Personalities and Occasions

Nabeel Riza with John Goodenough.

Prof. John Goodenough is the inventor of the lithium ion battery and received the 2019 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. Occasion is the US National Academy of Inventors (NAI) Induction Ceremony where both Professors received a 2016 NAI Fellow Medal. Boston, USA, April 6, 2017.

Nabeel Riza with Donald Knuth.

Dr. Knuth (PhD. 1963 Caltech) is Emeritus Professsor at Stanford University. He is known as the father of the analysis of computer algorithms, having received the 1974 ACM Turing Award, considered the Nobel Prize in Computer Science. Dr. Knuth received a UCC Honorary Doctorate at the 200th Birthday Celebrations of late UCC Chair Professor George Boole of Boolean Algebra fame. Nov.2, 2015, Cork, Ireland.

Nabeel Riza with the 2019 OSA/IS&T Edwin H. Land Medal.

Prof. Nabeel Riza received the 2019 OSA/IS&T Edwin H. Land Medal at a Ceremony held at Sorbonne University, Paris, France, Oct. 2019

Nabeel Riza with Carver Mead.

Dr. Carver Mead (PhD. 1960 Caltech) is Emeritus Professor of Electrical Engineering (EE) at Caltech. He is known as the father of VLSI microelectronics, having received the 2002 US National Medal of Technology and Innovation from President George W. Bush. This award is the nation’s highest honor for technological achievement. Occasion is 100 Year Celebrations of the Caltech EE Department. Nov.6, 2010, Pasadena, California.

Nabeel Riza with William Bridges.

Dr. William (Bill) Bridges is Emeritus Professor of Electrical Engineering (EE) at Caltech having taught Riza at Caltech the subject of guided wave circuits. He is known as the inventor of the Noble Gas (e.g., Argon) Ion Laser, having being inducted to the US National Academy of Sciences and the US National Academy of Engineering and receiving the 1988 Arthur L. Schawlow Medal from the Laser Institute of America for his pioneering gas laser invention in 1964. Occasion is 100 Year Celebrations of the Caltech EE Department. Nov.5, 2010, Pasadena, California.

Nabeel Riza with Charles Elachi.

Dr. Elachi (PhD 1971 Caltech) is former Director of the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory managed by Caltech. He is Emeritus Professor of Electrical Engineering (EE) & Planetary Science at Caltech, having taught Nabeel Riza at Caltech the subject of “physics of remote sensing” & also served on Riza’s PhD committee. Dr. Elachi directed JPL during 24 space missions over a 16 year period that included Mars missions. He led the Space Shuttle Imaging Radar (SIR) design work and in 1989 was inducted to the US National Academy of Engineering and has received the 1999 NASA Distinguished Service Medal and 2002 Wernher Von Braun Award . Occasion is 100 Year Celebrations of the Caltech EE Department. Nov.6, 2010, Pasadena, California.

Nabeel Riza (left) with Stefan Hell (center) and Hugo Thienport (right).

Dr. Stefan Hell (Max Planck Institute, Germany) is the inventor of Stimulated Emission Depletion (STED) super resolution optical microscopy and received the 2014 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. Occasion is the 1999, 2000 and 2001 ICO Prizes Induction Ceremony where Prof. Riza , Dr. Hell, and Prof. Thienport received their ICO Prizes for 2001, 2000, and 1999, respectively. Florence, Italy, August 25, 2002.

Nabeel Riza with ( Left) John Power, Director General, Engineer Ireland Society and (Centre) Regina Moran, President, Engineers Ireland Society.

Nabeel Riza receiving The Honorary Fellow Award, the Highest Membership Distinction of the Engineers Ireland Society. April 2015, Dublin, Ireland.

Nabeel Riza with Hans Peter Herzig Hans

Peter Herzig is Professor of Optics at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne (EPFL). Nabeel Riza receiving a 2012 European Optical Society (EOS) Fellow Award from Prof. Herzig, the EOS President. Aberdeen, Scotland 2012.

Nabeel Riza with Harold Rosen

Harold Rosen (1926-2017), MS EE 1948 Caltech, PhD EE 1951 Caltech, is known as the father of the geostationary communications satellite, a technology he and his team invented and developed in the early 1960’s at Hughes Company. He received a 1985 US National Medal of Technology and was a 2003 US Inventors Hall of Fame inductee.  Photo: Caltech, Pasadena, Nov.6, 2010.

Nabeel Riza with Alan Willner

Alan Willner is Professor in the Electrical Engineering Department at University of Southern California. Prof. Riza receiving a 2007 IEEE Fellow Award from Prof. Willner, the IEEE LEOS President. Baltimore, May 2007.

Sarun Sumriddetchkajorn (2nd from Right) with Nabeel Riza

Prof. Maria Izuel, Dr. G. Denardo (Abdus Salam ICTP, Trieste, Italy), Dr. Sarun Sumriddetchkajorn (2005 ICTP/ICO Prize Winner) and Prof. Nabeel Riza, on the occasion of the 2005 ICO/Abdus Salam ICTP prize award ceremony. 9 February 2005. Dr. Sarun Sumriddetchkajorn received his PhD under the supervision of Prof. Nabeel Riza. The late G. Dernado was the Coordinator of Optics and Laser Physics programs at the Abdus Salam ICTP. Trieste, Italy 2005.

Nabeel Riza with Hermann Haus

Hermann Haus, Institute Professor at the Massachussets Institute of Technology (MIT). He was awarded the 1995 US National Medal of Science by President Clinton. Copenhagen, Denmark, September 2002.

Nabeel Riza receiving the 2001 ICO Prize

Nabeel Riza receiving the 2001 International Commission for Optics (ICO) Prize in Optics and the 2001 Carl Zeiss Foundation Germany Ernst Abbe Medal from Prof. René Dändliker, Université de Neuchâtel, Switzerland, President ICO. Florence, Italy, August 2002

Nabeel Riza with Kip Thorne.

Kip Thorne is the Feynman Emeritus Professor of Theoretical Physics at Caltech. He co-founded the LIGO project that in September 2015 led to the first detection of gravitational waves. Professor Thorne shared the 2017 Nobel Prize in Physics. Photo: Jan 11, 1999, Orlando, Florida.

Nabeel Riza with Charles H. Townes

Charles H. Townes received his Ph. D. from Caltech and is a Professor of Physics at the University of California, Berkeley. Dr. Townes received the 1964 Nobel Prize in Physics for the co-invention of the laser. Orlando, Florida, January 11, 1999.

Nabeel Riza with Prof Abdus Salam

Prof Abdus Salam is the first Pakistani-origin Nobel laureate. He was the 1979 Nobel Prize co-winner in Physics. Caltech, Pasadena, 1989

Nabeel Riza (2nd from Left) with Richard P. Feynman

Richard P. Feynman is the 1965 Nobel Prize Winner in Physics and late Prof. of Physics, Caltech. Photo shows some Caltech electrical engineering graduate students who took a computation and complexity class with Prof. Feynman. Caltech, May 31st, 1985.