Charles K. Kao
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Charles K. Kao 高錕 | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | 4 November 1933 |
| Citizenship | United States United Kingdom[1] |
| Alma mater | St. Joseph's College Woolwich Polytechnic (now the University of Greenwich) Imperial College London |
| Known for | Fiber optics |
| Awards | Liebmann Award (1978) Bell Medal (1985) Faraday Medal (1989) McGroddy Prize (1989) Prince Philip Medal (1996) Japan Prize (1996) Draper Prize (1999) Nobel Prize in Physics (2009) |
| Scientific career | |
| Fields | Optics |
| Institutions | Chinese University of Hong Kong ITT Corporation Standard Telephones and Cables |
Professor Charles K. Kao CBE FRS[2] FREng[3] (Chinese: 高錕; Kao Kuen; born 4 November 1933) is an engineer and a pioneer in the use of fiber optics in telecommunications. Kao, widely regarded as the "Father of Fiber Optic Communications",[4][5][6] was awarded half of the 2009 Nobel Prize in Physics for "groundbreaking achievements concerning the transmission of light in fibers for optical communication".[7]
Biography
He was born in Shanghai (currently Jinshan District of Shanghai) in 1933. His father was a lawyer. His grandfather was Kao Choi-Wan (Gao Chuiwan, 高吹萬), a famous poet, revolutionary, literator, and was a key figure of Nan Society (South Society, 南社) in late Qing Dynasty. His father's uncle was astronomer Ping-Tse Kao (高平子, Kao Crater is named after him). He has a young brother named Kao Woo (高鋙).[8]
Kao's family moved to Hong Kong in 1948. He completed his secondary education at St. Joseph's College in Hong Kong. He then graduated in electrical engineering in 1957 from Woolwich Polytechnic (now the University of Greenwich) but received his degree from University of London[9] and obtained his PhD degree in electrical engineering in 1965, from Imperial College London[10][11][12][13](at that time a constituent college of the University of London).
While studying for his PhD degree, Kao also worked as an engineer for Standard Telephones and Cables (STC) at their Standard Telecommunications Laboratories research centre in Harlow, England (now Nortel Networks).
Kao did his groundbreaking work at STL where he was a young engineer and researcher. Since leaving STL, he has worked as director of research at ITT Corporation.
He joined the Chinese University of Hong Kong in 1970, to found the electrical engineering department. He then went back to ITT during 1970s and worked in United States before served as the university's Vice-Chancellor from 1987 to 1996.[14]
He then worked as the CEO of Transtech. He is currently Chairman and CEO of ITX Services. He resides in Hong Kong and United States as of 2009. He often traveled to United States to visit his family.
Kao was awarded the Nobel Prize of Physics for his contributions to the study of the transmission of light in fibers for optical communication on October 6, 2009 [15].
In 1966, along with George Hockham, Kao did his pioneering work in the realisation of fiber optics as a telecommunications medium, by demonstrating that the high-loss of existing fiber optics arose from impurities in the glass, rather than from an underlying problem with the technology itself[16]. Kao and his colleagues not only considered the optical physics but also the material properties. Their results were first presented by Kao in early 1966 and further published in June.
Kao concluded that the fundamental limitation for glass light attenuation is below 20 dB/km (Decibels per Kilometer, is a measure of the attenuation of a signal over a distance), which is a key threshold value for optical communications. This conclusion opened the drastic race to find low-loss materials and suitable fibers for such communication.
Kao, together with his new team (members including T.W. Davies, M.W. Jones, and C.R. Wright), pursued this goal by testing various materials. They precisely measured the attenuation of light with different wavelengths in glasses and other materials. During this period, Kao pointed out that the high purity of fused silica (SiO2) made it an ideal candidate for optical communication. This immediately stimulated a worldwide study and production of low-loss glass fibers.[11]
Kao also played a key role in the engineering and commercial realisation of optical communication.
Honors and awards
Academic offices
- Life Fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, USA. (1979)[17]
- Fellow of Royal Society (1997 election)
- Fellow of Royal Academy of Engineering (1989 election)
- Academician of Academia Sinica[18] (1992 election)
- Fellow of Hong Kong Academy of Engineering Sciences, Hong Kong
- Foreign Member of Chinese Academy of Sciences (1996 election)
- Member of European Academy of Sciences and Arts
- Member of the United States National Academy of Engineering (1990 election)
- Foreign Member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences
- Honorary Fellow of Queen Mary, University of London.[19]
- Honorary Professor of the Chinese University of Hong Kong (1996)[20]
- Honorary DCL of Durham University (1994)[21]
- Honorary Doctor of the Chinese University of Hong Kong (1985)
- Doctor of Science Honoris Causa of University of Greenwich (2002)[9]
Awards
- 1976: The Morey Award, American Ceramic Society, USA.
