David C. Hanna

David C. Hanna, an Optica Fellow and recipient of the 2003 Charles Hard Townes Award, was Emeritus Professor of Physics at the University of Southampton. Renowned for his work in laser physics and nonlinear optics, he played a central role in establishing the Optoelectronics Research Centre (ORC) at Southampton and was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1998.

Born in Nottingham, England, Hanna earned a B.A. from the University of Cambridge in 1962 and completed his Ph.D. at the University of Southampton in 1967. He joined Southampton’s Department of Electronics in 1963 as a research student and later transitioned with the laser research group to the Department of Physics in 1984. Rising through a series of academic appointments, he became Professor of Physics in 1988. When the ORC was founded in 1989, Hanna was appointed Deputy Director, helping guide its growth into the UK’s largest academic photonics center. Throughout his career, he also held visiting appointments at institutions including the Politecnico di Milano and the University of Munich, where he served as an Alexander von Humboldt Fellow. Within the Institute of Physics, he was active in leadership roles, including chairing the Quantum Electronics Group.

Hanna was also deeply involved with Optica (formerly OSA), contributing through numerous committees and leadership positions. His service included membership on the Nonlinear Optics International Advisory Committee (2001–2007), the Nominating Council (1997–1999), and the Optica Board of Directors as an elected Director at Large (1997–1999). He additionally served on the International Council on Quantum Electronics (1994–1999) and the CLEO-Europe Steering Committee (1995–1997). Having joined Optica in 1991, he later became an Emeritus member.

Over the course of his distinguished career, Hanna received many honors recognizing both his scientific achievements and leadership in the optics community. In 2003, he was awarded the Charles Hard Townes Medal for “seminal contributions to the development of coherent light sources and for leadership within the worldwide optics community.” He was named an Optica Fellow in 1998 for “pioneering contributions to the development of solid-state lasers and nonlinear optical devices.” Earlier, in 1993, he received the Max Born Medal and Prize from the German Physical Society and the Institute of Physics, an award recognizing outstanding contributions to physics in honor of Max Born’s foundational work in quantum mechanics. Hanna also received the Quantum Electronics Prize from the European Physical Society.