Photonics | Interview with the Author—Prof. Dr. Govind P. Agrawal
Prof. Dr. Govind P. Agrawal received the MS and PhD degrees from the Indian Institute of Technology, New Delhi (India), in 1971 and 1974, respectively. After holding positions at the École Polytechnique, Paris; City University of New York, New York; and AT&T Bell Laboratories, Murray Hill, NJ, he joined the University of Rochester in January 1989, where he is currently the James C. Wyant Professor of Optics. Prof. Dr. Agrawal is a Life Fellow of IEEE, a Distinguished Fellow of the Optical Society of India, and a Fellow of the Optica. Prof. Dr. Agrawal received the IEEE Photonics Society’s prestigious Quantum Electronics Award in 2012 and was the recipient of the 2013 William H. Riker University Award for Graduate Teaching. Prof. Dr. Agrawal was awarded the Esther Hoffman Beller Medal of the Optical Society in 2015. He was the recipient of two major awards in 2019—the Max Born Award of the Optical Society and the Quantum Electronics Prize of the European Physics Society. Prof. Dr. Agrawal received the Lifetime Achievement Award of the Hajim School of Engineering in 2020.
“Space–Time Duality in Optics: Its Origin and Applications”
by Govind P. Agrawal
Photonics 2025, 12(6), 611; https://doi.org/10.3390/photonics12060611
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2304-6732/12/6/611
1. Could you give us a brief introduction about yourself and your current research topic to our readers?
My name is Govind Agrawal, and I am a professor at the Institute of Optics, University of Rochester. I work in the areas of nonlinear optics and optical communications. I have been working in these areas for almost 50 years now, and I teach courses at the university and do research. My current research is mostly focused on nonlinear optics, optical fibers, and the nonlinear effects of optical fibers. We were particularly focused on the area of space-time duality in optics for the last 10 years, which is the topic on which I published a review paper in Photonics.
2. Could you describe the difficulties and breakthrough innovations encountered in your current research?
I have been at this university for the last 35 years, so there has not been a particular difficulty for me. But before that, like every young person, I have had certain difficulties in my career as well. I finished my PhD in India, then I went for my postdoc in France, followed by a second postdoc in New York, the United States. Given the struggles of the job market, I worked initially in a small French company before I got a job at Bell Labs in New Jersey, where basically my career started. I was there for about 6 years and wrote two books: one on semiconductor lasers and another one on nonlinear fiber optics. Both became quite well known, which gave me the opportunity to get a position at the University of Rochester. Since then, things have been pretty good. My research group consists of five or six people, and we have been working in different areas over the last 35 years.
3. What do you hope that readers will get from your paper?
The point of research is to advance the state of the art in any given field. So, you are trying to come up with some new ideas and then work with students to write a paper for publication, which you hope will attract the attention of the readers. Ultimately, the idea is to write something useful to other people. So clearly, the citations and other metrics are very important in that sense. I work with my students, and I tell them that we are not going to publish anything until we are sure it is in good shape and of good quality, so that other people will appreciate reading your work.
4. Do you have any advice or experience that you would like to share with young researchers who want to pursue research in this field?
My experience working at the institute with my students and other students is that they all want to do good work and succeed. It is not always easy, particularly for students who have an aspiration to become a professor. Finding a university position would not be an easy road. So, I tell them that everybody struggles initially. As this is common. I tell them this in advance so that they will be ready for it in case they are getting rejected, especially if they are looking for a job at an academic institution, due to the small number of positions and many candidates. So, I try to prepare them with that, and I also tell them they should not hesitate to work in the industry initially before coming back to academia. This is a valid path, since you can also do research in industry or government labs, and it is also a good option.
5. How were you first introduced to Photonics? What is your impression and experience with our journal?
Photonics is very active in advertising, and I used to get lots of emails initially for different things, especially for Special Issues. So, I became aware of the journal very early on. I then noticed that someone I personally knew was editing a Special Issue in my research area, and I submitted my review paper. I liked the experience: the review process was very quick, and the fact that the paper was well reviewed. I also liked the professionalism of the staff, and I think they are doing a good job overall. My impression is that the journal is very well managed, which is another reason why I decided to get involved a few times with it.