Professor Evelyn Hu is the Tarr-Coyne Professor of Applied Physics and of Electrical Engineering at the John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences at Harvard University. In addition to her professorship, she is currently a Co-Director of the Harvard Quantum Initiative. Prior to Harvard, Professor Hu was a faculty member at University of California, Santa Barbara (UCSB), in the Departments of Materials, and of Electrical and Computer Engineering. While at UCSB, she also served as the founding Scienti¬c co-Director of the California NanoSystems Institute, a joint initiative between UCSB and University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). Before joining UCSB, she worked at Bell Labs in both Holmdel and Murray Hill.

Professor Hu received Ph.D. and Master’s degrees in Physics from Columbia University and a B.A. in Physics from Barnard College.

Professor Hu’s research focuses on high-resolution fabrication of compound semiconductor electronic and optoelectronic devices, candidate structures for the realization of quantum computation schemes, and on novel device structures formed through the heterogeneous integration of materials. She has also developed biological approaches to the formation of electronic and photonic materials.

Her research matches nanofabrication techniques with the integration of materials that allow the formation of structures and devices that demonstrate exceptional electronic and photonic behavior. This behavior can give rise to efficient, controlled and often coherent output of devices. One example of this is the focus on coupling artificial atoms, such as quantum dots or color centers in diamond, to carefully-crafted nanoscale optical cavities.

Professor Hu is a member of the National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the Academia Sinica of Taiwan, a recipient of an NSF Distinguished Teaching Fellow award, an AAAS Lifetime Mentor Award, a Fellow of the IEEE, APS, and the AAAS. She holds an honorary Doctorate of Engineering from the University of Glasgow and an honorary Doctorate of Science from Heriot Watt University.

Education

• Ph.D. in Physics, Columbia University (1975)
• M.A. in Physics, Columbia University (1971)

• B.A. in Physics, Barnard College (summa cum laude) (1969)

Experience

• Co-Director, Harvard Quantum Initiative (July 2018 – present)
• Harvard College Professor (July 2015 – July 2020)
• Tarr-Coyne Professor of Applied Physics and of Electrical Engineering, Harvard (Aug 2013 - present)

• Gordon McKay Professor of Electrical Engineering and Applied Science, Harvard University, Area Dean for Electrical Engineering (Jan. 2009 – July 2013)
• Scientific Co-Director, California Nanosystems Institute, UCSB (Dec. 2000 – July 2008)
• Director, Institute for Quantum Engineering, Science and Technology (iQUEST), UCSB (July 2000- June 2001)
• Director, Center for Quantized Electronic Structures (QUEST, an NSF Science and Technology Center), UCSB (July 1994 – July 2000)
• Director, Santa Barbara component of NSF National Nanofabrication Users Network (March 1994 – June 2001)
• Chair, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, UCSB (July 1992 – Aug. 1994)
• Vice-Chair, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, UCSB (1989 – July 1992)
• Professor, Electrical and Computer Engineering, UCSB (1984 – 2008)
• Associate Director, Center for Robotic Systems in Microelectronics (an NSF Engineering Research Center), UCSB (1984 – 1987)
• Supervisor, VLSI Patterning Processes, AT&T Bell Laboratories. Generated high resolution optical lithographic and reactive ion etching processes for fabrication of 1-1.5μm NMOS and CMOS circuits. (1981 – 1984)
• Member of Technical Staff, AT&T Bell Laboratories. Development of submicron fabrication techniques to produce and study nanometer-scale devices. (1975 – 1981)

Research Focus

Synthesis and fabrication of nano-structured photonic devices in semiconductors, metals and complex oxides. Coupling of novel emitter materials to cavities for enhanced, controlled light emission and energy- efficient operation (~ 440 publications and 12 patents/applications).

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Co-Founder (with Professor Angela Belcher), Cambrios Technologies Corp., Siluria Technologies, Inc.

