PhD graduate Xilin Feng defended his thesis on Non-Hermiticity-Driven Photonic Switching: Ultrafast Routing and Robust Power Transfer on Wednesday, February 4th. Advised by Professor Liang Feng, Xilin Feng’s research explores non-Hermitian control as a unified framework for photonic switching and reconfigurable light routing.
As Feng explains, his dissertation research primarily focuses on “switching or the routing of the light by controlling the material gain or loss in integrated photonics, trying to make it fast, compact, and more robust.”
Feng’s research journey was not without its challenges. “I had challenges in both fabrication and measurement,” Feng explains. “Despite trying different methods over and over again, I also received help from colleagues and cleanroom staff.”
According to Feng, the community at Penn proved instrumental in his research development. “My advisor Professor Liang Feng, collaborators “Professor Li Ge, and Zihe and Tianwei “helped me extensively when I first joined the group. I would also like to thank many other people who helped me with the research and career.”
While Feng had several memorable times during his time including socializing and lab group dinners, his most memorable remains, “the moment I finished my defense.”
As for Feng’s future, “I plan to work in industry, but it will be highly related to my research.”
When Feng’s not working, he enjoys cycling.
Learn more about Feng’s work here