Charles K. Kao (PhD)

Dr. Charles Kuen Kao, widely regarded as the "Father of Fiber Optics," was awarded the 2009 Nobel Prize in Physics for his groundbreaking work demonstrating the feasibility of using light transmitted through optical fibers for communication. Born in Shanghai, China, into a scholarly family, his father earned a law degree from the University of Michigan and would later serve as a law professor at Soochow University in Shanghai. Following the Communist revolution, the Kao family relocated to Hong Kong, where Charles attended St. Joseph's College.  He later traveled to England to study electrical engineering and earning his PhD at the University of London.  While working at Standard Telecommunication Laboratories, he met his future wife, Gwen. It was here that Dr. Kao initiated his pioneering research into light transmission through glass fibers, a concept initially dismissed due to high signal loss. His discoveries would ultimately transform global communications and lay the groundwork for modern communication thru fiber optic cable.  Although publicly reserved in expressing his religious views, Dr. Kao would quietly practice his Christian faith and regularly attend Catholic services.  Guided by these convictions, Dr. Charles Kuen Kao, declined to patent his fiber optic breakthroughs, reflecting his belief in the broader service of humanity over personal gain.