Dr. Dae Wook Kim is the head of the LOFT group at the College of Optics at the University of Arizona. While his original background was in astronom, he came to the University of Arizona and completed his PhD in optical sciences. His dissertation covered computer controlled surface figuring for fabrication of complex large extremely large optics. From there, Dr. Kim has contributed to a wide range of academic research projects as well as fabrications of various optics, including the 4.2 m DKIST primary mirror. We sit down with Dr. Dae Wook Kim to learn about his current deflectometry and fabrication research projects, what he finds most exciting in optics right now, and what projects he hopes to do in the future.
To learn more about Dr. Dae Wook Kim’s recent work, we recommend reading his recent publication in Business Insider discussing how the world’s largest mirrors are created. The publication can be found at: http://www.loft.optics.arizona.edu/documents/journal_articles/TheConveration_BM_DKim_2016Jan.pdf