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{{Short description|American physicist}}
{{Infobox scientist
| name = James P. Gordon
| image = James_P_Gordon.jpg
| image_size = 250px
| caption = James P. Gordon (1928–2013)
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1928|3|20}}
| birth_place = [[New York City, New York|New York City]], [[New York (state)|New York]]
| death_date = {{death date and age|2013|6|21|1928|3|20|mf=y}}
| death_place = Manhattan, New York, New York
| nationality = American
| field = [[Physics]]
|
| alma_mater = [[Columbia University]]<br />[[Massachusetts Institute of Technology]]▼
| doctoral_advisor = [[Charles Hard Townes]]▼
▲| alma_mater = [[Columbia University]]<br>[[Massachusetts Institute of Technology]]
▲| doctoral_advisor = [[Charles Hard Townes]]
}}
'''James Power Gordon''' (March 20, 1928 – June 21, 2013) was an American physicist known for his work in the fields of [[optics]] and [[quantum electronics]]. His contributions include the design, analysis and construction of the first [[maser]] in 1954 as a doctoral student at [[Columbia University]] under the supervision of [[Charles Hard Townes|C. H. Townes]], development of the quantal equivalent of [[Claude Shannon|Shannon]]'s [[Channel Capacity|information capacity]] formula in 1962, development of the theory for the diffusion of atoms in an optical trap (together with [[Arthur Ashkin|A. Ashkin]]) in 1980, and the discovery of what is now known as the [[Gordon-Haus effect]] in [[soliton]] transmission, together with [[H. A. Haus]] in 1986. Gordon was a member of the [[National Academy of Engineering]] (since 1985) and the [[National Academy of Sciences]] (since 1988).
==Biography and personal life==
J. P. Gordon was born in [[Brooklyn]], [[New York (state)|New York]], on March 20, 1928, and was raised in [[Forest Hills, Queens]] and [[Scarsdale, New York]].<ref name=NYTObit/> His father, Robert S. Gordon was a lawyer and worked as VP and General Counsel for National Dairy, now Kraftco. Gordon attended Scarsdale High School and [[Phillips Exeter Academy]] (Class of 1945). In 1949, he received a bachelor's degree from the [[Massachusetts Institute of Technology]] (MIT) and joined the physics department of [[Columbia University]] as a graduate student. He received his
In 1960, he married Susanna Bland Waldner, a former Bell-Labs computer programmer. The couple had three children: James Jr., Susanna, and Sara. A resident of [[Rumson, New Jersey]], he died aged 85 on June 21, 2013, at a hospital in New York City due to cancer.<ref name=NYTObit>Martin, Douglas. [https://www.nytimes.com/2013/07/28/science/james-gordon-dies-at-85-work-paved-way-for-laser.html?pagewanted=all "James Gordon Dies at 85; Work Paved Way for Laser"], ''[[The New York Times]]'', July 27, 2013. Accessed July 29, 2013.</ref><ref name=death>{{cite news|url=http://www.app.com/article/20130625/NJNEWS/306250135/James-P-Gordon-noted-physicist-dead-at-85?nclick_check=1|title=James P. Gordon, noted physicist, dead at 85|publisher=APP|date=Jun 26, 2013}}</ref>
In addition to his scientific career, Gordon played [[platform tennis]], having won the U.S. National Championship for men's doubles in 1959, and mixed doubles in 1961 and 1962.<ref name="ref2"/><ref name="ref3"/>
Gordon's brother, Robert S. Gordon Jr. (
==Scientific activity==
===Lasers and resonators===
[[Image:
During his doctoral training period with C.H. Townes at Columbia University, Gordon worked on the design, analysis and construction of the maser.<ref name="ref4"/> This work produced the first prototype of what later evolved into the [[laser]] (originally called
===Quantum information===
In 1962, Gordon studied the implications of quantum mechanics on Shannon's information capacity.<ref name="ref8"/> He pointed out the main effects of quantization and conjectured the quantum equivalent of Shannon's formula for the information capacity of a channel.<ref name="ref9"/> Gordon's conjecture, later proven by [[Alexander Holevo]] and known as [[Holevo's theorem]], became one of the central results in the modern field of [[quantum information]] theory.<ref name="ref10"/> In his work with W.H. Louisell published in 1966, Gordon addressed the problem of measurement in quantum physics, focusing in particular on the simultaneous measurement of noncommuting observables.<ref name="ref11"/> The concept of "measurement operator," which was introduced in that work was an early version of what is currently referred to as [[POVM|positive-operator valued measure (POVM)]] in the context of quantum measurement theory. After his retirement, Gordon re-engaged with the topic of quantum information and his last paper on the subject, titled
===Atom diffusion===
Having joined [[Arthur Ashkin]]'s efforts of manipulating microparticles with laser beams, Gordon wrote the first theory describing radiation forces and momenta in dielectric media.<ref name="ref12"/> Later, jointly with Ashkin, he modeled the motion of atoms in a radiation trap.<ref name="ref125"/> This work together with Ashkin's experiments, was the basis for what later developed into the fields of [[Magneto-optical trap|atom trapping]] and [[optical tweezers]]. Ashkin's work on optical tweezers was recognized with the Nobel Prize in Physics awarded to him in 2018.
