Mikhail Kats

Professor Mikhail Kats is a faculty member in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, with an additional affiliation in Materials Science & Engineering via the College of Engineering. He holds the Antoine-Bascom Associate Professorship and has received numerous accolades, including the Romnes Faculty Fellow and Clarivate Analytics Highly Cited Researcher distinctions. Kats’ research focuses on nanophotonics, plasmonics, and novel optical materials, with applications in energy-efficient systems, quantum sensors, and reconfigurable optical components. His work bridges fundamental materials science with applied photonics, often involving collaborations across disciplines.

Education: PhD in Physics from Harvard University (2014), MS in Physics from Harvard (2010), BS in Physics from Cornell University (2008).

Research interests include

• Metamaterials and metasurfaces
• Thermal radiation engineering
• Optoelectronic devices
• Quantum sensing
• Material discovery for photonics

Recent research highlights include electrically tunable mid-infrared metasurfaces, giant refractive index modulation in novel crystals, and passive upconversion systems for low-light applications. His work has been supported by NSF CAREER, ONR Early Career, and AFOSR grants.

Awards include:

• 2023 Clarivate Highly Cited Researcher
• 2020 IEEE Nanotechnology Council Early Career Award
• 2018 Vilas Early Career Award
• 2016 Forbes '30 Under 30' in Science

Teaching includes advanced photonics courses (E C E 747, E C E 434) and mentoring doctoral research. Kats leads projects in labs focused on nanophotonic device fabrication and optical characterization.