James "Jim" J. Burke, Jr.
About Optica
In Memoriam: James "Jim" J. Burke, Jr., 1931 - 2020
14 November 2020
James “Jim” J. Burke, Jr., OSA Fellow and OSA Emeritus Member, passed away on 14 November 2020 at the age of 89. Burke was a Professor Emeritus of Optical Sciences within the James C. Wyant College of Optical Sciences at the University of Arizona. Burke was known for his broad interest and understanding of optics and his contributions to optical data storage at OSC in the 1990s. His work in image processing and image reconstruction was used in several spacecraft imaging instruments.
Burke was born in Chicago, Illinois, USA, and served in the U.S. Air Force during the Korean War. He studied Russian at the Monterey Language Institute, which he used to transcribe communications during the war. After his military service, Burke returned to Chicago and pursued a Master’s Degree in physics at the University of Chicago and then a PhD in optical sciences at the University of Arizona (1972). After completing his PhD, Burke was hired as a staff scientist at the Optical Sciences Center (OSC) and became a full professor in 1982. Burke would spend his career at OSC, conducting research and teaching students, until his retirement in 1995.
Burke held the patent for photonic devices comprising thermo-optic polymer and authored the book, Optical Waveguides, with Narinder S. Kapany. Their work was the first to describe waveguide phenomena in classical optical terms, rather than in microwave theory and technique. Burke was made an OSA Fellow in 1992. Burke was admired by his students, colleagues, and many collaborators. He was known for his kindness and for always having time to help his students and colleagues work through challenges. He was a devoted husband to his wife of 56 years, Barbara, and he is survived by his children, grandchildren and great grandchildren.
OSA and scientific community mourns the loss of James “Jim” Burke, Jr.
