News

11/11/2024: Yazan wins one of the three 2024 travel grants from Zurich Instruments for his work on photonics-integrated terahertz transmission lines. Congrats to Yazan and the team.

Read more about the award here.

01/08/2024: Katia and Karen join HYLAB as E3 interns this summer.

During the internship, Katia will focus on studying THz resonators and their potential applications, both experimentally and theoretically. She graduated with a B.Sc. in Applied Mathematics and Physics from the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology in Russia in 2022 and is now pursuing her M.Sc. in the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel, where she does research in the field of coupled laser networks.

Karen is developing hybrid integrated photonic devices based on lithium niobate for terahertz radiation detection through nonlinear optical interaction. He designs and investigates both numerically and experimentally the performance of such devices. He graduated with a B.Sc. in Physics from Lomonosov University in Russia in 2023 and is now pursuing his M.Sc. studies there.

Welcome to HYLAB!

09/08/2024: Yazan was invited to give a tutorial talk at the first International Terahertz Summer School at Beihang University where he presented our recent work on Terahertz Transmission Lines and learnt from leading experts in the field. Heartfelt thanks to Professor Xiaojun Wu and her outstanding students at Beihang University for their exceptional hospitality 😀.

01/07/2024: Tianyi Zhang joins the group as a Ph.D. student!

Tianyi Zhang received his B.Sc. in Applied Physics from the University of Science and Technology of China in 2023, where he established a strong foundation in physics, mathematics, and electrical engineering. Subsequently, he joined the University of Texas at Austin as a research assistant, dedicating himself to the development of acoustic devices. His previous research mainly focuses on RF circuits, microwave engineering, and MEMS.

In addition to his academic pursuits, Tianyi likes playing football and skiing. He also enjoys watching comedies and spending time with friends.

21/06/2024: New paper out on ARXIV!

Adding terahertz circuits to the photonics palette has been a long standing goal to make the best of photonics and terahertz-speed electronics.

Here, we propose to seamlessly integrate terahertz transmission lines with photonic waveguides to efficiently generate and guide ultra-high frequencies signals spanning four octaves, from 200 GHz all the way to 3.5 THz.

Curious? Then here’s what’s more. Our terahertz transmission lines can be tweaked to achieve high field confinement – akin to those used in microwave circuits – and control their losses. This allows us to pattern them into cavities with benefits for storing light in their near-field.

01/12/2023: Jiawen from the HYLAB is one of the recipients of the prestigious QSE fellowship. The EPFL Quantum Center has awarded four Excellence Fellowships to postdoctoral researchers who have joined different quantum labs to conduct critical research in different areas of quantum science.

Check here for more information.

23/01/2024: Zahra presents her work on electro-optic modulators from organic molecules at the 3rd colloquium on the physics and applications of metasurfaces in Zurich.

Congratulations to Zahra and the team for making those devices turn on and off light – check out her modulation data!

01/11/2023: Xuhui Cao joins HYLAB as a PhD student! Welcome to the team, Xuhui!

Xuhui will research integrated quantum photonics, focusing on metrology, quantum control, and quantum transduction.

In 2020, Xuhui graduated with a B.Sc. in Electronic Science and Technology (Optoelectronics) from Tianjin University, China. It was there that she began her foray into scientific research, working on superconducting nanowire single-photon detectors (SNSPDs) since 2019. Following this, she earned her M.Sc. in Optical Engineering from Zhejiang University, China, in 2023. During her master’s program, she concentrated on the design, fabrication, and measurement of perovskite lasers, and studied its photo-physics through various spectroscopic techniques, including transient spectroscopy.

Beyond her academic pursuits, Xuhui enjoys watching movies and cooking. She also holds a special affection for giant pandas, loves watching videos about these beloved creatures in her leisure time.

26/10/2023: Congratulations to Kailyn Vaillancourt for winning the Master Inspire Fellowship from the Quantum Science Center at EPFL for performing her final year research with us. Looking forward to her joining the team in January!

01/10/2023: Andrea Lanfranchi joins HYLAB as a visiting PhD student. Welcome to the team!

After a bachelor’s degree in Physics in 2018 at the University of Genoa, Andrea moved to Material Science and Engineering for his master’s degree. He graduated in March 2021 and then remained in the Rely-Photonics group in Genoa as a Ph. D. student. His research is about all-polymer photonics, especially on distributed Bragg reflector’s use in thermal shielding applications. He is currently spending a period abroad at HyLab as visiting student, working on external cavity lasers.

18/09/2023: HYLAB team is strong and numerous at this year’s IRMMW-THz conference with two contributed (Aleksei Gaier and Yazan Lampert) and one keynote talk (Alessandro Tomasino)! 

Congratulations to the team and to our collaborators for making those photonic circuits shine some TERAHERTZ!

05/08/2023: New invited paper in APL Photonics. We discuss the current state of the art and milestones ahead for miniaturised terahertz devices co-habiting with integrated photonic circuits.

Present and future of terahertz integrated photonic devices

This article appears as a featured article, and a plain summary can be found in AIP’s Publishing showcase.

01/08/2023: Jiawen Liu joins HYLAB from ENS in Paris!

16/06/2023: Francesco Bertot wins poster award at the Swiss Nanoconvention! Congratulations to Francesco!

12/06/2023: Sydney Mason joins HYLAB for a summer internship as an E3 intern. Welcome to HYLAB, Sydney!

