Allen Taflove
Encyclopedia
Allen Taflove is a full professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science of Northwestern's McCormick School of Engineering, since 1998. Since 1972, he has pioneered basic theoretical approaches and engineering applications of finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) computational solutions of Maxwell's equations
. He coined the descriptors "finite difference time domain" and "FDTD" in the 1980 paper, “Application of the finite-difference time-domain method to sinusoidal steady-state electromagnetic penetration problems,” IEEE Trans. Electromagnetic Compatibility, vol. 22, pp. 191–202, Aug. 1980 (doi:10.1109/TEMC.1980.303879). In 1990, he was the first person to be named a Fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) in the FDTD area.
in 1971, 1972, and 1975, respectively.
list of the Institute for Scientific Information (ISI). His books and journal papers have received a total of approximately 15,000 citations according to Google Scholar® (GS), and his h-index is reported as either 40 (GS) or 36 (ISI). 23 (GS) or 19 (ISI) of his papers have >100 citations. The descriptors "finite difference time domain" and "FDTD" coined by Prof. Taflove in 1980 have since become widely used, having appeared in this exact form in >44,000 articles and >80,000 articles, respectively (GS). These usages of "finite difference time domain" and "FDTD" greatly exceed the count of formal citations to his papers and books. Currently, more than 36 commercial and university-developed FDTD software suites are available, as per Wikipedia (Finite-difference time-domain method#External links).
initiated in July 2007 and then pursued through the appeals process by two plaintiffs who questioned the originality of some of the Taflove-Chang publications. Specifically, Taflove and Chang first won a summary judgment by the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois
, and subsequently won a denial of the plaintiffs' request for reconsideration of the summary judgment by the same U.S. District Court. Then, Taflove and Chang won a unanimous decision by a three-judge panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
affirming the judgment of the U.S. District Court. Subsequently, Taflove and Chang won a denial of the plaintiffs' petition for rehearing, and for rehearing en banc by the same U.S. Court of Appeals.
This case has potentially important implications regarding whether or not, or under what circumstances, works of science, mathematics, and engineering can be copyrighted.
and Prof. Taflove's research as related to Maxwell's equations
:
Maxwell's equations
Maxwell's equations are a set of partial differential equations that, together with the Lorentz force law, form the foundation of classical electrodynamics, classical optics, and electric circuits. These fields in turn underlie modern electrical and communications technologies.Maxwell's equations...
. He coined the descriptors "finite difference time domain" and "FDTD" in the 1980 paper, “Application of the finite-difference time-domain method to sinusoidal steady-state electromagnetic penetration problems,” IEEE Trans. Electromagnetic Compatibility, vol. 22, pp. 191–202, Aug. 1980 (doi:10.1109/TEMC.1980.303879). In 1990, he was the first person to be named a Fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) in the FDTD area.
Education
Prof. Taflove received the B.S., M.S., and Ph.D. degrees in electrical engineering from Northwestern UniversityNorthwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston and Chicago, Illinois, USA. Northwestern has eleven undergraduate, graduate, and professional schools offering 124 undergraduate degrees and 145 graduate and professional degrees....
in 1971, 1972, and 1975, respectively.
FDTD Computational Electrodynamics
Since about 2000, FDTD techniques have emerged as a primary means to computationally model many scientific and engineering problems dealing with electromagnetic wave interactions with material structures. Current FDTD modeling applications range from near-DC (ultralow-frequency geophysics involving the entire Earth-ionosphere waveguide) through microwaves (radar signature technology, antennas, wireless communications devices, digital interconnects, biomedical imaging/treatment) to visible light (photonic crystals, nanoplasmonics, solitons, and biophotonics).Publications and Citations
In 1995, Prof. Taflove authored the textbook/research monograph, Computational Electrodynamics: The Finite-Difference Time-Domain Method. In 1998, he edited the research monograph, Advances in Computational Electrodynamics: The Finite-Difference Time-Domain Method. Subsequently, he and Prof. Susan Hagness of the University of Wisconsin-Madison expanded and updated the 1995 book in a year-2000 second edition, and then further expanded and updated the 2000 second edition in a 2005 third edition. Through June 30, 2011, his four published FDTD books had approximately 10,500 total sales. As of Oct. 20, 2011, Prof. Taflove had authored or co-authored a total of 5 books, 21 articles or chapters in books and magazines, 136 refereed journal papers, and 14 U.S. patents. In 2002, he was named to the original ISI highly cited researcherISI highly cited researcher
ISI Highly Cited is a database of "highly cited researchers"—scientific researchers whose publications are most often cited in academic journals over the past decade, published by the Institute for Scientific Information...
