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Sae Woo Nam Receives 2008 Arthur S. Flemming Award

Sae Woo Name holding a circuit

NIST research on quantum computing and communications includes a recent demonstration of a device that can count about 20,000 photons (the smallest units of light) per second. Here, NIST physicist Sae Woo Nam holds a circuit used to amplify signals from the new photon detector. 

Credit: ©Geoffrey Wheeler

Sae Woo Nam, Leader of the Quantum Information and Terahertz Technology Project in the Optoelectronics Division of EEEL, was recognized with the 2008 Arthus S. Flemming Award in Applied Science, Engineering, and Mathematics for his pioneering contributions and leadership in the field of single photonics. Dr. Nam is known for the invention and application of groundbreaking single photon detection systems, which are advancing quantum cryptography, quantum computing, the examination of fundamental assumptions of quantum mechanics, and the ultimate traceability of optical power. Dr. Nam has created best-in-class detector systems using two distinct technical approaches—superconducting tungsten transition edge sensor and superconducting niobium nitride single photon detectors. His accomplishments include single photon detectors with world-record efficiency in the commercially important telecommunication band, collaborative demonstrations of quantum key distribution (QKD) with record data rate and distance for practical, ultrasecure communication networks, and the investigation of quantum states of light for improved metrology.

Created September 23, 2009, Updated March 21, 2018