Julien Laurat receives the 2024 Jean Jerphagnon Prize

On July 3, 2024, Julien Laurat was honored with the prestigious Jean Jerphagnon Prize from the French Optical Society. An engineer graduated from the Ecole Supérieure d’Optique, Professor of Physics at Sorbonne University, and member of the Institut Universitaire de France, Julien Laurat is an expert in optics and quantum information.

This prize, which promotes technological innovation and the dissemination of optics and photonics, was awarded to him in recognition of the significance of his research work, its innovative perspectives, and the industrial potential of the project he leads.

Head of the Quantum Networks team at the Kastler Brossel Laboratory, Julien Laurat works on the realization of new interfaces between light and cold atoms, the generation of non-classical states of light, and the implementation of quantum information protocols using these resources. His work enjoys international recognition, notably with the acquisition of two selective ERC grants (StG in 2012 and AdG in 2023).

In 2022, Julien Laurat also founded the startup Welinq, which aims to become a major player in networking and access to future quantum supercomputers. Welinq now has 20 employees and will deliver its first portable and robust quantum memory by the end of 2024.

Since 2011, he has also been directing the professional bachelor’s program “Optical Instrumentation and Visualization” (L3 pro LIOVIS) at Sorbonne University, actively contributing to the promotion of photonics education.

For more information, watch this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NXziI5cnFjI