John D Joannopoulos

Background and Education

John D. Joannopoulos is the Director of the Institute for Soldier Nanotechnologies, a position he has held since 2006. He is a member of the National Academy of Sciences, and served as its Chair of Applied Physical Sciences. He has been on the Faculty of Physics at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology as Assistant Professor of Physics (1974), Associate Professor of Physics (1978), Professor of Physics (1983) and was awarded the Francis Wright Davis Professor of Physics Chair in 1996. He was appointed as the Director of the Institute for Soldier Nanotechnologies in 2006. He received his B.A. and Ph.D. in Physics from the University of California, Berkeley in 1968 and 1974, respectively. 

Awards and Honors

• Killian Award (MIT) | 2024-2025
• Elected Member, American Academy of Arts & Sciences | 2015
• Max Born Award (OSA) | 2015
  "For numerous contributions to nanophotonics, including pioneering the 'numerical experiments' approach for nanophotonics."
• Aneesur Rahman Prize for Computational Physics (APS) | 2015
  "For spearheading the development of ab-initio nano-photonics."
• Chair, Applied Physical Sciences, National Academy of Sciences | 2014-2017
• World Technology Network Fellow | 2009
• Elected Member, National Academy of Sciences | 2009
• Outstanding Referee of the American Physical Society Journals | 2009
• Thomson Reuters Web of Science Most Highly Cited Researchers List | 2003
• Elected Fellow, American Association for the Advancement of Science | 2002
• Graduate Teaching Award, MIT School of Science | 2001
• American Physical Society Centennial Speaker | 1998-1999
• David Adler Lectureship Award in the Field of Materials Physics (APS) | 1997
  "For his pioneering use of modern computational tools for the calculation of the electronic, vibrational, and optical properties of amorphous, crystalline, and photonic bandgap materials, including their surfaces and defects, and for his excellence in lecturing, writing, and training students in these areas."
• Francis Wright Davis Professor | 1996
• William Buechner Teaching Prize (MIT) | 1996
• MIT School of Science Graduate Council Teaching Award | 1991
• Elected Fellow, American Physical Society (APS) | 1983
  "For outstanding contributions to research and to developing young theorists in condensed matter physics."
• John S. Guggenheim Fellow | 1981-1982
• Sloan Research Fellowship | 1976-1980