Sir Peter Leonard Knight (born 12 August 1947) is a British

physicist A physicist is a scientist who specializes in the field of physics, which encompasses the interactions of matter and energy at all length and time scales in the physical universe. Physicists generally are interested in the root or ultimate caus ...

, professor of

quantum optics Quantum optics is a branch of atomic, molecular, and optical physics dealing with how individual quanta of light, known as photons, interact with atoms and molecules. It includes the study of the particle-like properties of photons. Photons have b ...

and senior research investigator at

Imperial College London Imperial College London (legally Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine) is a public research university in London, United Kingdom. Its history began with Prince Albert, consort of Queen Victoria, who developed his vision for a cu ...

, and principal of the Kavli Royal Society International Centre. He is a leading academic in the field of

and is the recipient of several major awards including the

Royal Medal The Royal Medal, also known as The Queen's Medal and The King's Medal (depending on the gender of the monarch at the time of the award), is a silver-gilt medal, of which three are awarded each year by the Royal Society, two for "the most important ...

from the

Royal Society The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...

and the Thomas Young Medal and Prize from the

Institute of Physics The Institute of Physics (IOP) is a UK-based learned society and professional body that works to advance physics education, research and application. It was founded in 1874 and has a worldwide membership of over 20,000. The IOP is the Physica ...

. He is a former president of the

and the

Optical Society of America Optica (formerly known as The Optical Society (OSA) and before that as the Optical Society of America) is a professional society of individuals and companies with an interest in optics and photonics. It publishes journals and organizes conference ...

, the first non North American-based person to take the position. He is described as "one of the UK’s most influential scientists and leaders of scientific policy" by his peers.

Academic career

Knight's work is concerned principally with theoretical

, strong field physics and especially quantum information science. He was educated at

Bedford Modern School Bedford Modern School (often called BMS) is a Headmasters' and Headmistresses' Conference independent school in Bedford, England. The school has its origins in Bedford Charity, The Harpur Trust, born from the financial endowment, endowments le ...

. When Knight began his University education he attended Sussex University to read chemistry, but soon realised physics interested him more. He received his first degree and D.Phil. from Sussex University and became research associate at the Department of Physics and Astronomy of the

University of Rochester The University of Rochester (U of R, UR, or U of Rochester) is a private research university in Rochester, New York. The university grants undergraduate and graduate degrees, including doctoral and professional degrees. The University of Roc ...

and at the Physics Department and

SLAC SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, originally named the Stanford Linear Accelerator Center, is a United States Department of Energy National Laboratory operated by Stanford University under the programmatic direction of the U.S. Departme ...

Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...

(US). He spent three years doing post-doctoral research in the US in the group of Joseph Eberly which gave him experience of working with "incredibly gifted people". He was then SRC research fellow at Sussex University, and later visiting scientist at the

Johns Hopkins University Johns Hopkins University (Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland. Founded in 1876, Johns Hopkins is the oldest research university in the United States and in the western hem ...

Baltimore, Maryland Baltimore ( , locally: or ) is the List of municipalities in Maryland, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland, fourth most populous city in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, and List of United States cities by popula ...

, US. He became Jubilee Research Fellow from 1976 to 1978 at

Royal Holloway, University of London Royal Holloway, University of London (RHUL), formally incorporated as Royal Holloway and Bedford New College, is a public research university and a constituent college of the federal University of London. It has six schools, 21 academic departm ...