list of the Institute for Scientific Information (ISI). His books and journal papers have received a total of approximately 15,000 citations according to Google Scholar® (GS), and his h-index is reported as either 40 (GS) or 36 (ISI). 23 (GS) or 19 (ISI) of his papers have >100 citations. The descriptors "finite difference time domain" and "FDTD" coined by Prof. Taflove in 1980 have since become widely used, having appeared in this exact form in >44,000 articles and >80,000 articles, respectively (GS). These usages of "finite difference time domain" and "FDTD" greatly exceed the count of formal citations to his papers and books. Currently, more than 36 commercial and university-developed FDTD software suites are available, as per Wikipedia (Finite-difference time-domain method#External links).
Research
Beginning in 2003, Prof. Taflove has collaborated with Prof. Vadim Backman of Northwestern University's Biomedical Engineering Department in research aimed at the minimally invasive detection of early-stage cancers of the human colon, pancreas, and lung. The techniques being pursued are based upon spectral and/or angular analysis of light that is backscattered from histologically normal tissue located away from a neoplastic lesion in what has been termed the field effect. This may lead to a new paradigm in cancer screening where, for example, lung cancer could be reliably detected by analyzing a few cells brushed from the interior surface of a person's cheek. On May 5, 2008, a large collaboration headed by Prof. Backman (with Prof. Taflove as a co-investigator) was awarded a five-year, $7.5-million grant from the National Institutes of Health to pursue this biophotonics technology to develop a noninvasive test for population-wide colon cancer screening.Federal court case
In 2010 and 2011, Prof. Taflove and his co-defendant, Shih-Hui (Gilbert) Chang, a former Ph.D. student, won four consecutive decisions in the U.S. Federal courts in a caseHo v. Taflove
Ho v. Taflove was a ruling by the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit in 2011 that affirmed a 2009 decision of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois: the expression of ideas can be copyrighted but not the ideas themselves.The plaintiffs alleged...
initiated in July 2007 and then pursued through the appeals process by two plaintiffs who questioned the originality of some of the Taflove-Chang publications. Specifically, Taflove and Chang first won a summary judgment by the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois
United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois
The United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois is the trial-level court with jurisdiction over the northern counties of Illinois....
, and subsequently won a denial of the plaintiffs' request for reconsideration of the summary judgment by the same U.S. District Court. Then, Taflove and Chang won a unanimous decision by a three-judge panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
The United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the courts in the following districts:* Central District of Illinois* Northern District of Illinois...
affirming the judgment of the U.S. District Court. Subsequently, Taflove and Chang won a denial of the plaintiffs' petition for rehearing, and for rehearing en banc by the same U.S. Court of Appeals.
This case has potentially important implications regarding whether or not, or under what circumstances, works of science, mathematics, and engineering can be copyrighted.
See also
The following article in Nature Milestones: Photons which illustrates the historical significance of the Finite-difference time-domain methodFinite-difference time-domain method
Finite-difference time-domain is one of the primary available computational electrodynamics modeling techniques. Since it is a time-domain method, FDTD solutions can cover a wide frequency range with a single simulation run, and treat nonlinear material properties in a natural way.The FDTD method...
and Prof. Taflove's research as related to Maxwell's equations
Maxwell's equations
Maxwell's equations are a set of partial differential equations that, together with the Lorentz force law, form the foundation of classical electrodynamics, classical optics, and electric circuits. These fields in turn underlie modern electrical and communications technologies.Maxwell's equations...
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