Sir David Neil Payne CBE FRS FREng (born 13 August 1944) is a British professor of photonics who is director of the Optoelectronics Research Centre at the

University of Southampton , mottoeng = The Heights Yield to Endeavour , type = Public research university , established = 1862 – Hartley Institution1902 – Hartley University College1913 – Southampton University Coll ...

. He has made several contributions in areas of optical fibre communications over the last fifty years and his work has affected telecommunications and laser technology. Payne’s work spans diverse areas of photonics, from telecommunications and optical sensors to nanophotonics and optical materials, including the introduction of the first optical fibre drawing tower in a university.

Career

Payne’s work in fibre fabrication in the 1970s resulted in many of the special fibres used today. He was part of the team at Southampton that invented the

erbium-doped fibre amplifier An optical amplifier is a device that amplifies an optical signal directly, without the need to first convert it to an electrical signal. An optical amplifier may be thought of as a laser without an optical cavity, or one in which feedback from ...

, a type of optical amplifier. Although the idea was conceived and performed by Robert Mears. The idea was adopted at Bell Laboratories in New Jersey, USA and the two teams between them developed much of the EDFA technology we know today. The EDFA was a crucial component that fuelled the rapid growth in the internet through its ability to transmit and amplify large amounts of data. Payne also pioneered fibre lasers and led the teams that invented the

single mode Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

silica fibre laser and amplifier and broke the kilowatt barrier for the output of a fibre laser. Since then he has made discoveries which have contributed to the growth of fibre lasers for use in manufacturing and defence. Payne is the current director of the Optoelectronics Research Centre at the

, one of the world’s largest research groups dedicated to photonics. He also directs the Photonics Hyperhighway research project, aimed at making internet connections 100 times faster.

Awards and recognition

He has received the UK Rank Prize for Optics, the US Tyndall Award (1991) and the Benjamin Franklin Medal for Engineering (1998). He is also an Eduard Rhein Foundation Laureate (Germany). In 2001 Payne was awarded the

Mountbatten Medal The IET Mountbatten Medal is awarded annually for an outstanding contribution, or contributions over a period, to the promotion of electronics or information technology and their application. The Medal was established by the National Electronics C ...

of the IEE (2001) and the Kelvin Medal of the eight major engineering institutions for distinction in the application of science to engineering (2004). The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) awarded him the 2007 Photonics Award for outstanding achievements in photonics, the first awarded outside the USA. In 2008, he won the $100,000 Marconi Prize for his work in developing the erbium-doped optical fibre amplifier. In 2011, the Marconi Society elected him Chairman. He was appointed a

Fellow A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context. In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements. Within the context of higher education ...

of the Royal Academy of Engineering in 2005. In 2007, he was elected to the

Russian Academy of Sciences The Russian Academy of Sciences (RAS; russian: Росси́йская акаде́мия нау́к (РАН) ''Rossíyskaya akadémiya naúk'') consists of the national academy of Russia; a network of scientific research institutes from across t ...

as one of only 240 foreign members. Payne was knighted in the

2013 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 2013 were appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The New Year Honours are awarded as part of the New Year celebra ...

for services to photonics research and applications. In 2022, Payne was awarded the VinFuture Grand Prize, valued at US $3 million shared with 4 others, for his development of optical fiber communication over five decades related to fiber design, optical amplifiers, specialty fibers, and high-powered lasers and amplifiers that made Internet transmission possible on a global scale, thanks to the ability to boost high-speed optical signals repeatedly.

References

External links

A golden touch - Professor David Payne CBE FREng FRS
''Ingenia'', Issue 38, March 2009 {{DEFAULTSORT:Payne, David N. 1944 births Living people English physicists Laser researchers Academics of the University of Southampton Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Fellows of the Royal Society Fellows of the Royal Academy of Engineering Foreign Members of the Russian Academy of Sciences Foreign Fellows of the Indian National Science Academy Knights Bachelor