Hyatt M. Gibbs (6 August 1938 – 3 September 2012) was a notable physicist and professor at the

University of Arizona College of Optical Sciences The University of Arizona College of Optical Sciences, considered the largest institute for optics education in the United States, is dedicated to research and education in optics with an emphasis on optical engineering. The college offers more ...

. Well known for research in nonlinear optics and quantum optics, he authored a book on

optical bistability In optics, optical bistability is an attribute of certain optical devices where two resonant transmissions states are possible and stable, dependent on the input. Optical devices with a feedback mechanism, e.g. a laser, provide two methods of achiev ...

, and was a recipient of the

Humboldt Research Award The Humboldt Prize, the Humboldt-Forschungspreis in German, also known as the Humboldt Research Award, is an award given by the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation of Germany to internationally renowned scientists and scholars who work outside of G ...

and Michelson Medal.

Education

Gibbs attended

Mars Hill College Mars Hill University is a private Christian university in Mars Hill, North Carolina. The university offers 35 undergraduate majors and includes a school of nursing and graduate schools in education, criminal justice, and management. From 1859 to ...

and

North Carolina State University North Carolina State University (NC State) is a public land-grant research university in Raleigh, North Carolina. Founded in 1887 and part of the University of North Carolina system, it is the largest university in the Carolinas. The universit ...

in his home state, where he earned an A.A. degree in 1958 and a B.S. degree in 1960, respectively. In 1965, he earned a Ph.D. in physics from the

University of California at Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant univ ...

with his thesis on ''Total Spin-Exchange Cross-Sections for Alkali Atoms from Optical Pumping Experiments''.

Career

After earning his Ph.D., Gibbs remained at U.C. Berkeley as an Acting Assistant Professor until 1967. He then joined

Bell Labs Nokia Bell Labs, originally named Bell Telephone Laboratories (1925–1984), then AT&T Bell Laboratories (1984–1996) and Bell Labs Innovations (1996–2007), is an American industrial research and scientific development company owned by mult ...

in Berkeley Heights, New Jersey where he worked until 1980. During his work there he collaborated on numerous experiments, including research on optical energy transfer in crystals with Samuel L. McCall and

Steven Chu Steven ChuNobel Prize The Nobel Prizes ( ; sv, Nobelpriset ; no, Nobelprisen ) are five separate prizes that, according to Alfred Nobel's will of 1895, are awarded to "those who, during the preceding year, have conferred the greatest benefit to humankind." Alfr ...

winner and the

United States Secretary of Energy The United States secretary of energy is the head of the United States Department of Energy, a member of the Cabinet of the United States, and fifteenth in the United States presidential line of succession, presidential line of succession. The po ...

. For one year during this period, 1975 to 1976, he was an exchange scientist at

Philips Koninklijke Philips N.V. (), commonly shortened to Philips, is a Dutch multinational conglomerate corporation that was founded in Eindhoven in 1891. Since 1997, it has been mostly headquartered in Amsterdam, though the Benelux headquarters i ...

in Eindhoven, Holland. He was also a visiting lecturer at

Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial Colleges, fourth-oldest ins ...

from 1978 to 1979. In 1980 he moved to Tucson, Arizona to become a professor at the Optical Sciences Center at the

University of Arizona The University of Arizona (Arizona, U of A, UArizona, or UA) is a public land-grant research university in Tucson, Arizona. Founded in 1885 by the 13th Arizona Territorial Legislature, it was the first university in the Arizona Territory. T ...

. Here he founded the ''Optical Circuitry Cooperative'' in 1984, which conducted research relevant to optical processing, funded jointly by industry leaders in

optics Optics is the branch of physics that studies the behaviour and properties of light, including its interactions with matter and the construction of instruments that use or detect it. Optics usually describes the behaviour of visible, ultraviole ...

and optoelectronics. He remained its director until 1991 when the role was given to his collaborator, Dr. Nasser Peyghambarian. Gibbs was able to concentrate more fully on his research, particularly his work with Dr.

Galina Khitrova Galina Khitrova (1959 – June 4, 2016) was a Russian-American physicist and optical scientist known for her research on cavity quantum electrodynamics, excitons, nonlinear optics, quantum dots, and vacuum Rabi oscillations. She was a professor ...

(whom he married in 1986) and Dr. Stephan W. Koch on the quantum nano-optics of semiconductors. Gibbs became a professor emeritus in 2011, but continued his work until his death in 2012.

Honors

, 1998 * Franklin Institute, Michelson Medal, 1984 *

American Physical Society The American Physical Society (APS) is a not-for-profit membership organization of professionals in physics and related disciplines, comprising nearly fifty divisions, sections, and other units. Its mission is the advancement and diffusion of k ...

, Fellow * Optical Society of America, Fellow * Franklin Institute, Fellow *

IEEE The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) is a 501(c)(3) professional association for electronic engineering and electrical engineering (and associated disciplines) with its corporate office in New York City and its operation ...

, Senior Member *

American Association for the Advancement of Science The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) is an American international non-profit organization with the stated goals of promoting cooperation among scientists, defending scientific freedom, encouraging scientific respons ...

, Fellow

Asteroid Hyatt

The unusual main-belt asteroid 221628 Hyatt was named in his honor on 3 July 2012 (), just two months before he died. The asteroid was discovered by his son

Alex Gibbs Alexander Gibbs, Jr. (February 22, 1941 – July 12, 2021) was an American professional football coach who was a longtime offensive line coach in the National Football League (NFL). He coached college football for over a decade before joining t ...

of the Catalina Sky Survey, who proposed the name to the

Minor Planet Center The Minor Planet Center (MPC) is the official body for observing and reporting on minor planets under the auspices of the International Astronomical Union (IAU). Founded in 1947, it operates at the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory. Function ...

of the

International Astronomical Union The International Astronomical Union (IAU; french: link=yes, Union astronomique internationale, UAI) is a nongovernmental organisation with the objective of advancing astronomy in all aspects, including promoting astronomical research, outreac ...

Personal life

Gibbs' first marriage was to Lethia, with whom he had a son, Alex, and a daughter, Vanetta. His second marriage was to Galina Khitrova, with whom he collaborated professionally. On September 3, 2012, Hyatt M. Gibbs died in France at the age of 74 from mesothelioma complications.

References

External links

* . {{DEFAULTSORT:Gibbs, Hyatt M. 1938 births 2012 deaths Optical physicists American physicists University of Arizona faculty University of California, Berkeley alumni Fellows of the American Physical Society