James C. Wyant

James C. Wyant is professor at the College of Optical Sciences at the University of Arizona where he was Director (1999–2005) and Dean (2005–2012). He received a B.S. in physics from Case Western Reserve University and M.S. and Ph.D. in optics from the University of Rochester.

He was a founder of the WYKO Corporation and served as its president and board chairman from 1984 to 1997 and he was a founder of the 4D Technology Corporation and currently serves as its board chairman. Wyant is a member of the National Academy of Engineering, a Fellow of OSA (Optical Society of America), SPIE (International Society of Optics and Photonics), and the Optical Society of India, an honorary member of the Optical Society of Korea, and former editor-in-chief of the OSA journal Applied Optics. He was the 2010 president of OSA and the 1986 president of SPIE. Since 2010 he has been a member of the Board of Trustees of Case Western Reserve University. Wyant has received several awards for his technical work, including the OSA Joseph Fraunhofer Award; SPIE Gold Medal; SPIE Technology Achievement Award; and SPIE Chandra Vikram Award. He received the University of Rochester College of Engineering Distinguished Alumnus Award and a Doctorado Honoris Causa from the Instituto Nacional de Astrofisica, Optica y Electronica in Puebla, Mexico. For his entrepreneurial activities, Wyant has received several awards, including Arizona’s “Innovator of the Year” Product Award; the Tom Brown Excellence in Entrepreneurship Award; the University of Arizona Technology Innovation Award; and the Arizona Technology Council William F. McWhortor Award.