Aaswath Raman, a professor and the Vice Chair for Undergraduate Education for Material Science & Engineering has been selected as a Fellow of the Society for SPIE, the international society for optics and photonics. Professor Raman has been recognized for his exceptional contributions to optics and photonics through technical achievements, and his substantial service to the optics and photonics community and SPIE.
Each year, a select group of SPIE Members are chosen from nominations made by SPIE Members and Fellows. Recommendations and evaluations are made based on criteria such as excellence in publications or product development, serving on SPIE committees or editorial boards, and promoting science education or influencing policy. Of the more than 25,000 SPIE Members, less than 1,950 have been chosen to be Fellow.
“I would like to congratulate the new 2026 SPIE Fellows inductees. Every year the cohorts highlight exemplary work in the fields of optics and photonics, and this year was no exception,” says Fellows Committee Chair and Clemson University Professor Oliver Myers. “All of the inductees continue to amaze the reviewers with their technical and community leadership. We look forward to greater accomplishments from all the current and future Fellows.”
Raman leads the Raman Lab @ UCLA . His research focuses on how light and heat interact with metamaterials and nanoscale optical structures and devices, with the goal of enabling new technologies. Raman was also elected as a Fellow of the American Physical Society (APS) and Optica in 2025.
Aaswath received his Ph.D. in Applied Physics from Stanford University in 2013, and his A.B. in Physics and Astronomy and Astrophysics, and M.S. in Computer Science from Harvard University in 2006. His work has been featured in major media outlets including The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Economist and CNN. He is known for his pioneering work in radiative cooling, including the first demonstration of daytime radiative cooling, which has led to its emergence as an active research field and nascent commercial technology.
He is also a co-founder and Chief Scientific Officer of SkyCool Systems, a startup commercializing daytime radiative cooling technology he originated. Aaswath has given invited talks to a range of audiences, including to the broader public at TED 2018.