Royal Academy of Engineering welcomes new Fellows

The Royal Academy of Engineering has elected 71 leading figures in the field of engineering and technology to its Fellowship, including Professor Robert Thomson FREng, Professor of Photonics at Heriot-Watt University.

Announced at its AGM on 17 September 2024, the group consists of 60 Fellows, six International Fellows and five Honorary Fellows, each of whom has made exceptional contributions to their own sector, pioneering new innovations, leading progress in business or academia, providing high-level advice to government, or promoting wider understanding of engineering and technology.

Professor Thomson, who is also co-lead of the University’s Global Research Institute in Health and Care Technologies, has been recognised for his groundbreaking work on guided wave optics. In particular, he has pioneered the use of ultrafast-laser-based techniques to fabricate 3D waveguide devices that manipulate light in previously impossible ways. These include integrated components for coupling light to and from special types of optical fibre that transmit multiple spatial modes of light and, as a result, can carry much more information than traditional optical fibre. This technique, known as space-division-multiplexing, has the potential to transform future telecommunications.

The waveguide devices were commercialised by Optoscribe Ltd, a Heriot Watt spin-out co-founded by Professor Thomson in 2010, which was successfully acquired by Intel in 2022.

He said: "I’m honoured to have been elected a Fellow of the UK's national academy of engineering. Throughout my career, I have been inspired by Fellows of the Academy, many of whom have developed technologies that have transformed our society. I am humbled to join such a leading group.

“Engineering has never been more important, and I look forward to working with the Academy to help ensure the UK remains a world-leading engineering powerhouse. I am tremendously grateful to all the students, collaborators, mentors and friends I have worked with over the years - this award recognises the impact of our achievements."

The new Fellows will be formally admitted to the Academy at a special ceremony in London on 27 November, when each Fellow will sign the roll book. In joining the Fellowship, they will lend their unique capabilities to achieving the Academy’s overarching strategic goal to harness the power of engineering to create a sustainable society and an inclusive economy for all.

Dr John Lazar CBE FREng, President of the Royal Academy of Engineering, says: “Our new Fellows represent some of the most talented people in the world of engineering and are taken from the ranks of those who are aiming to address some of our most critical problems.

"We are proud to say that many of our newly elected Fellows have come from underrepresented groups in engineering and related sectors and we hope this helps to tackle some of the issues around a lack of diversity within the profession. There is ample evidence that a wider pool of ideas and experiences helps to improve decision-making and develop novel solutions to global challenges.”