Junichiro Kono is Karl F. Hasselmann Chair in Engineering, Professor of Electrical & Computer Engineering, Professor of Physics and Astronomy, Professor of Materials Science and NanoEngineering, and Chair of Applied Physics at Rice University, which he joined in 2000. His research focuses on optical studies of condensed matter systems and photonic applications of nanosystems, including semiconductor nanostructures and carbon-based nanomaterials. He has made a number of pioneering contributions to the diverse fields of semiconductor optics, terahertz spectroscopy and devices, ultrafast and quantum optics, and condensed matter physics. He is a Fellow of APS, OSA, and SPIE. He is a leader in optical studies of condensed matter systems and photonic applications of nanosystems.