Scott Diddams

Scott Diddams received his PhD from the University of New Mexico, USA. He did postdoctoral work at JILA, the National Institute of Standards and Technology and the University of Colorado, USA and was a Research Physicist, Group Leader, and Fellow at NIST. He currently holds the Robert H. Davis Endowed Chair at the University of Colorado Boulder, where he is also Professor of Electrical Engineering and Physics. 

He carries out experimental research in the fields of precision spectroscopy and quantum metrology, nonlinear optics, microwave photonics and ultrafast lasers. In 2022,  he transitioned to his present position where he also assumed the role of Faculty Director of the Quantum Engineering Initiative in the College of Engineering and Applied Science. As a postdoc Diddams built the first optical frequency combs in the lab of Nobel laureate John Hall, and throughout his career, he has pioneered the use of these powerful tools for optical clocks, tests of fundamental physics, novel spectroscopy, and astronomy. 

Diddams’ research has been documented in more than 750 peer-reviewed publications, conference papers, and invited talks. Among many awards, he has received the C.E.K. Mees Medal, the Distinguished Presidential Rank Award, the Department of Commerce Gold and Silver Medals for "revolutionizing the way frequency is measured”, as well as the Presidential Early Career Award in Science and Engineering (PECASE), the Laser Instrumentation Award, and the I. I. Rabi Award. He is a Fellow of Optica and the American Physical Society, and a Senior Member of IEEE.