Johannes Petrus "Han" Woerdman (29 November 1942 – 18 August 2020) was a Dutch physicist. He was a researcher at

Philips Natuurkundig Laboratorium The Philips Natuurkundig Laboratorium (English translation: ''Philips Physics Laboratory'') or NatLab was the Dutch section of the Philips research department, which did research for the product divisions of that company. In 1975, the NatLab em ...

and later professor at

Leiden University Leiden University (abbreviated as ''LEI''; ) is a Public university, public research university in Leiden, Netherlands. Established in 1575 by William the Silent, William, Prince of Orange as a Protestantism, Protestant institution, it holds the d ...

Life

Woerdman was born on 29 November 1942 in

Laren, North Holland Laren () is a town and municipality in the province of North Holland, Netherlands. Located in the Gooi region, it is the oldest town in the area. Together with its neighbor Blaricum, Laren is one of the most affluent towns in the Netherlands. ...

. In 1968 he started working at

. He obtained his PhD in mathematics at the University of Amsterdam in 1971 under Andries Rinse Miedema with a thesis titled: "Some optical and electrical properties of a laser-generated free-carrier plasma in Si." In 1983 he left Philips and was appointed professor of experimental physics at Leiden University. At Leiden University Woerdman performed research into lasers and optics, specializing in classical optics. He was responsible for building the field of

quantum optics Quantum optics is a branch of atomic, molecular, and optical physics and quantum chemistry that studies the behavior of photons (individual quanta of light). It includes the study of the particle-like properties of photons and their interaction ...

at the University. In 2020 one of the articles he contributed to in 1992 was chosen as one of three classics of ''

Physical Review A ''Physical Review A'' (also known as PRA) is a monthly peer-reviewed scientific journal published by the American Physical Society covering atomic, molecular, and optical physics and quantum information. the editor was Jan M. Rost ( Max Planck ...

''. Woerdman was elected a member of the

Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences The Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (, KNAW) is an organization dedicated to the advancement of science and literature in the Netherlands. The academy is housed in the Trippenhuis in Amsterdam. In addition to various advisory a ...

in 2002. In 2007 he was named a Fellow of the European Optical Society. In 2010 he was diagnosed with

Parkinson's disease Parkinson's disease (PD), or simply Parkinson's, is a neurodegenerative disease primarily of the central nervous system, affecting both motor system, motor and non-motor systems. Symptoms typically develop gradually and non-motor issues become ...

, which caused his death on 18 August 2020 at the age of 77.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Woerdman, Han 1942 births 2020 deaths Deaths from Parkinson's disease in the Netherlands 20th-century Dutch physicists Laser researchers Academic staff of Leiden University Members of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences Optical physicists People from Laren, North Holland University of Amsterdam alumni