes to be a rocket scientist. The foundation developed in an academic career in physics or engineering will provide a strong background required for launching your career as a rocket scientist.