Abstract
In this talk, you will learn something about the science of light, especially when it goes in circle, how laser light can sometimes appear white or vice versa, and why it matters for modern technological breakthroughs and could make your comb look like an old relic. I will also share some of my personal journey and how I came to be here, today, in this position. Some sheer work and passion for sure, the fun and unpredictable turns along the way, but also the many serendipitous encounters with amazing people, and – one must recognize it – a good dose of luck. Finally, you will discover how my family and upbringing may have shaped me, the seemingly random events that brought me to New Zealand, and my not-so-subtle connection to the Lord of the Rings. The talk will be complemented with a typographical interlude.
About the speaker
Stéphane grew up in Brussels, Belgium, and earned his PhD in 1999 from the Université Libre de Bruxelles (ULB) under the supervision of Prof. Marc Haelterman, working on nonlinear optical effects in passive fibre resonators. He then moved to New Zealand for an eighteen-month postdoctoral fellowship with Prof. John D. Harvey at The University of Auckland, where he investigated supercontinuum generation in then-new photonic crystal fibres. After a further period in Brussels, he joined The University of Auckland as a Lecturer in December 2003. In Auckland, following the completion of an extensive Review on supercontinuum generation, he returned to nonlinear resonators, where he played a central role in the first observation of temporal cavity solitons and in identifying their key role in microresonator-based optical frequency combs. His later studies focussed on the spontaneous symmetry breaking of optical fields, and he is now harnessing this fundamental phenomenon to develop an optical Ising machine, a new type of analog computer that exploits the unique properties of light to solve complex combinatorial problems.
