Light in Motion: Microresonators, Quantum Optomechanics, and On‑Chip Frequency Combs

Following the award of the Swiss Marcel Benoist Prize 2025, EPFL is pleased to host a public lecture by Professor Tobias J. Kippenberg, honouring his pioneering contributions at the interface of light and mechanics.

This event offers an accessible introduction to how microresonators are reshaping both our understanding of quantum physics and the future of photonic technologies. It will be moderated by Olivier Dessibourg, Scientific Journalist.

In this lecture, Professor Kippenberg will explore how tiny optical resonators, structures that confine light on a microchip, can be used to both control mechanical motion at the quantum level and generate highly precise optical frequency combs. His work in quantum optomechanics has revealed how light can be used to measure and manipulate the motion of mechanical systems with unprecedented sensitivity, opening new windows onto quantum phenomena in macroscopic objects.

At the same time, his discovery and development of soliton microcombs, optical frequency combs generated in microresonators, has enabled the creation of compact, chip-scale devices that produce precisely spaced optical frequencies. These “rulers of light” are transforming technologies ranging from high-speed optical communications to precision timing, spectroscopy, and sensing. By bringing together fundamental physics and integrated photonics, this research has turned complex laboratory systems into scalable, robust technologies with wide-ranging applications.

Bio
Tobias J. Kippenberg was born in 1976. Following his studies at RWTH Aachen University and his doctorate at the California Institute of Technology (2004), he conducted research at the Max Planck Institute of Quantum Optics before accepting an appointment as assistant professor in Lausanne in 2008. He is an international member of the US National Academy of Engineering, a member of the Leopoldina, and the recipient of numerous distinctions, including the ZEISS Research Award, the Fresnel Prize of the European Physical Society (2009), and the Helmholtz Prize for Metrology (2009). Since 2014, he has been among the 1% most cited authors in physics, as recognised by Clarivate’s Highly Cited Researchers list. He is the author of more than 30 publications in Nature and Science and received the National Latsis Prize in 2014.

Image:
On-chip microresonator-based frequency comb
Laboratory of Photonics and Quantum Measurements, EPFL