Oliver Wright
The University of Osaka, JapanFor pioneering innovations in optical instrumentation and ultrafast optoacoustics, advancing diagnostics, photonics theory, and commercial applications.
Oliver Wright has been intensely curious about science from an early age. As a child, he was constantly carrying out experiments and inventing science projects. One of these was an ambitious attempt to compile a periodic table with actual samples of the elements, a project that took many years. Later, when he had children of his own, he passed this fascination with science on to them. His daughter enjoyed the periodic-table idea in principle, though she sensibly refused to collect some of the more hazardous specimens, such as cadmium. With his son, Oliver shared an enthusiasm for rockets. Together they mixed chemicals to make cardboard pyrotechnic devices, each given its own original and entertaining name, occasionally attracting stern complaints from irritated residents near the launch site.
Oliver’s early fascination with science became a career. After completing a PhD in solid-state physics, he moved to Paris to work in industry on fiber-optic pressure sensors. Wanting to broaden his experience further, he later moved to Japan to join Nippon Steel Corporation, where he continued working in this field. It was there that he first published in Optics Letters, contributing a paper on his optics-related research. He still recalls the tough referee comments and the strict copy editing, both of which proved extremely valuable. At the suggestion of his boss, he then expanded his research into high-frequency ultrasonics using ultrafast lasers, which has since become the central focus of his work at Hokkaido University and The University of Osaka.
Oliver explains his research by noting that very short optical pulses can be used to generate highly localized stress in a solid, launching ultrasonic waves that can then be detected. The principle is not entirely unlike medical echography, or even the way echoes return when you shout across a mountain range. By using the same underlying physics with much shorter wavelengths, it becomes possible to detect defects in thin films on a far smaller scale. In this way, his work sits at a fascinating intersection between optics and acoustics.
One area in which ultrafast opto-acoustics can be especially powerful is the investigation of acoustic whispering-gallery waves. Lord Rayleigh famously described such waves in the Whispering Gallery of St Paul’s Cathedral in London, where sound can travel around the inner dome and be heard far away along the wall. At Hokkaido University, Oliver and his team developed an ultrafast Sagnac interferometer to observe analogous whispering-gallery waves in solids, in the form of surface acoustic waves traveling around a microscopic cavity.
Oliver is also a committed science communicator, with a particular enthusiasm for inspiring children to take an interest in science. Through Optica’s Optics Suitcase, he has visited local schools and delighted children with hands-on demonstrations. One of the most popular is the “Magic Patch” from the suitcase. Following the Optica instructions, he asks the children to place the patch on the inside of their wrists, with the shiny side facing outward. If the patch changes color, the good news is that they are alive; if it does not, they must be vampires. The result is always uproarious excitement as the children try to discover who among them might secretly be undead. Oliver has also written two illustrated children’s books, including Maggie and Magnus the Magnetic Snails, featuring adventurous magnetic snails who must rely on science to survive and outwit their enemies.
Oliver also cares deeply about encouraging scientists who are just entering the field. At conferences, he urges session chairs not to call first on their friends during question-and-answer sessions. He has seen how this habit can quickly discourage students and early-career researchers from speaking up. He knows from experience that entering a field can be intimidating, and he believes strongly that early-career researchers should be given every encouragement to make themselves heard. A simple question from someone new to a subject can be more refreshing than an elaborate speech from an experienced researcher.
Outside the laboratory, Oliver pursues a wide range of interests. He founded Plum Science Co., Ltd., where he designs LED and waveguide lighting for everyday consumers. One series of these lights provides highly uniform illumination through a distinctive optical design. He has also developed a mobile app, TestUrGlass, which evaluates the quality of wine glasses by listening to their chime and measuring their Q factor, or how long they continue vibrating as the sound decays. In addition, he enjoys snowboarding and has explored Kamakura-bori, a traditional Japanese form of wood carving. Just as his research brings together optics and acoustics, his life beyond research often brings together another pairing: art and science.
Photos Courtesy of Oliver Wright
Profile written by Samantha Hornback
Above: Example of a whispering gallery wave Oliver calculated for St Paul's, frequency 55 Hz. A picture of Oliver's wood carving. The covers of the English Kindle versions of the magnetic snails books.
