Alan E. Willner
Associate Director, Photonics Center at USC
Associate Director, Student Affairs, Integrated Media Systems Center at USC
Alan Willner has won all three of the major research awards in his field: the National Science Foundation’s Presidential Faculty Fellow, a David and Lucille Packard Fellowship, and a Young Investigator Award.
He specializes in wavelength division multiplex technology, a technique for expanding the capacity of fiber-optic cables and networks by using different colors of light to carry different channels of data simultaneously.
The much-lauded researcher is also an award-winning teacher. He recently won the USC Associates Award for Excellence in Teaching for his engaging teaching style and his dedication to the growth of his students.
Willner serves as associate director of USC's Integrated Media Systems Center, which has developed such technologies such as 3D face modeling and animation, immersivision panoramic video technology and immersive audio.