Riverside Research welcomes Dr. Christine Wang as the new Director of Optics and Photonics. Dr. Wang has a PhD in physics from Harvard University and a strong background in technical innovation and Research and Development (R&D).
Her previous accomplishments include significant post-doctoral work in nonlinear optics, and professional roles involving optical micro-resonator study, laser technology, and atomic physics. Most recently, Dr. Wang led several DARPA programs and a team of scientists as Technical Director & Principal Investigator of an IR&D project at The Charles Stark Draper Laboratory, Inc.
Dr. Wang looks forward to focusing on R&D at Riverside Research, as she enjoys determining practical applications of the technology. "In pure academia, people are not necessarily connected to what the real world needs and what's really important. You do important work and publish it, but the application may or may not come. In R&D, we connect the newest things and try to push it through the barrier into the real world." Additionally, Dr. Wang encourages the agility required of her research team. "At Riverside Research, we are doing research and working on technology at the lower technology readiness level (TRL). It can start from proof of concept, or it can be in early development, but the technology we work with still needs several stages to materialize into something workable. We brainstorm and use creativity to think of new things – this makes the work intellectually stimulating," said Dr. Wang.
"We are excited to have Dr. Wang lead our Optics and Photonics Group within the Open Innovation Center (OIC). Her expertise will benefit the OIC, and her contributions will enable technology developed at Riverside Research to transition from the laboratory to the field," remarked Riverside Research President & CEO Dr. Steve Omick.