MEET OUR TEAM
Dr. Sitai Lin
Dr. Sitai Lin led the FIRSM (Fujian Institute of Research on the Structure of Matter) effort that successfully grew the first BBO crystals. Dr. Lin graduated from Fuzhou University with a degree in Physical Chemistry. She worked for 15 years as the principal crystal grower at FIRSM. After emigrating to the United States, Dr. Lin combined her experience making flux-grown nonlinear crystals with cutting-edge American engineering to develop the first Top Seeded Solution Growth (TSSG) BBO growth operation at Inrad Optics in Northvale, New Jersey. In the late 90’s, at the height of the telecom boom, Dr. Lin moved to California, where she pioneered scalable optical fabrication processes of fiber optic components at JDS Uniphase. She left JDS to become a co-founder of Foreal Spectrum Inc., a technology leader in precision Ion Beam Sputtering (IBS) filter coatings for the laser, display, and medical industries. Dr. Lin is a founding member of GAMDAN Optics and is currently serving as its CTO.
Hanna Cai
Hanna Cai co-founded GAMDAN Optics and has the lead role in business development and general management of the company as its CEO. Hanna Cai is a graduate of the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) with a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering. After graduation, she developed and honed technical and management skills for 10 years, architecting device specific operating systems for Automated Test Equipment (ATE) makers. Since joining GAMDAN Optics full time in 2011, she achieved 6x revenue growth by 2018 with minimal outside funding. By developing the industry’s best performing lines of Nonlinear Optics (NLO) products, she is positioned to lead GAMDAN Optics to quadruple its business in the next 3 years.
Dennis J. Garrity
Dennis J. Garrity, the technical lead over GAMDAN Optics process development, has decades of experience in precision and laser optics manufacturing and testing, including large optics and micro laser devices, project management, engineering support, quality assurance, supervision, and hands-on fabrication. Mr. Garrity has developed and commercialized plano, spherical, and aspherical optics for medical, astronomical, scientific, industrial, military, and laser fusion applications.
Dr. Lawrence B. Fischel
Dr. Lawrence B. Fischel, GAMDAN Optics acting head of Quality, earned a Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering from UC Berkeley specializing in molecular modeling and simulation of surfaces and surface-active materials. By working in many FDA regulated industries including Pharmaceuticals, Medical Devices, and Food, Dr. Fischel has developed expertise in Project Management, Quality, R&D, and commercialization of a diverse range of products. Dr. Fischel has experience with crystallization, machining under controlled environments, plasma cleaning, and high-precision automated equipment.
Harold Kaefer
Harold Kaefer, the contracting project leader for GAMDAN Optics crystal growth control system, has been supporting GAMDAN Optics for over 15 years. He is an electrical engineer with extensive experience in electromechanical design and control system development. He is currently overseeing the implementation of state-of-the-art control systems to allow better scalability of our operations in the future.
Dr. Will Grossman
Will Grossman is a consultant retained by GAMDAN Optics, and his role is to help our customers be more successful with nonlinear optics. His technical expertise includes laser design, nonlinear optics, and laser reliability. Dr. Grossman’s laser designs are used around the world in commercial products. He has been published in many laser fields, and he continues to teach a short course for SPIE (the International Society for Optics and Photonics). Will earned his MS and Ph.D. in Applied Physics from Caltech and his BS from Case Western Reserve University.
Dr. Kenneth G. Ibbs
Dr. Ibbs gained a D.Phil (PhD) at the University of Sussex (UK), followed by a Postdoctoral Research fellowship at the University of Texas - both in laser spectroscopy. After leaving academia, he pursued a career in technical Sales and Marketing in the lasers and telecommunications industries, leading to executive roles as VP and General Management.