C. David Wright

Papers

Total Citations

271

H-Index

About

C. David Wright is a leading figure in the field of nanophotonics and phase-change materials, where his work bridges the gap between fundamental physics and practical device engineering. His major contributions center on the development of reconfigurable, nonvolatile photonic devices—most notably, his pioneering work on phase-change metadevices for beam steering in the near infrared. His 2018 paper on this topic, which has garnered over 270 citations, demonstrated a compact, flat platform for dynamic light control without moving parts, a breakthrough with direct implications for LIDAR in autonomous vehicles and advanced sensing systems. Wright’s research has profoundly impacted the design of active metasurfaces, enabling programmable optical components that retain their state without power. Beyond beam steering, his work extends to optical data storage and neuromorphic photonics, where he explores how phase-change materials can mimic neural computation. With a career marked by high-impact publications and a talent for translating complex material science into deployable technologies, Wright is recognized as a key innovator in the quest for faster, smarter, and more energy-efficient photonic systems.