Apratim’s paper on the ultracompact polarization rotator was chosen as one of the top downloaded articles in integrated photonics in Optics Express. The paper is freely available here.
Rajesh gave a Physics Dept. seminar at the University of Wisconsin Madison titled “Ultra-compact, multi-functional photonics via nanofabrication & computation” on May 30, 2018.
Rajesh presented at the Ideation Workshop of the Banknotes Conference in Dallas, TX and his talk was titled “Full-color transmissive holograms verifiable by any mobile phone.”
Rajesh was recently elevated to the grade of IEEE Senior Member, which according to IEEE is “is an honor bestowed only to those who have made significant contributions to the profession.”
Our paper on broadband holograms was recently recognized as the top 100 read Applied Physics papers out of over 3000 in Scientific Reports for 2017. You can find the paper freely available here.
Machine Learning has been widely applied to extract information from images and video. In this NSF-funded summer REU project, you will explore the application of machine learning to unconventional imaging. The Menon lab has recently shown that photography is possible without lenses (see here). You will extend this work to train a deep neural network to recognize common “lensless” images. This work could serve as the foundation for future work enabling ultralight and ultracompact “lensless” cameras for drones, self-driving vehicles, robots, etc. You are expected to be highly independent and self-motivated with previous experience in deep neural networks or other types of machine learning. Prior experience in imaging or optical engineering is not necessary. The REU is a prestigious NSF fellowship open only to current undergraduate students, and selection is highly competitive. Please email a brief note of interest with your current resume to Rajesh Menon at rmenon[at]eng.utah.edu.
The OSA foundation is supporting a Student-driven grand challenge competition for optical design at the Applied Optics Congress this year. Consider submitting your ideas. The deadline is April 27. Details here. 