14/04/2023: New paper! Rear our perspective in Frontiers of Photonics where we discuss what makes terahertz measurements a unique playground. We propose five hallmarks of terahertz field metrology.

04/01/2023: Our new results on terahertz waveform synthesis made it into EPFL news!

01/12/2022: HYLAB friends went for ice skating for our Christmas activity.

01/11/2022: Welcome to Aleksei Gaier at HYLAB! He will work on photonics circuit devices for THz/MIR sensing and metrology applications.

Aleksei received both his B.Sc. and M.Sc. in physics (quantum electronics department) at Lomonosov Moscow State University, Russia. He developed ultrafast optical techniques for biophotonics applications during his master’s thesis. Aleksei has a strong background in laser physics, nonlinear and quantum optics.

Aleksei is fascinated by history and loves traveling, especially to places with a solid historical past. He also enjoys spending time with friends.

01/10/2022: Welcome to Zahra Basiri at HYLAB! Zahra will be working on the design, fabrication, and characterization of active free-space silicon-organic devices in order to achieve high-speed modulation and waveform shaping.

Zahra completed her B.Sc. and M.Sc. in Electrical Engineering (Telecommunication, Electromagnetic Fields & Waves) at Iran University of Science & Technology, building a strong background in Electromagnetism and Wave Physics. For her Master’s project, she designed conformal surfaces in both electromagnetic and acoustic frameworks.

Besides her academic career, Zahra loves watercolor painting, singing, and photography. She enjoys spending time with friends.

12/09/2022: HYLAB was successful in securing funding through HORIZON-EUROPE 2021 for quantum sensing in the mid-infrared and is part of the MIRAQLS consortium, with 12 academic partners from Europe, UK, Switzerland and Canada and company partners. HYLAB is acting as a coordinator the Swiss members. Stay tuned for more news!

12/09/2022: Xinyi Yuan from Karlsruhe School of Optics and Photonics (KSOP), at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology joins us for her Master internship.

28/08/2022: We went to IRMMW-THz conference and adjacent young scientist meeting and met friends from Zurich! Yazan and Francesco presented their work and Cristina had an invited talk.

08/08/2022: Cristina won the 3rd place at the 1st Women in Ultrafast Science Global Award, that recognises her work in integrated terahertz devices for metrology, waveform synthesis and sensing. This highly prestigious award is for women of all ages and with affiliations worldwide, so we’re extremely happy that she brought one to EPFL and STI! It resulted from a global competition. Read about it here.

30/06/2022: Yazan and Francesco present their work at the Optical Systems and Quantum Devices for MIR and THz technologies summer school in Frejus!

15/03/2022: Welcome to Shima Rajabali at HYLAB! She will work on integrated THz photonics with lithium niobite circuits for applications in metrology, sensing and spectroscopy.

Shima received her B.Sc. and M.Sc. in electrical engineering (Semiconductor devices) at university of Tehran, Iran. In 2016, for her Ph.D., she joined the group of Prof. Jérôme Faist at ETH Zurich, Switzerland and worked on ultrastrong light-matter interaction at the Nanoscale. She has an extensive experience in micro/nano fabrication, THz time domain spectroscopy, and finite element modeling.

Besides her academic career, Shima plays Santoor (an oriental musical instrument), loves drawing, and is fond of hiking, running, and skiing. She also enjoys organizing social events.

01/03/2022: Welcome to Yazan Lampert Almahmoud at HYLAB! He will design and fabricate novel hybrid integrated photonic circuits for applications in THz science and technology.

Yazan received his B.Sc. and M.Sc. in electrical engineering and information technology at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT). After his study, he worked in 2021 for one year as an optical timing engineer where he built systems for synchronizing mode-locked lasers and microwave signals. Yazan provides solid experience in fiber- and free-space optics.

Outside worktime, Yazan is fascinated by cinema. He also enjoys making music and hiking in nature. Cooking international dishes is his favorite weekend activity.

02/2022: Welcome to Alessandro Tomasino at HYLAB! He will implement terahertz time-domain spectroscopy systems designed to operate at ultra-low noise regimes and solid-state techniques for terahertz quantum metrology.

Alessandro received both his BSc in Electronics Engineering and his MSc in Electronics and Photonics Engineering from the University of Palermo, Italy. In 2018 he graduated from a double degree PhD program between the University of Palermo and the Institut National de la Recherche Scientifique (INRS), in Canada and has extensive expertise in CMOS-compatible devices for coherent detection. Between 2019 and 2021, he worked as a PostDoc on a unique ultrafast transmission electron microscope.  

Alessandro is fascinated by all branches of science, especially Physics and Astronomy, and enjoys disseminating Science among a general audience. He is passionate about innovative technologies, electronics and cars. He likes travelling, exploring and discovering new places, especially with friends.

01/2022: Welcome to Francesco Bertot at HYLAB! Francesco focusses on the design, fabrication and characterization of hybrid silicon photonic integrated circuits, with the aim of obtaining real-time and high-sensitivity measurements of THz radiation.

Francesco completed his Bachelor Degree in Physics Engineering at Politecnico di Torino, with a strong background in Electronics and Quantum Physics. He received his Master Degree in Nanotechnologies for ICTs in October 2021, a joint program between Politecnico di Torino, Grenoble-INP Phelma and EPFL. 

Besides his academic interests, he loves practicing sport, especially football and volleyball, and he is fond of good cuisine, all passions made perfect if shared with other colleagues and friends.