, followed by an SERC Advanced Fellowship from 1978 to 1983, first at RHC from 1978 to 1979, transferring in 1979 to Imperial College. He has remained at Imperial College ever since (apart from very frequent visits to the US), first as a lecturer 1983–1987, then reader 1987–1988 and professor since 1988. In addition, until 2010 he acted as deputy

rector Rector (Latin for the member of a vessel's crew who steers) may refer to: Style or title *Rector (ecclesiastical), a cleric who functions as an administrative leader in some Christian denominations *Rector (academia), a senior official in an edu ...

of Imperial College, having responsibility for the college's research. In his capacity as a leading figure in quantum optics, Knight works on several advisory boards, including the UK Quantum Technology Initiative Strategy Advisory Board, the Photonics EPSRC Innovative Manufacturing Centre, the Winton Programme for the Physics of Sustainability in Cambridge and for several year was Chair of the Defence Scientific Advisory Council at the Ministry of Defence. Knight has also spoken publicly about science funding in the UK, and cautioned against cuts or pauses in funding and its effect on the British economy and regularly advocates for girls in

STEM Stem or STEM may refer to: Plant structures * Plant stem, a plant's aboveground axis, made of vascular tissue, off which leaves and flowers hang * Stipe (botany), a stalk to support some other structure * Stipe (mycology), the stem of a mushro ...

subjects and women in science. In addition to his academic work Knight was editor for more than 20 years of ''

Journal of Modern Optics The ''Journal of Modern Optics'' is a peer-reviewed scientific journal that was established as ''Optica Acta'' in 1954. It obtained its current name in 1987 and is published by Taylor & Francis with 21 issues per year. The journal covers most branc ...

'' and remains editor of ''

Contemporary Physics ''Contemporary Physics'' is a peer-reviewed scientific journal publishing introductory articles on important recent developments in physics. Editorial screening and peer review is carried out by members of the editorial board. Overview ''Contempo ...

''. Knight is described by the

as "an influential figure within the wider UK physics community" and by Professor Miles Padgett of the University of Glasgow as "one of the UK’s most influential scientists and leaders of scientific policy."

Senior positions

Knight is

Emeritus ''Emeritus'' (; female: ''emerita'') is an adjective used to designate a retired chair, professor, pastor, bishop, pope, director, president, prime minister, rabbi, emperor, or other person who has been "permitted to retain as an honorary title ...

Professor in the department of physics at

. From 1 October 2010, he was the principal and is now Senior Fellow in Residence of the Kavli Royal Society International Centre at

Chicheley Hall Chicheley Hall, Chicheley, Buckinghamshire, England is a country house built in the first quarter of the 18th century. The client was Sir John Chester, the main architect was Francis Smith of Warwick and the architectural style is Baroque. Later ...

. He has been a visiting professor at the University of Louvain-la-Neuve, a Humboldt Research Award holder at the University of Konstanz and a visiting scholar at the University of Texas at Austin and at the University of Rochester. Since 1999 Knight has been a fellow of the

. Knight was president of the

from 2011 to 2013; president in 2004 of the

, the first non North American-based person to take the position; and a fellow of the

. In addition he was a member of the council of the Royal Society. He has a seat on the European advisory board of

Princeton University Press Princeton University Press is an independent publisher with close connections to Princeton University. Its mission is to disseminate scholarship within academia and society at large. The press was founded by Whitney Darrow, with the financial su ...

. He was elected an honorary fellow of the

in recognition of his "major contributions to physics through his pre-eminent research, his influential leadership roles and his service to the Institute of Physics". Knight was Chief Scientific Advisor until his retirement to the National Physical Laboratory and is Chair of NPL's Quantum Metrology Institute. He continues to act as an advisor to the British government.

Other awards

Knight was knighted in the Queen's

2005 Birthday Honours The Birthday Honours 2005 for the Commonwealth realms were announced on 11 June 2005 to celebrate the Queen's Birthday of 2005. The recipients of honours are displayed here as they were styled before their new honour, and arranged first by the coun ...

. He was the recipient of the

Frederic Ives Medal The Frederic Ives Medal is the highest award of the Optical Society, recognizing overall distinction in optics. The prize was established in 1928 by Herbert E. Ives in honor of his father, Frederic Ives. Initially awarded every two years, it has be ...

in 2008, and the

in 2010. He has received awards from the

including the Thomas Young Medal (1999) and the

Glazebrook Medal The Richard Glazebrook Medal and Prize is awarded annually by the Institute of Physics to recognise leadership in the field of physics. It was established in 1966 and named in honour of Sir Richard T. Glazebrook, the first president of the Insti ...

