Faculty researchers among editors for new SPIE journal

The International Society for Optics and Photonics (SPIE) has announced this month the launch of a new journal of biophotonics, called Biophotonics Discovery. Prof. Dror Fixler has been chosen as the journal’s Associate Editor. PhD student Ari Ashkenazy of Prof. Fixler’s research group, and Faculty of Engineering alumnus Dr. Shira Roth who is currently pursuing her postdoctoral work at Harvard, have been appointed Early Career Editors. “We got the offer because we presented at SPIE conferences in the past, and because fellow researchers recommended us,” shares Ashkenazy. “The editors’ role is to receive article nominations and to make sure that they fit the journal’s field of interest, that they’re well-written and present publish-worthy research. They also appoint reviewers and oversee the entire peer-review process.”

Ashkenazy (33) researches broadband entangled photons in advanced quantum applications under Prof. Fixler and Dr. Eli Cohen. He develops innovative methods that utilize nanostructures to generate and discover broadband entangled photons. Additionally, he researches enhanced quantum technologies that utilize such photon pairs for high-sensitivity sensing, encrypted communications and more. He has so far published no less than nine scientific articles, lectured in Israel and abroad, and has won numerous prizes. “This is certainly a surprise, coming at this point in my career, and it is a great honor to have my contribution to this field appreciated,” he says. “I was very happy to have been contacted, because this is a great opportunity to join the big league, a role that usually takes years of experience as chief researcher.”