Professor Howard Lee receives Proof of Product award from UCI Beall Applied Innovation
The award will support Lee’s research into high power hollow optical fibers used in geothermal drilling.
Thursday, August 14, 2025 | Lucas Van Wyk Joel | UC Irvine Physical Sciences Communications
Professor Howard Lee of the UC Irvine Department of Physics & Astronomy recently received a Proof of Product (PoP) award from UCI Beall Applied Innovation – an award that helps researchers like Lee move their discoveries from the lab to the commercial marketplace. The award, which will give Lee and his group $60,000 in research funding, will support his group’s research into designing different type of hollow core optical fibers with applications to geothermal drilling and high-power laser technologies as well as provide guidance on enhancing the appeal of the technology to industry stakeholders and investors. “The PoP grant from UCI BAI allows us to explore this promising idea and access its potential for practical technologies,” said Lee, who’s also part of an entrepreneurial training program offered by the National Science Foundation called I-Corp. “Participation in the regional I-Corp program and discussion with BAI staff will further strengthen our understanding of this important market segment.”
Click here to read full news brief on the UC Irvine School of Physical Sciences website.
Author: Gabrielle Comfort
