Lior Michaeli, Ph.D

Lior is a Fulbright postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of Applied Physics and Material Science at the California Institute of Technology, working in the group of Prof. Harry Atwater. His research interests involve optical dynamic control of macroscopic objects. This research deals with mechanical manipulation of millimeter-to meter-scale objects by light, through its ability to exert forces. The research is part of the ambitious goal of the Breakthrough Starshot Initiative to launch laser-driven lightsails for space exploration. Lior received his BSc, MSc, and PhD in Physics from Tel Aviv University. In his PhD, conducted under the supervision of Prof. Tal Ellenbogen and Prof. Haim Suchowski, he investigated collective effects in two-dimensional nanoparticle arrays, known as metasurfaces. Lior currently lives in Pasadena, CA, with his wife and their son, daughter, and dog.