Caesar Aya-ay Saloma is a professor of the

National Institute of Physics The National Institute of Physics (NIP) was established in 1983 by Presidential Executive Order No. 889 which transformed the Department of Physics of the College of Arts and Sciences into one of the seven research and academic institutes of the ...

(NIP) at the University of the Philippines College of Science and a member of the

National Academy of Science and Technology The National Academy of Science and Technology (''abbreviated as ''NAST PHL) is the highest recognition and scientific advisory body of the Philippines under the Department of Science and Technology (Philippines), Department of Science and Techn ...

. He previously served as Chancellor of the

University of the Philippines Diliman The University of the Philippines Diliman (also called UPD; ), also referred to as UP Diliman, is a State university and college (Philippines), public, coeducational, Research university, research university located in Diliman, Quezon City, Ph ...

(March 2011- February 2014), Dean of the College of Science (June 2006 - March 2011) and Director of NIP (June 2000 - May 2006).

Education

Saloma (born 28 March 1960) obtained his BS, MS, and

PhD A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research. The name of the deg ...

degrees from the University of the Philippines Diliman in 1981, 1984, and 1989, respectively. As a Monbukagakusho scholar, he started working in optics in October 1987. His dissertation on speckle reduction in laser microscopy was supervised by Shigeo Minami and Satoshi Kawata of

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. He spent his childhood in

Baclayon Baclayon, officially the Municipality of Baclayon (; ), is a municipality in the province of Bohol, Philippines. According to the 2020 census, it has a population of 22,461 people. It is the home town of actor Cesar Montano, and physicist Cae ...

Bohol Bohol (), officially the Province of Bohol (; ), is an island province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas Regions of the Philippines, region, consisting of the island itself and 75 minor surrounding islands. It is home to Bohola ...

and attended high school at the Immaculate Heart of Mary Seminary in nearby Tagbilaran City. He is included in the

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in Science and Engineering 2016-2017 (12th Edition) and in the Ultimate List of 15 Asian Scientists To Watch that was published by ''

Asian Scientist ''Asian Scientist'' is an English language science and technology magazine published in Singapore. History and profile ''Asian Scientist'' was launched as a blog in March 2011 by Juliana Chan. The blog's popularity eventually led to a partnersh ...

'' on 15 May 2011.

Profile

In 2004 Saloma received th
Galileo Galilei Award
from the

International Commission for Optics International is an adjective (also used as a noun) meaning "between nations". International may also refer to: Music Albums * ''International'' (Kevin Michael album), 2011 * ''International'' (New Order album), 2002 * ''International'' (The T ...

in recognition of his significant contributions in the field of

optics Optics is the branch of physics that studies the behaviour and properties of light, including its interactions with matter and the construction of optical instruments, instruments that use or Photodetector, detect it. Optics usually describes t ...

that were accomplished under comparatively unfavorable conditions. He is the first scientist from an

ASEAN The Association of Southeast Asian Nations, commonly abbreviated as ASEAN, is a regional grouping of 10 states in Southeast Asia "that aims to promote economic and security cooperation among its ten members." Together, its member states r ...

member country to receive the Galileo Award. In 2006, the UP Board of Regents appointed him along with two others, to the highest rank of Scientist III in the UP Scientific Productivity System which was first implemented in the said year. His three-year appointment was renewed in 2009, 2012 and 2015, respectively. He is the only UP faculty member who has been appointed to the rank of Scientist III for four consecutive terms. In 2008, he received the triennial ASEAN Outstanding Scientist and Technologist Award from the during the 8th ASEAN Science and Technology Week in Manila, Philippines. Saloma was recognized for his contributions to photonics and signal processing that were accomplished with colleagues and students at the National Institute of Physics. Saloma led the development of a method to generate high-contrast images of

semiconductor A semiconductor is a material with electrical conductivity between that of a conductor and an insulator. Its conductivity can be modified by adding impurities (" doping") to its crystal structure. When two regions with different doping level ...

sites via one

photon A photon () is an elementary particle that is a quantum of the electromagnetic field, including electromagnetic radiation such as light and radio waves, and the force carrier for the electromagnetic force. Photons are massless particles that can ...

optical Optics is the branch of physics that studies the behaviour and properties of light, including its interactions with matter and the construction of instruments that use or detect it. Optics usually describes the behaviour of visible, ultravio ...

beam-induced current imaging and confocal

reflectance The reflectance of the surface of a material is its effectiveness in reflecting radiant energy. It is the fraction of incident electromagnetic power that is reflected at the boundary. Reflectance is a component of the response of the electronic ...

microscopy Microscopy is the technical field of using microscopes to view subjects too small to be seen with the naked eye (objects that are not within the resolution range of the normal eye). There are three well-known branches of microscopy: optical mic ...

. The project received a US patent (No. 7,235,988) on 26 June 2007. He has published more than 100 papers in leading

photonics Photonics is a branch of optics that involves the application of generation, detection, and manipulation of light in the form of photons through emission, transmission, modulation, signal processing, switching, amplification, and sensing. E ...

applied physics Applied physics is the application of physics to solve scientific or engineering problems. It is usually considered a bridge or a connection between physics and engineering. "Applied" is distinguished from "pure" by a subtle combination of fac ...

and multidisciplinary journals in the US and Europe. His efforts resulted in the development of novel and cost-effective / non-invasive method techniques in

signal A signal is both the process and the result of transmission of data over some media accomplished by embedding some variation. Signals are important in multiple subject fields including signal processing, information theory and biology. In ...

recovery, retrieval and identifying microscopic defects in

integrated circuits An integrated circuit (IC), also known as a microchip or simply chip, is a set of electronic circuits, consisting of various electronic components (such as transistors, resistors, and capacitors) and their interconnections. These components a ...

