Akhlesh Lakhtakia named co-recipient of 2025 van de Hulst Light-Scattering Award
May 30, 2025
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Akhlesh Lakhtakia, Penn State Evan Pugh University Professor of Engineering Science and Mechanics, has been named a co-recipient of the 2025 van de Hulst Light-Scattering Award. He shares the honor with Andreas Macke, a prominent cloud meteorologist at the University of Leipzig, Germany, in recognition of their outstanding contributions to the field of light scattering.
The award is named after Dutch astronomer Hendrik C. van de Hulst, whose pioneering work included the prediction of the 21-centimeter hyperfine line of neutral hydrogen and the co-discovery of the spiral structure of the Milky Way. The award was inaugurated in 2010 by the Journal of Quantitative Spectroscopy and Radiative Transfer and is presented to scientists whose research has significantly advanced the understanding and application of light-scattering theory and techniques.
Past recipients of the award have included astronomers, optical theorists and atmospheric scientists working at the intersection of fundamental physics and applied environmental science. Lakhtakia will receive a glass statuette and an official Elsevier certificate at the 21st International Conference on Electromagnetic and Light Scattering, which will be held from June 23-27 in Milazzo, Sicily, Italy.
An internationally recognized expert in electromagnetics, optical physics and materials science, Lakhtakia is known for his extensive work on complex media, bio-replication and sculptured thin films. His research has not only advanced theoretical models of light-matter interaction but also led to practical innovations in optics, sensing and photonic device engineering. He earned the Radio Club Lifetime Achievement Award in 2022.
“I had the pleasure of meeting Professor van de Hulst in 1992 when he visited Penn State,” Lakhtakia said. “To now receive an award bearing his name is both humbling and deeply meaningful.”
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Akhlesh Lakhtakia, the Penn State Evan Pugh University Professor of Engineering Science and Mechanics. Credit: Jessica Knuth/Penn State.
