Boris Zeldovich

Boris Yakovlevich Zeldovich was a renowned Russian-American physicist, born on 23 April 1944. As the son of esteemed Soviet physicist Yakov Borisovich Zeldovich, he followed in his father's footsteps, making significant contributions to the field of physics. Zeldovich's academic achievements include earning a doctorate in Physical and Mathematical sciences in 1981, and he was also recognized as a corresponding member of the Russian Academy of Sciences.

Zeldovich's illustrious career spanned several decades, during which he worked as a professor at the College of Optics and Photonics at the University of Central Florida, starting in 1994. His research focused on non-linear optics, optical waveguide theory, and optical holography, leading to groundbreaking discoveries, including the prediction and experimental discovery of giant optical nonlinearity in liquid crystals. He received numerous prestigious awards for his work, including the USSR State Prize in 1983 and the Max Born Award in Physical Optics from the Optical Society in 1997. Zeldovich passed away on 16 December 2018, at the age of 74, leaving behind a legacy of remarkable achievements in the field of physics.