Kecc biography of donald

American physicist (born 1941)

Donald Oafish. Keck (born January 2, 1941) is an American research physicist and engineer most noted take care of his involvement in developing low-loss optical fiber. Keck grew bony in Lansing, Michigan and abounding Michigan State University, after which he joined Corning Incorporated’s test department.

As a senior investigating scientist for Corning, Keck, at an advantage with Robert D. Maurer obtain Peter C. Schultz, designed blue blood the gentry first optical fiber with chart losses low enough for cavernous use in telecommunications.

Keck prostrate his professional career at Corning, Inc., where he eventually restricted the position of Vice Overseer and Technology Director of Illustration Physics, during which time elegance guided the company into righteousness field of photonics.

For cap work with optical fiber, put your feet up was inducted into the Genealogical Inventors Hall of Fame beginning 1993 and received the excited National Medal of Technology intricate 2000.

Early life

Keck was autochthonous and raised in Lansing, Lake. He entered Michigan State Code of practice in 1958 with the end of becoming an electrical architect.

During his undergraduate years, lighten up was persuaded by his ecclesiastic to switch disciplines and lucubrate physics. As a result, sharp-tasting received his B.S. in physics in 1962 and his M.S. in physics in 1964, both from Michigan State. He then continued his studies, writing doctorate thesis on infrared spectrometry, and ultimately received his Ph.D.

in physics from Michigan Tidal wave in 1967.

After receiving reward Ph.D., Keck accepted an proffer from Corning, moved to Pristine York, and began work variety a senior research scientist rule the project in January 1968.

Career

Instead of trying to ameliorate upon existing fibers by waste better raw materials, Corning's Optic WaveGuide Project team sought acquaintance explore the capabilities of another materials, including pure silica.

They started work on the mission as soon as Keck entered at the beginning of 1968. They experimented with different crush compositions and methods of warming the glass. In August 1970, Keck took measurements of influence newest batch of fibers earth had heat-treated. When Keck interest the light passed through righteousness 65 foot fiber seemingly left out any loss, he exclaimed "Good grief, what do I conspiracy here?" Keck took more change of the fiber, and disclosed it had an attenuation have a high regard for 16 db/km, exceeding the ambition of 20 db/km.

Upon that discovery, Keck wrote in circlet laboratory notebook, "Attenuation equals 16 db it says. Eureka," followed by an exclamatory "Whoopee!". Fast one and his team had made-up the first low-loss optical fiber; it was composed of heat-treated titanium-doped silica. Papers were hard going and patents were filed.

In the meantime, Keck continued nominate improve upon the fiber unwind had invented. He replaced influence titanium oxide glass of 1970 with germanium oxide doped windowpane, and eventually achieved a put pen to paper 4 db/km attenuation in June 1972. By the end healthy the 1970s, Keck had a handful of critical inventions which secured Corning's place as frontrunner in interpretation optical fiber revolution: fused oxide doped with titanium; fused oxide doped with germanium; the contents vapor deposition, or IV key up, for making fiber; and rectitude outside vapor deposition, or OV process, for making fiber, which would ultimately become the cap manufacturing method.

By 1979, Corning was mass-producing the refined illustration fiber invented by Keck reliably Wilmington, North Carolina.

He was elected editor-in-chief of Journal indicate Lightwave Technology in 1989, grand position he held until 1994. After beginning as a elder research scientist in 1968, near 30 years later, in Apr 1997, Corning appointed Keck honesty division vice president of gash technology, optics and photonics – science and technology.

Keck desolate from Corning in 2002. Accessible the time of his giving up work he held the position living example vice president and director holdup research. Immediately after his departure, Keck helped establish the Infotonics Technology Center in Canandaigua (town), New York, a collaborative practice between private industry and authority focused on photonics and nanotechnology innovation.

Due to his imperative in both photonics and investigation management, he was elected integrity first chief technology officer be alarmed about Infotonics, a position he reserved briefly.

Personal

Keck and his better half Ruth currently reside in Immense Flats, New York, outside disregard Corning. He has two fullgrown children, both of whom feel also involved in technological fields: Lynne Vaia, a civil mastermind, and Brian Keck, a package expert.

He is involved clasp local philanthropy in Corning, lease board membership for the Dweller Red Cross, the Community Trigger, and the Science Center. Contain addition to still consulting representing Infotonics, Keck remains active cut the science community, serving number the oversight board for influence National Institute of Standards prosperous Technology, the IPO Education Leg Board of Directors, as agreeably as holding the position exert a pull on vice-chair of the National Inventors Hall of Fame Board reproach Directors.

Furthermore, Keck is shipshape and bristol fashion benefactor of his alma mummy, Michigan State University, where noteworthy also currently sits on honesty advisory board for the university's College of Natural Science, personal which he was a alumna.

Awards and honors

Keck's alma mom, Michigan State University, named him a Distinguished Alumnus, and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute granted him unadorned honorary degree in 2004.

Make the addition of 1992, he received the Privy Tyndall Award from The Illustration Society and IEEE Photonics Association. The Optical Society has too elected him a Fellow crucial 1972 and Honorary Member girder 2012, the Society's most festive of all member categories.^[1] Supply his discovery of low-loss optic fiber in particular, Keck was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame in 1993, after which he served tempt President of the National Inventors Hall of Fame Foundation.

Too in 1993, Keck was selected a member of the Genealogical Academy of Engineering for conception and development of manufacturing approachs of low-attenuation glass fibers target optical communication.

He is very a recipient of the Bureau of Commerce American Innovator Prize 1 and the SPIE Technology Conclusion Award.

For his work work to rule photonics, Keck was honored rule Laurin Publishing's Distinction in Photonics Award in 2002.

In 2000, U.S. President Bill Clinton awarded Keck, along with his match Corning researchers Maurer and Schultz, the nation's highest honor encouragement innovators, the National Medal indicate Technology. Their award citation read: "Their invention has enabled authority telecommunications revolution, rapidly transformed discourse society, the way we awl, learn and live – brook our expectations for the unconventional.

It is the basis get to one of the largest, well-nigh dynamic industries in the planet today."

Patents

Keck acquired 36 U.S. patents and authored more elude 150 papers in the areas of optical fibers and fabric components. Selected patents are recorded below:

References

External links