INRS celebrates the careers of two eminent researchers

INRS’ graduation ceremony will be a wonderful event again this year! In addition to the175 students who will be receiving their master’s or doctorate degrees, two distinguished scholars will be honoured.

During the 2023 ceremony, the Institut national de la recherche scientifique (INRS) is pleased to announce that it will be awarding two honorary doctorates. Researchers Jamal Deen, an expert in electrical engineering and applied physics and a professor at McMaster University, and Mordechai (Moti) Segev, a professor of physics at the Technion in Israel, will have their careers honoured by the community at the Palais Montcalm in Quebec City.

“It’s a great source of pride and joy to see our graduates celebrating their academic success with the community. This moment is also an opportunity to honour two prominent scientists who have done remarkable work both in their field and in training a new generation of high-level scientists. It’s always a privilege to be in the company of the scientific leaders of today and tomorrow,” says Luc-Alain Giraldeau, Chief Executive Officer of INRS.

The President of the Université du Québec, Alexandre Cloutier, will join Chief Executive Officer Luc-Alain Giraldeau in celebrating the new graduates and honorary doctors. Michel Fortin, General Secretariat; Claude Guertin, Scientific Director; Isabelle Boucher, Administration Director; Louise Hénault-Ethier, Director of the Eau Terre Environnement Research Centre; François Légaré, Director of the Énergie Matériaux Télécommunications Research Centre; and Marie-Soleil Cloutier, Director of the Urbanisation Culture Société Research Centre, will take part in the ceremony as well. Finally, Élise Comtois, Executive Director of the INRS Foundation, and Martine Vanasse, the Foundation’s Chair, will also be attending.

Mordechai (Moti) Segev

Originally from Romania, Mordechai (Moti) Segev grew up and completed his university education in Israel. He graduated with honours from the Technion Institute of Technology in 1985 with a degree in electrical engineering. He later received a Ph.D. in science from the same institution, then joined the Department of Applied Physics at Caltech until 1994. After his time at Caltech, he became a professor at Princeton’s Department of Electrical Engineering. In 2009, he became the Robert J. Shillman Distinguished Professor of Physics at his alma mater, the Technion Institute of Technology in Israel. Since 2019, he has been as a visiting professor at Purdue University in Indiana.

“I like to use an old quote, which was originally in Latin and is attributed to Galileo Galilei: ‘Tristo è quel maestro che non venga superato dal suo allievo.’ It can be translated as, ‘Poor is the master whose pupil does not surpass him.’ This represents the goal I’ve been pursuing all my life.” 

– Mordechai (Moti) Segev

The scientific community is indebted to this outstanding researcher for many major discoveries, including the first experiment on 2D solitons in photonic arrays, the first observation of nonlinear photonic quasicrystals, and the first experiment on photonic topological insulators. This last experiment has opened up a whole new field of research known today as “topological photonics.”

Professor Segev’s research focuses on nonlinear optics, photonics, solitons, sub-wavelength imaging, lasers, and quantum simulators and quantum electronics. Throughout his career, he has explored fundamental aspects and applications in science and technology with creativity and intelligence.

Jamal Deen

This is not the first time Mr. Deen has attended the INRS graduation ceremony. In fact, he was there as a member of the public last year when his son Imran was receiving a degree in materials engineering. The eminent researcher also worked at INRS for a few months as a research associate.

“It is with great humility, honour, and gratitude that I accept this prestigious award from INRS. This recognition is not only for me, but also for the many outstanding students, colleagues, and collaborators I am fortunate enough to work with, as well as my family for their deep love and unwavering support.” 

– Jamal Deen

Jamal Deen is an Indo-Guyanese researcher from a modest background. He began his higher education at the University of Guyana in South America. He received his B.Sc. in physics/mathematics in 1978, having won the Chancellor Medal (awarded to the second-best graduate) and the Irving Adler Award for the best mathematics student in his faculty. He continued his education in the United States at Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio, where he earned a master’s degree and a doctorate in electrical engineering and applied physics.

This brilliant student quickly stood out for achievements such as the design and modelling of a new spectrometer that was sponsored and used by NASA. In addition to his research, he began teaching, which has brought him to Canada. He began at the School of Engineering Science at Simon Fraser University in British Columbia, then at the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at McMaster University in Ontario, where he has been a Distinguished University Professor since 2015.

Between 1997 and 2015, Jamal Deen was also a visiting professor at various renowned institutions in the Netherlands, Germany, Spain, South Korea, Hong Kong, and China. This exceptional researcher’s outstanding achievements also include the development of smart sensors for health and water quality monitoring, as well as the development of a wireless heart monitoring sensor—the first of its kind that can be easily adapted to everyday life.

His work is driven by his passion, curiosity, and a desire to improve people’s wellness.

INRS is proud to honour these scientists and highlight their contributions to science and society with an honorary doctorate.