Director of Engineering, Qioptiq Polymer, Incorporated
Vice President, OSSC (Optical Society of Southern California)
Instructor, Univ. of California Irvine Extension
Instructor, SPIE course "Integration of Optical and Mechanical Design (SC983)"
Country of birth: Russia
Country of residence: USA
Educational background: MSc in electrical engineering, Electro-Technical Univ., Saint Petersburg; MSc in earth and space, atmospheric science, York Univ. Toronto
A typical work day.
At QPI I lead the engineering group and work on several research and development projects related to precision polymer optics and mechanics. I also provide engineering support and solutions for our customers and for the QPI manufacturing team. At UCI Extension I teach classes in the new optical instrument design program, which takes students from the conceptual to the practical design of lenses, optical systems, and optomechanical systems of optical instruments.
What I enjoy most.
The most interesting to me is starting an optical instrument design with a concept, seeing it through all the phases of design, analysis, assembly, and packaging; and finally watching my modeled device coming to life. It's a very exciting and professionally rewarding experience, and by the end of each project there are always new friends made among the coworkers and new business networks developed.
Words of wisdom.
Being a volunteer in a professional society can be lots of fun and a great career boost. Becoming a part of society leadership has helped me remain in the center of events and professional developments in the optical community.