Richard Zeltner received both his bachelor's and master's degrees in Integrated Life Science from the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, Germany. During the course of this interdisciplinary programme he learned how photonic tools can be used for biological research, which sparked a broad interest in optics and photonics. Pursuing this new interest he joined the division of Prof. Gerd Leuchs at the Max-Planck-Institute for the Science of Light in Erlangen (MPL) in 2013 to work on his master’s thesis on refractometric sensing using whispering-gallery-mode resonators. For his PhD thesis he joined the division of Prof. Philip St.J. Russell at MPL in 2014, where he mainly worked on novel optical sensors based on optically propelled particles inside hollow-core photonics crystal fibers.

After receiving his PhD in autumn 2018 he joined Menlo Systems GmbH, a leading supplier and developer of laser systems for quantum technologies and precision metrology, in spring 2019. Based in Munich, Germany, Richard is working at Menlo as a project leader and executive assistant.

Richard was an active member of the OPTICA student chapter throughout his time at MPL, and served as the chapter president in 2017/2018. Since autumn 2018 he is a member of the Action Committee of the Young Minds Programme of the European Physical Society, and he has chaired the committee since May 2020. In 2021 he was one of the initiators of the webinar series “From PhD to CEO,” aiming to showcase diverse entrepreneurs in the European optics and photonics community. In his free time he enjoys reading, both fiction and non-fiction, sports, and hiking in the areas around Munich.