Retirement of Prof. David C. Hanna
Posted on 2007-11-10 as part of the Photonics Spotlight (available as e-mail newsletter!)
Permanent link: https://www.rp-photonics.com/spotlight_2007_11_10.html
Author: Dr. Rüdiger Paschotta, RP Photonics AG, RP Photonics AG
Abstract: Prof. David C. Hanna of the Optoelectronics Research Centre has retired from his position, which he held for many years. The ORC and the international photonics community are greatly indebted to this person.
Yesterday, there was the valedictory talk and retirement reception of Prof. David C. Hanna at the Optoelectronics Research Centre (ORC) in Southampton, UK. Dave Hanna is an important and widely respected person in the laser physics community. He has brought essential contributions to the formation of the ORC within the University of Southampton, where he served as a deputy director for many years. He started and supported a large range of interesting research projects in Southampton, and also served the international photonics community e.g. as a director-at-large of the Optical Society of America. Many rewards reflect his success, including the Max Born Medal of the German Physical Society, the Quantum Electronics Prize of the European Physical Society, and the Charles Hard Townes Award of the Optical Society of America.
I myself had the great pleasure of working with Dave during a bit more than two years in the mid 1990s, when I was a post-doc in the ORC. The many inspiring discussions with him, covering issues in photonics, but sometimes also quite different subjects such as music, left a deep impression. Certainly, he was one of the key factors contributing to a very productive and pleasant time in that institute.
Dave is also one of my favorite counter-examples, when I hear some people claiming that successful careers in research are open only to the tough and ruthless characters, who focus on their personal success and don't care about other people, nor about other aspects of life. Being widely respected for both this success as a researcher and his cultured character, Dave Hanna can certainly serve as a good example for many.
This article is a posting of the Photonics Spotlight, authored by Dr. Rüdiger Paschotta. You may link to this page and cite it, because its location is permanent. See also the RP Photonics Encyclopedia.
Note that you can also receive the articles in the form of a newsletter or with an RSS feed.
Questions and Comments from Users
Here you can submit questions and comments. As far as they get accepted by the author, they will appear above this paragraph together with the author’s answer. The author will decide on acceptance based on certain criteria. Essentially, the issue must be of sufficiently broad interest.
Please do not enter personal data here. (See also our privacy declaration.) If you wish to receive personal feedback or consultancy from the author, please contact him, e.g. via e-mail.
By submitting the information, you give your consent to the potential publication of your inputs on our website according to our rules. (If you later retract your consent, we will delete those inputs.) As your inputs are first reviewed by the author, they may be published with some delay.
Share this with your network:
Follow our specific LinkedIn pages for more insights and updates: