Shengwang Du

The National Academy of Inventors (NAI) has elected Shengwang Du, Scifres Family Professor in Purdue University’s Elmore Family School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, and Professor of Physics and Astronomy, to its 2026 class of senior members.

The senior member program recognizes active faculty, scientists and administrators at NAI member institutions who have successfully produced, patented and commercialized technologies that have brought, or aspire to bring, real impact on the welfare of society and economic progress. 

Du holds 12 patents through disclosures to the Purdue Innovates Office of Technology Commercialization (OTC).

He serves as deputy director of the Purdue Quantum Science and Engineering Institute (PQSEI), which is developing technologies to revolutionize the way we communicate, compute, and sense the world around us.

“I am truly honored to be elected as a senior member of the National Academy of Inventors,” Du said. “For me, invention has always been about curiosity — asking fundamental questions about how nature works — and then taking the extra step to translate those discoveries into technologies that can serve society. This recognition belongs equally to my students, postdoctoral scholars, and collaborators, whose creativity and dedication make innovation possible.”

Heading the Purdue Quantum Optics Laboratory, Du focuses his research on quantum optics and its applications in quantum networks, quantum computing, quantum sensing, optical neural networks for AI, and optical microscopy. His work in optical microscopy led to the establishment of Light Innovation Technology USA, a startup he co-founded to commercialize cutting-edge optical microscopies and bioimaging techniques. 

He also is leading an autonomous experiment that will ride aboard Virgin Galactic’s “Purdue 1” spaceflight. The research will examine how laser-cooled atoms behave at near-absolute zero temperatures, in the first step toward quantum positioning, navigation and timing (Q-PNT) for future space exploration.

Active in the scientific field, Du has served on the editorial boards of several journals and currently is an associate editor of Optics Express. He is a fellow of Optica and the American Physical Society. Du has authored 123 research journal publications.

Du is among 230 emerging inventors in the 2026 class of NAI senior members, to be inducted at NAI’s 15th Annual Conference, taking place June 1-4, 2026, in Los Angeles.

“This year’s senior member class is a truly impressive cohort,” said NAI President Paul R. Sanberg. “These innovators come from a variety of fields and disciplines, translating their technologies into tangible impact. I commend them on their incredible pursuits and I’m honored to welcome them to the academy.”

Du joins Vilas Pol, Professor in the Davidson School of Chemical Engineering, in the 2026 Class. Yuehwern Yih, the Tomkins Professor in the Edwardson School of Industrial Engineering, was elected in 2025.

Source: Purdue Engineering professors Du, Pol named NAI senior members