Alice White (physicist)

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This article is about the physicist. For other people, see Alice White (disambiguation).
Alice White
Born
Alice Elizabeth White
NationalityAmerican
Alma mater
Awards
Scientific career
Fields
  • Physics
  • Engineering
Institutions
ThesisResistance rise in ultrathin metallic wires at low temperatures (1982)
Academic advisorsDouglas Osheroff
Websitehttps://www.bu.edu/eng/profile/alice-white-ph-d/

Alice Elizabeth White is an American physicist. She is a professor and chair at the Boston University College of Engineering.[1] Previously, she was Chief Scientist at Bell Labs.[2] She is a fellow of the APS, the IEEE and the OSA.

Early life and education[edit]

White was born to physicist parents and grew up in New Jersey. Her father worked at Bell Labs.[3] Her parents helped to foster her interest in science and mathematics.[4]

She did her undergraduate studies at Middlebury College in Vermont, where she enjoyed a supportive science learning environment. She interned at Bell Labs during the summer through the Summer Research Program, eventually leading to a fellowship through the Graduate Research Program for Women to study at Harvard University.[3][4] Her PhD thesis, completed in 1982, was entitled Resistance rise in ultrathin metallic wires at low temperatures.[5] She was mentored by Doug Osheroff of Bell Labs during her time at Harvard.[4]

Career[edit]

White returned to Bell Labs after her PhD, and occupied various roles in the organisation from 1982 to 2013. She spent two years as a post-doctoral fellow before joining the permanent technical staff.[3] Her last position was Chief Scientist. Her research areas during this period include mesotaxy techniques to grow metals on silicon, photonic circuitry, fiber optics and low temperature physics.[4]

White became chair of Boston University's mechanical engineering department in 2013 after 30 years at Bell Labs.[2] She is a professor of mechanical engineering, materials science, biomedical engineering, and physics. She is also affiliated with Boston University's Photonics and Nanotechnology centers.[1] She is interested in nanomechanics.[6] One potential application of her research is in creating biomedical structures to repair tissues after a heart attack.[7] She uses 3D printing technology to create micromechanical structures.[8] In 2014, she established the Multiscale Laser Lithography Lab at Boston University.[1] This facility houses a Direct Laser Writing tool to create 3D polymer structures at high resolution as well as systems to design and characterise samples.[9]

White and her team worked on 3D printing nasal swab components in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.[10][11]

She became a Councilor-at-Large for the APS in 1993 and was a founding member of the Forum on Industrial and Applied Physics.[12] In 2001, she was chair of the APS Committee on the Status of Women in Physics.[13] She is a mentor for the Bell Labs Graduate Research Program for Women, and gives physics talks at elementary schools.[3]

Awards and honours[edit]

  • 2013 OSA Fellow for "developing advanced nanofabrication techniques and applying them to integrated electronics and photonics to enable next-generation lightwave devices".[14]
  • 2011 IEEE Fellow for "leadership in development and commercialization of integrated silicon optical components for communication networks".[1][15]
  • 2001 Bell Labs Fellow for "developing and applying novel integrated photonic device technologies in advanced optical networks".[1]
  • 1995 APS Fellow for "contributions to the study of transport phenomena in metallic thin films and for her work on buried silicide films formed by ion implantation".[16]
  • 1994 Alumni Achievement Award from Middlebury College.[17]
  • 1991 Maria Goeppert-Mayer Award from the APS.[18]

Personal life[edit]

White married another Bell Labs scientist and has two children. She enjoys skiing and cycling.[3]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d e "Alice White, Ph.D. | College of Engineering". www.bu.edu. Retrieved 2021-04-10.
  2. ^ a b "From Bell Labs to BU, with a Passion for Engineering | BU Today". Boston University. Retrieved 2021-04-10.
  3. ^ a b c d e "Alice White | PhysicsCentral". www.physicscentral.com. Retrieved 2021-04-10.
  4. ^ a b c d "Alice White". www.aps.org. Retrieved 2021-04-10.
  5. ^ White, Alice Elizabeth (1982). Resistance rise in ultrathin metallic wires at low temperatures (Thesis). OCLC 8876190.
  6. ^ "BU Wins $20M for NSF Engineering Research Center | The Brink". Boston University. Retrieved 2021-04-10.
  7. ^ Peebles-Wilkins, Wilma; Emerita, Dean. "The Transformers". Boston University. Retrieved 2021-04-10.
  8. ^ "Nanoscribe 3D Printing and Integrating Microscopic Components Directly onto Integrated Circuits". 3DPrint.com | The Voice of 3D Printing / Additive Manufacturing. 2018-07-11. Retrieved 2021-04-10.
  9. ^ "Multiscale Laser Lithography Laboratory (ML-cubed) | Photonics Center". www.bu.edu. Retrieved 2021-04-11.
  10. ^ "Watch These 3D-Printed Nasal Swab Prototypes Take Form". Boston University. Retrieved 2021-04-10.
  11. ^ "BU Engineers Are Taking on the Coronavirus Pandemic". Boston University. Retrieved 2021-04-10.
  12. ^ "Dr. Alice White, Director Lucent Technologies, GRPW '76". Archived from the original on 2021-04-11.
  13. ^ "Past Chairs". aps.org. Retrieved 2021-04-11.
  14. ^ "2013 OSA Fellows". osa.org. Archived from the original on 2014-02-25. Retrieved 2021-04-11.
  15. ^ "IEEE Fellows Directory - Member Profile". services27.ieee.org. Retrieved 2021-04-11.
  16. ^ "APS Fellow Archive". www.aps.org. Retrieved 2021-04-11.
  17. ^ "Achievement Award Recipients". Middlebury. Retrieved 2021-04-11.
  18. ^ "Prize Recipient". www.aps.org. Retrieved 2021-04-11.

External links[edit]

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