News & Events

02-12-08

Christof Koch, the Troendle Professor of Cognitive and Behavioral Biology and Professor of Computation and Neural Systems, and his colleagues, have found that changes in pupil diameter correspond to the moment when a simple decision is made. The pupil, which is about 2 mm wide in bright light, dilated by as much as 1 mm at that moment--a change that, in theory, could be noticeable to a casual observer. [Caltech Press Release]

Tags: EE research highlights health Christof Koch

01-28-08

Changhuei Yang, Assistant Professor of Electrical Engineering and Bioengineering, and colleagues, have invented a new technique, turbidity suppression by optical phase conjugation (TSOPC), that counteracts the scattering of light and removes the distortion it creates in images, potentially allowing for light energy to be targeted to devices inside a human body. [Caltech Press Release]

Tags: EE energy Changhuei Yang MedE health

01-23-08

Electrical engineering undergraduate student, Matthew Lew, has received the a Newport and Spectra-Physics Research Excellence Travel Award at the SPIE Photonics West Conference, held January 23, 2008 in San Jose. He won the award for his work on "Two-dimensional differential interference contrast microscopy based on four-hole variation of Young's interference" conducted in Changhuei Yang's Biophotonics Laboratory. This award is typically given to graduate students for outstanding research, Matthew Lew stands out in this year's batch of recipients as he is the only undergraduate to receive the prize.

Tags: EE honors

01-10-08

Silicon nanowires are laying the foundation for a new type of cheap yet energy-efficient microscopic refrigeration, with no moving parts. [Caltech Press Release]

Tags: APhMS energy William Goddard

01-10-08

The FCC's auction of the 700MHz spectrum, with reserve prices set at $10 billion, was designed by Caltech economics professor Jacob Goeree and economics professor Charles Holt from the University of Virginia. The system was tested and refined through a series of laboratory experiments in which more than 200 Caltech undergraduates participated over the course of two years. Currently, a few companies dominate the U.S. wireless market. This auction is the last chance for new entrants to create a national footprint. The 700 MHz frequency is particularly appealing for wireless - the signal can penetrate walls, and each tower broadcasting in this range can cover at least four times as many square miles as conventional cell-phone towers. [Caltech Press Release]

Tags: research highlights

01-09-08

Joseph E. Shepherd has been named the C. L. "Kelly" Johnson Professor of Aeronautics and Professor of Mechanical Engineering. Shepherd is internationally recognized for his chosen specialities of combustion, fuel properties, and fluid dynamics relevant to explosion initiation and propagation. Congratulations!

Tags: GALCIT MCE Joseph Shepherd fluid dynamics

01-09-08

Kerry Vahala, Ted and Ginger Jenkins Professor of Information Science and Technology and Professor of Applied Physics, has been awarded the Humboldt Research Award in recognition of lifetime achievements in research.

Tags: honors CMS Kerry Vahala

01-09-08

Steven Low, Professor of Computer Science and Electrical Engineering, has been elected a Fellow of the IEEE for his contributions in internet congestion control.

Tags: EE CMS Steven Low

01-03-08

Michael Ortiz, Dotty and Dick Hayman Professor of Aeronautics and Mechanical Engineering, has won the first Rodney Hill Prize in Solid Mechanics! [Press Release]

Tags: honors GALCIT MCE Michael Ortiz

01-02-08

The third edition of the book, Transmission Electron Miscroscopy and Diffractometry of Materials, by Professor of Materials Science and Applied Physics, Brent Fultz, and James M. Howe has been published by Springer.

Tags: APhMS Brent Fultz