Croucher senior research fellow receives Nick Holonyak Jr Award
Chair Professor Kei May Lau (Croucher Senior Research Fellowship 2008), of Hong Kong University of Science & Technology (HKUST), has been named the 2020 recipient of the Optical Society’s prestigious Nick Holonyak Jr Award.
Lau was recognised for her outstanding contributions to optics, in particular, research on heteroepitaxy of compound semiconductors on silicon for future integrated lasers and advancing the field of light-emitting diode microdisplays.
Optical Society President Stephen Fantone said: “Kei May Lau’s work on semiconductor-based optical devices and materials exemplifies the spirit of the Nick Holonyak Jr Award. Her contributions in the advancement of science and technological applications are very significant.”
Lau’s research focuses on the development of monolithic telecommunication-band diode lasers directly grown on (001) silicon substrates. Her work combines innovation in metalorganic chemical vapour deposition (MOCVD)-based growth of heterostructure materials, with insights into both device physics and fabrication to improve device performance and effective multi-device integration.
Kei May Lau’s work on semiconductor-based optical devices and materials exemplifies the spirit of the Nick Holonyak Jr Award. Her contributions in the advancement of science and technological applications are very significant.
The benefits of integrating high-performance III-V based devices onto a silicon substrate leverage the enormous capabilities and infrastructure of the silicon complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (Si CMOS) industry, extending them to photonic and electronic integrated devices/circuadobeits at high frequencies.
The leading Hong Kong engineer received her higher education in the United States, with BS and MS degrees in physics from the University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, and a PhD degree in Electrical Engineering from Rice University, Texas. She joined the Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) faculty at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and, since 2000, has worked in the ECE Department at HKUST, where she serves as Fang Professor of Engineering.
Lau is a Fellow of the Optical Society, Hong Kong Academy of Engineering Science, and Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). She received her Croucher Senior Research Fellowship in 2008 and the IEEE Photonics Society Aron Kressel Award in 2017.
Established in 1997, the Nick Holonyak Jr Award recognises significant contributions to optics based on semiconductor-based optical devices and materials, including basic science and technological applications.
To view Professor Lau’s Croucher profile, please click here.