Oxford, MA, November 5, 2009 --
IPG Photonics Corporation, the world leader in high power fiber lasers and amplifiers, is proud to announce that Founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
Valentin Gapontsev was the recipient of the
Laser Institute of America's (LIA) 2009 Arthur L. Schawlow award. The Schawlow award, which was first presented by the LIA in 1982, honors individuals who have made distinguished contributions to applications of lasers in science, industry, education or medicine. The award is named for Professor Arthur L. Schawlow, who received The Nobel Prize in Physics in 1981 for his contribution to the development of laser spectroscopy, and is LIA's highest achievement award.
The Award was presented at LIA's International Congress on Applications of Lasers & Electro-Optics (ICALEO) conference, November 4, 2009. At the ceremony, Gapontsev was recognized as "the father of the fiber-laser industry as it is known today, who has pioneered the field in five decades of academic work and as the founder and CEO of a global technology company that continues to transform the laser industry." Dr. Gapontsev joins the world-renowned list of recipients including Arthur Schawlow, Arthur Guenther and Theodor Hänsch. The complete citation is available to read on
IPG's web site,
www.ipgphotonics.com.
About Dr. Valentin GapontsevValentin P. Gapontsev, Ph.D., founded IPG in 1990 and has been Chief Executive Officer and Chairman of IPG's Board of Directors since the Company's inception. Prior to that time, he served as senior scientist in laser material physics and head of the laboratory at the Soviet Academy of Science's Institute of Radio Engineering and Electronics in Moscow. He has over 30 years of academic research experience in the fields of solid state laser materials, laser spectroscopy and non-radiative energy transfer between rare earth ions and is the author of many scientific publications and several international patents. Dr. Gapontsev holds a Ph.D. in Physics from the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology. In 2006, he was awarded the Ernst & Young® Entrepreneur of the Year Award for Industrial Products and Services in New England.
