Albert Polman is a distinguished Dutch physicist and pioneering figure in the field of nanophotonics whose innovative research has profoundly impacted photonic materials for renewable energy applications. He currently serves as Scientific Group Leader at AMOLF, the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research institute in Amsterdam, where he heads the Light Management in new Photovoltaic Materials program and leads the Photonic Materials research group. A professor of Photonic Materials for Photovoltaics at the University of Amsterdam, Polman earned his PhD from Utrecht University and conducted postdoctoral research at AT&T Bell Laboratories before establishing his career at AMOLF in 1991. His leadership was instrumental in shaping the institute's research direction during his tenure as director from 2006 to 2013, with additional scholarly enrichment through sabbaticals at Caltech and the University of New South Wales.
Polman is recognized as one of the early pioneers of nanophotonics, having established foundational work on light-matter interactions at the nanoscale that has transformed approaches to solar energy conversion. His research on light management strategies has led to breakthroughs in ultra-high efficiency solar cells, particularly through innovative spectrum splitting techniques and novel light trapping approaches in both thin-film and tandem solar cell architectures. He has significantly advanced cathodoluminescence spectroscopy as a powerful nanoscale imaging and spectroscopy technique, enabling unprecedented visualization of light propagation in photonic structures. Polman's development of optical metasurfaces for analog optical processing and passive radiative cooling represents transformative work that bridges fundamental science with practical applications for sustainable energy technologies.
As a highly cited researcher from 2017 to 2019 and recipient of three prestigious ERC Advanced Grants, Polman's scientific influence extends across international research communities working at the intersection of photonics and renewable energy. His leadership of the LMPV program at AMOLF has fostered exceptional talent development, having co-educated over 160 PhD students and postdocs alongside 80 master's students, with many of his trainees now contributing to the sustainability sector. In 2023, the five LMPV group leaders under his guidance received the NWO Team Science Award, recognizing their collective impact on advancing photonic materials research. Polman continues to push the boundaries of nanophotonics with over 200 invited talks at international conferences, driving forward research on next-generation solar technologies and optical metasurfaces that promise to revolutionize energy harvesting and optical computing.