. Knight has received many honorary doctorates including an honorary doctorate from

Heriot-Watt University Heriot-Watt University ( gd, Oilthigh Heriot-Watt) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. It was established in 1821 as the School of Arts of Edinburgh, the world's first mechanics' institute, and subsequently granted univ ...

in 2010, from

University of Sussex , mottoeng = Be Still and Know , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £14.4 million (2020) , budget = £319.6 million (2019–20) , chancellor = Sanjeev Bhaskar , vice_chancellor = Sasha Roseneil , ...

in 2010, from

University of Glasgow , image = UofG Coat of Arms.png , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms Flag , latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis , motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita , ...

in 2015 and

University of Birmingham , mottoeng = Through efforts to heights , established = 1825 – Birmingham School of Medicine and Surgery1836 – Birmingham Royal School of Medicine and Surgery1843 – Queen's College1875 – Mason Science College1898 – Mason Univers ...

in 2017. In 2012 he became a member of the

German Academy of Sciences Leopoldina The German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina (german: Deutsche Akademie der Naturforscher Leopoldina – Nationale Akademie der Wissenschaften), short Leopoldina, is the national academy of Germany, and is located in Halle (Saale). Founded ...

. In 2019 he received the Herbert Walther Award for his outstanding contribution to quantum information science. Also in 2019 Knight received the highest accolade from the

Institution of Engineering and Technology The Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) is a multidisciplinary professional engineering institution. The IET was formed in 2006 from two separate institutions: the Institution of Electrical Engineers (IEE), dating back to 1871, and ...

, the

Faraday Medal The Faraday Medal is a top international medal awarded by the UK Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) (previously called the Institution of Electrical Engineers (IEE)). It is part of the IET Achievement Medals collection of awards. T ...

for his 'outstanding contribution in the field of quantum engineering', acknowledging that 'His pivotal role in conceiving, designing and delivering the National Quantum Technologies Programme has put the UK quantum science and engineering at the front of the global race to establish the second information revolution.'

Notable publications

Knight is the author of several books and hundreds of academic papers. He is an ISI Highly Cited author. Publications include, * ''Concepts of quantum optics'' (1983, 18 editions) * ''Squeezed light : special issue'' (1987) with Rodney Loudon in ''

'' * ''The quantum-jump approach to dissipative dynamics in quantum optics'' (1998) with M.B. Plenio in ''

Reviews of Modern Physics ''Reviews of Modern Physics'' (abbreviated RMP) is a quarterly peer-reviewed scientific journal published by the American Physical Society. It was established in 1929 and the current editor-in-chief is Michael Thoennessen. The journal publishes re ...

'' * ''Atomic physics with super-high intensity lasers'' (1997) with M. Protopapas and Christoph Keitel in ''

Reports on Progress in Physics ''Reports on Progress in Physics'' is a monthly peer review, peer-reviewed scientific journal published by IOP Publishing. The editor-in-chief as of 2022 is Subir Sachdev (Harvard University). Scope The focus of this journal is invited review art ...

'' * ''Introductory quantum optics'' (2004, 27 editions) with Christopher C. Gerry * ''Springer handbook of atomic, molecular, and optical physics'' (2006) with S. Scheel (chapter) * ''The Jaynes-Cummings Model'' (2007) with Bruce Shore in ''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Knight, Peter Place of birth missing (living people) Living people British physicists People educated at Bedford Modern School Alumni of the University of Sussex Academics of Imperial College London Fellows of the Royal Society Fellows of the Institute of Physics Knights Bachelor Presidents of the Optical Society Presidents of the Institute of Physics 1947 births Members of the German Academy of Sciences Leopoldina

Academic career

Senior positions

Other awards

Notable publications

See also

References