William Putnam

Dr. William Putnam is an Assistant Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of California, Davis. His research focuses on developing novel photonic devices and systems to enable compact, table-top particle accelerators, free-electron lasers (FELs), and chip-scale laboratories for strong-field laser physics. His work integrates nanoscale photonics, quantum optics, and electrostatic particle manipulation to advance applications in medical imaging, industrial processing, and fundamental physics.

Research interests include subwavelength-structured waveguides, strong-field optoelectronics, and electrostatic charged-particle guidance. His group pioneers technologies such as heralded electron sources for microscopy and lithography, and attosecond time-domain spectroscopy platforms for ultrafast optical analysis. Recent efforts emphasize phase-matching techniques in silicon photonics and mid-infrared photodetection for compact accelerator development.

Labs and teams: The Putnam Research Group at UC Davis collaborates on interdisciplinary projects spanning quantum engineering, nanophotonics, and advanced microscopy. Key projects include the NSF CAREER-funded 'Chip-Scale, Field-Resolved Detection of Mid-Infrared Light' initiative and the 'Integrated Attosecond Time-Domain Spectroscopy' platform.