- 1977: The Stewart Ballantine Medal, Franklin Institute, USA.
- 1978: The Rank Prize, Rank Trust Fund, UK.
- 1978: The IEEE Morris N. Liebmann Memorial Award.
- 1979: The L. M. Ericsson International Prize, Sweden.
- 1980: The Gold Medal, AFCEA, USA.
- 1985: The IEEE Alexander Graham Bell Medal.
- 1985: The Marconi International Scientist Award, Marconi Foundation, USA.
- 1985: The Columbus Medal of the City of Genoa, Italy.
- 1987: The C & C Prize, Foundation for Communication and Computer Promotion, Japan.
- 1989: The Faraday Medal, Institute of Electrical Engineers, UK.
- 1989: The James C. McGroddy Prize for New Materials, American Physical Society (APS)[22].
- 1992: The Gold Medal of the Society, SPIE [23].
- 1993: The Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (CBE).
- 1995: The Gold Medal for Engineering Excellence, The World Federation of Engineering Organizations (WFEO), UK.
- 1996: The Prince Philip Medal of the Royal Academy of Engineering; in recognition of "his pioneering work which led to the invention of optical fibre and for his leadership in its engineering and commercial realisation; and for his distinguished contribution to higher education in Hong Kong".
- 1996: The 12th Japan Prize; "for pioneering research on wide-band, low-loss optical fiber communications".
- The 3463 Kaokuen, discovered in 1981, named after Kao in 1996.
- 1999: The Charles Stark Draper Prize (co-recipient with Robert D. Maurer and John B. MacChesney).
- 2006: The HKIE Gold Medal Award (HKIE: The Hong Kong Institute of Engineers).
- 2009: Kao was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics (1/2 of the prize); "for groundbreaking achievements concerning the transmission of light in fibers for optical communication".
References
- ^ http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/physics/laureates/2009/press.html
- ^ http://royalsociety.org/trackdoc.asp?id=4275&pId=1727
- ^ http://www.raeng.org.uk/about/fellowship/fellowslist.htm?Search=Yes&Alpha=All&Page=37&Size=20
- ^ 光 纤 之 父 -- 高 锟 教 授 (The father of optical fiber — Prof. C. K. Kao) from networkchinese.com Template:Zh icon
- ^ ASIANOW - Asiaweek | Asian of the Century | Charles K. Kao | 12/10/99
- ^ Prof. Charles K Kao speaks on the impact of IT in Hong Kong from ouhk.edu.hk
- ^ The Nobel Prize in Physics 2009, Nobel Foundation, 2009-10-06, retrieved 2009-10-06.
- ^ EastDay News, 高锟个人简历 (The biography of Charles K. Kao)
- ^ a b "meantimealumni Spring 2005" (PDF). University of Greenwich. Retrieved 2009-10-07.
- ^ "FACTBOX - Nobel physics prize - Who are the winners?". Reuters. 2009-10-06. Retrieved 2009-10-06.
- ^ a b Nobelprize.org, Nobel Prize in Physics 2009 Scientific Background (pdf.): Two revolutionary optical technologies - Optical fiber with high transmission
- ^ http://physicsworld.com/cws/article/news/40602
- ^ http://www.guardian.co.uk/science/2009/oct/06/nobel-prize-physics-charles-kao
- ^ CUHK Handbook
- ^ http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/physics/laureates/2009/
- ^ K.C. Kao and G.A. Hockham, “Dielectric-Fibre Surface Waveguides for optical frequencies”
- ^ http://www.ieee.org/web/membership/fellows/Alphabetical/kfellows.html
- ^ https://db1n.sinica.edu.tw/textdb/ioconas/sfellowN.php?lang=ch&str2=ID Template:Zh icon
- ^ http://www.qmw.ac.uk/alumni/publications/e_newsletter/issue15_August2008.html
- ^ 高錕校長榮休誌念各界歡送惜別依依, a September 1996 article from the Chinese University of Hong Kong alumni website Template:Zh icon
- ^ http://www.dur.ac.uk/resources/university.calendar/volumei/current/honorary_degrees.pdf
- ^ APS 1989 James C. McGroddy Prize for New Materials Recipient from the American Physical Society
- ^ SPIE: The Gold Medal of the Society
Further reading
- Hecht, Jeff (1999), City of Light, The Story of Fiber Optics, New York: Oxford University Press, ISBN 0195108183
External links
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