Major Honors, Awards and Recognitions

• IEEE/RSE James Clerk Maxwell Medal (2021)
• IEEE Andrew Grove Technical Field Award (2020)
• Eringen Award, Society of Engineering Science (2019)
• Honorary Doctor of Science, ETH Zurich (Nov. 2019) 

• Honorary Doctor of Engineering, Notre Dame University (May 2014)
• Honorary Doctor of Engineering, Hong Kong University of Science & Technology (Nov. 2013)
• Honorary Doctor of Science, Heriot-Watt University (June 2013)
• Member of Institute of Advance Studies, Hong Kong University of Science & Technology (May 2013)
• Elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (2010)
• Elected to the National Academy of Sciences (2008)
• Named NSF Distinguished Teaching Scholar (2005)
• Co-recipient, Outstanding Faculty Teacher, Dept. of ECE (2005)
• UCSB Faculty Research Lecturer (2005)
• Elected to the Academica Sinica, Taiwan (2004)
• Elected to the National Academy of Engineering (2002)
• AAAS Lifetime Mentor Award (2000)
• UCSB Academic Senate Distinguished Teaching Award (1999)
• Honorary Doctor of Engineering, University of Glasgow (June 1995)
• Tau Beta Pi Outstanding Faculty Teacher in Dept. of ECE (1989-1990)

Selected Current and Recent Professional Contributions

• Studies and Assessment Panels
  • Member, NRC Study on Solid State Lighting (2011-2012)
  • Member, PCAST Working Group Assessment of the NNI (2009-2010)
  • Member, WTEC Study of the Long-term Impacts and Future Opportunities for Nanoscale Science and Engineering (2009-2010)
  • Member WTEC Panel on Nanotechnology Progress and Opportunity (2009-2010)
  • PCAST NNI Working Group (2009-10)​​​​​​​
• Prize Selection Committees
  • Member IEEE Founders Medal Selection Committee (2013-present)
  • Member Kavli Prize Committee on Nanoscience (2011-2014)
  • Member Physics Selection Committee, Sloan Research Fellowships (2010 – 2016)
• Service to Professional Societies
  • NAE Chair, Section 7 (2008-2010), Membership Policy Committee (2007 –2009), Peer Committee (2004- 2007), Chair Section 7 Peer Committee (2006), Chair, Committee on Membership (2017)
  • Member of Council, National Academy of Sciences (2016-2019)
  • APS Councilor (2004-2007); APS Executive Board (2005-2008)
• Advisory Committees, non-University Organizations
  • Member Advisory Committee to NSF Engineering Directorate (1999-2003); Chair (2001-2002)
  • NIH Nanomedicine Development Centers (2005-2008)
  • Nanoscale Informal Science Education (NISE) Network (2005-2008)
  • Advisory Board, NTT Basic Research Laboratory (2013-present)
  • Paul Drude Institute (2004-2010)
  • Molecular Foundry (2004-2008)
    
• Advisory Committees, University Departments and Organizations
  • Scientific Advisory Board, Lund Nanometer Structure Consortium (2011- present)
  • Visiting Committee Department of Biological Engineering, MIT (2010 – 2016)
  • Evaluation Committee, Department of Physics, ETHZ (April 2013)
  • Visiting Committee, EE Department, Stanford (May 2012)
• Editorship roles: Board of Editors, PNAS, (2008 – present), Reviewing Editor, Science (1999-2008)

Five Significant Scholarly Outputs

1. Michler P, Kiraz A, Becher C, Schoenfeld W V, Petroff P M, Zhang L D, Hu E, and Imamoglu A. (2000) “A quantum dot single-photon turnstile device.” SCIENCE 290: 2282.​​​​​​​
2. Badolato A, Hennessy K, Atature M, Dreiser J, Hu E, Petroff P M, and Imamoglu A. (2005) “Deterministic coupling of single quantum dots to single nanocavity modes.” SCIENCE 308: 1158-1161.
3. Hennessy K, Badolato A, Winger M, Gerace D, Atatuere M, Gulde S, Faelt S, Hu E, and Imamoglu A. (2007) “Quantum nature of a strongly coupled single quantum dot-cavity system.” NATURE 445: 896-899.
4. Awschalom D D, Bassett L C, Dzurak A S, Hu E, Petta J R (2013) “Quantum spintronics: Engineering and manipulating atom-like spins in semiconductors(Review)” SCIENCE 339: 612
5. Bracher David O, Xingyu Zhang, and Evelyn L Hu (2017) “Selective Purcell enhancement of two closely linked zero-phonon transitions of a silicon carbide color center.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 114 (16): 4060-4065