(IC) enabling the accurate identification of circuit defects by producing a high-contrast

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that distinguishes semiconductor, metal and dielectric sites from each other. The pioneering work of his team on the use of the hydrogen Raman shifter as a light source for two-color

two-photon excitation microscopy Two-photon excitation microscopy (TPEF or 2PEF) is a fluorescence imaging technique that is particularly well-suited to image scattering living tissue of up to about one millimeter in thickness. Unlike traditional fluorescence microscopy, wher ...

was also awarded a US patent (No. 8,227,256 B2) on 24 July 2012. His fields of interest include

confocal laser scanning microscopy Confocal microscopy, most frequently confocal laser scanning microscopy (CLSM) or laser scanning confocal microscopy (LSCM), is an optical imaging technique for increasing optical resolution and contrast of a micrograph by means of using a s ...

interferometry Interferometry is a technique which uses the ''interference (wave propagation), interference'' of Superposition principle, superimposed waves to extract information. Interferometry typically uses electromagnetic waves and is an important inves ...

, signal and

image processing An image or picture is a visual representation. An image can be two-dimensional, such as a drawing, painting, or photograph, or three-dimensional, such as a carving or sculpture. Images may be displayed through other media, including a pr ...

neural networks A neural network is a group of interconnected units called neurons that send signals to one another. Neurons can be either Cell (biology), biological cells or signal pathways. While individual neurons are simple, many of them together in a netwo ...

, and

complex adaptive systems Complex commonly refers to: * Complexity, the behaviour of a system whose components interact in multiple ways so possible interactions are difficult to describe ** Complex system, a system composed of many components which may interact with each ...

. Aside from developing new

optical microscopy Optics is the branch of physics that studies the behaviour and properties of light, including its interactions with matter and the construction of instruments that use or detect it. Optics usually describes the behaviour of visible, ultravio ...

techniques, Saloma is also engaged in the development of efficient models for describing the dynamics of real-world systems that involve a large number of interacting agents. Saloma was elected to the

(NAST) in July 2005. The NAST is the highest recognition body of the Philippine government on science and technology. It provides advice to the

Philippine President The president of the Philippines (, sometimes referred to as ) is the head of state, head of government and chief executive of the Philippines. The president leads the executive branch of the Philippine government and is the commander-in- ...

and the Cabinet on matters related to science and technology He is a recipient of other awards and recognition including the NAST Outstanding Young Scientist (

Applied Physics Applied physics is the application of physics to solve scientific or engineering problems. It is usually considered a bridge or a connection between physics and engineering. "Applied" is distinguished from "pure" by a subtle combination of fac ...

) in 1992, the NAST-Third World Academy of Science (TWAS) Prize in Physics in 1997, and the ''Gawad Chanselor para sa Natatanging Guro'' (Outstanding Teacher) in 2006 and several ''Gawad Chanselor para sa Pinakamahusay na Mananaliksik'' (Best Researcher in S&T) from the

. Saloma also received from the Metrobank Foundation the 200
Outstanding Teacher Award
on September 7, 2007, and th

on January 29, 2014. Saloma was awarded by th
Department of Science and Technology, Philippines
(DOST) with the 199
Outstanding R&D Award in Basic Research
(Eduardo Quisumbing Medal) for his work (with F. Domingo) on image compression of video and confocal images pplied Optics 38, pp. 3735–3744 (1999) He was included in the "50 Men and Women of Science" list that was released by the DOST for its 50th anniversary celebration as a government department in June 2008. He received th
Lingkod Bayan Award - the Presidential Award for Outstanding Public Service
from Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo in a ceremony held at the Malacanang Palace on 19 September 2008. The award is the highest recognition given to a

Philippine government The government of the Philippines () has three interdependent branches: the legislative, executive, and judicial branches. The Philippines is governed as a unitary state under a presidential representative and democratic constitutional repub ...

employee for outstanding work performance. He was elected Inaugural Fellow of th
Samahang Pisika ng Pilipinas
(Physics Society of the Philippines) on 23 October 2008 during the 26th SPP Physics Congress in Baguio City. Saloma received the 201
Outstanding Science Administrator Award
(Dioscoro Umali Medal) from the DOST and NAST in recognition of his commitment, leadership, dedication and outstanding service as scientist, teacher and administrator. His vital role in the establishment and on-going completion of th
National Science Complex
was particularly recognized. He is currently the Editor-in-Chief of th
Philippine Journal of Science
which published its first issue in 1906. Saloma became the first Filipino

Optica Fellow The Optica Fellow is a membership designation of Optica (formerly known as The Optical Society (OSA)) that denotes distinguished scientific accomplishment. The bylaws of this society only allow 10% of its membership to be designated as an Opti ...

in January 2025 in recognition of his
pioneering research and development efforts in optics and photonics in the Philippines, including the training of young Filipino scientists
He was elevated to Senior Member status by the Board of Directors of the

Optical Society of America Optica, founded as the Optical Society of America (later the Optical Society), is a professional society of individuals and companies with an interest in optics and photonics. It publishes journals, organizes conferences and exhibitions, and ca ...

in October 2010. He carries the rank of Professor 12 and on 2 March 2011, he was elected Chancellor of the

by the UP Board of Regents. He served for a period of three years. He was succeeded by medical anthropologist and College of Social Sciences & Philosophy Dean Dr. Michael L. Tan on 1 March 2014.

Notes

External links

National Institute of Physics, PhilippinesCollege of Science, University of the PhilippinesICO Galileo Galilei AwardsEnd of Term Report, Chancellor Saloma
{{DEFAULTSORT:Saloma, Caesar 1960 births Living people Filipino physicists Filipino educators Members of the Filipino National Academy of Science and Technology People from Bohol University of the Philippines Diliman alumni Academic staff of the University of the Philippines