===Solitons and optical communications===
Much of Gordon's later career focused on the study of soliton transmission in optical fibers. He reported the first experimental observation of solitons in optical fibers in a paper co-authored with R.H. Stolen and [[Linn F. Mollenauer|L.F. Mollenauer]].<ref name="ref13"/> In a seminal 1986 paper, Gordon explained and formulated the theory of the soliton self-frequency shift that had been observed prior to that in experiments.<ref name="ref14"/> In the same year, together with Prof. [[H. A. Haus]] of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), he predicted and quantified the timing-jitter effect resulting from the coupling between solitons and optical amplification noise in amplified optical systems.<ref name="ref15"/> This effect was shown to be one of the most fundamental factors in determining the performance of soliton systems and it is now broadly recognized as the Gordon-Haus effect.<ref name="ref16"/> In 1990
Gordon's most recent major contribution to the field of fiber-optic communications was in the mathematical formulation of the phenomenon of [[polarization mode dispersion]] (PMD), which constitutes one of the most important factors in determining the performance of fiber-optic systems. His paper, coauthored with [[Herwig Kogelnik|H. Kogelnik]], appeared in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, and the formulation presented therein became standard in many of the subsequent texts dealing with polarization phenomena in optical fibers.<ref name="ref17"/>
==Societies and honors==
* Fellow of the [[American Physical Society]]
* Fellow of the [[Optical Society of America]] (OSA)
* Life fellow of [[IEEE]]
* [[Charles Hard Townes Award]] (OSA, 1981)<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.osa.org/Awards_and_Grants/Awards/Award_Description/charlestownes/ | title=Charles Hard Townes Medal | Optica }}</ref>
* [[National Academy of Engineering]] ([[List of members of the National Academy of Engineering|member]] since 1985)
* [[National Academy of
* [[Max Born Award]] (OSA, 1991)<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.osa.org/Awards_and_Grants/Awards/Award_Description/maxborn/ | title=Max Born Award | Optica }}</ref>
* [[Willis E. Lamb Award]] for laser science and quantum optics (2001)<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.lambaward.org/2001/|title=The 2001 Willis e. Lamb Award for Laser Science and Quantum Optics}}</ref>
* [[
* Honorary Member of the Optical Society (OSA, 2011)<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.osa.org/Membership/Member_Categories/Honorary/ | title=Honorary Members | Optica }}</ref>
==References==
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<ref name="ref2">[http://www.platformtennis.org/Tournaments/national_champions___rankings/Mens-Champions.htm?/ List of Men's Doubles National Champions in Platform Tennis]</ref>
<ref name="ref3">[http://www.platformtennis.org/tournaments/Mixed_Doubles_National_Champions.htm?/ List of Mixed Doubles National Champions in Platform Tennis]</ref>
<ref name="ref4">{{cite journal | last1=Gordon | first1=J. P. | last2=Zeiger | first2=H. J. | last3=Townes | first3=C. H. | title=The Maser—New Type of Microwave Amplifier, Frequency Standard, and Spectrometer | journal=Physical Review | publisher=American Physical Society (APS) | volume=99 | issue=4 | date=1955-08-15 | issn=0031-899X | doi=10.1103/physrev.99.1264 | pages=1264–1274| bibcode=1955PhRv...99.1264G |doi-access=free}}</ref>
<ref name="ref5">{{cite journal | last=Gordon | first=James P. | title=Reflections on the First Maser | journal=Optics and Photonics News | publisher=The Optical Society | volume=21 | issue=5 | date=2010-05-01 | issn=1047-6938 | doi=10.1364/opn.21.5.000034 |
<ref name="ref6">{{cite journal | last1=Boyd | first1=G. D. | last2=Gordon | first2=J. P. | title=Confocal Multimode Resonator for Millimeter Through Optical Wavelength Masers | journal=Bell System Technical Journal | publisher=Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) | volume=40 | issue=2 | year=1961 | issn=0005-8580 | doi=10.1002/j.1538-7305.1961.tb01626.x | pages=489–508}}</ref>
<ref name="ref7">{{cite journal | last1=Brabec | first1=Thomas | last2=Krausz | first2=Ferenc | title=Intense few-cycle laser fields: Frontiers of nonlinear optics | journal=Reviews of Modern Physics | publisher=American Physical Society (APS) | volume=72 | issue=2 | date=2000-04-01 | issn=0034-6861 | doi=10.1103/revmodphys.72.545 | pages=545–591| bibcode=2000RvMP...72..545B }}</ref>
<ref name="ref8">{{cite journal | last=Gordon | first=J. | title=Quantum Effects in Communications Systems | journal=Proceedings of the IRE | publisher=Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) | volume=50 | issue=9 | year=1962 | issn=0096-8390 | doi=10.1109/jrproc.1962.288169 | pages=1898–1908| s2cid=51631629 }}</ref>
<ref name="ref9">{{cite book|title=Quantum electronics and coherent light|first1=J.P.|last1= Gordon|first2= P.A. |last2=Miles|series= Proceedings of the International School of Physics Enrico Fermi, Course XXXI|
<ref name="ref10">{{cite journal | last=Holevo | first=A.S. | title=The capacity of the quantum channel with general signal states | journal=IEEE Transactions on Information Theory | volume=44 | issue=1 | year=1998 | issn=0018-9448 | doi=10.1109/18.651037 | pages=269–273|arxiv=quant-ph/9611023}}</ref>
<ref name="ref11">Simultaneous measurements of noncommuting observables, J. P. Gordon and W. H. Louisell, in Physics of Quantum Electronics, P. L. Kelley, M. Lax, and P. E. Tannenwald, Eds. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1966, pp. 833-840.</ref>
<ref name="ref1000">[https://arxiv.org/abs/1407.1326\ Communication and Measurement: J.P. Gordon, arXiv:1407.1326 [quant-ph] (2014).]</ref>
<ref name="ref12">{{cite journal | last=Gordon | first=James P. | title=Radiation Forces and Momenta in Dielectric Media | journal=Physical Review A | publisher=American Physical Society (APS) | volume=8 | issue=1 | date=1973-07-01 | issn=0556-2791 | doi=10.1103/physreva.8.14 | pages=14–21| bibcode=1973PhRvA...8...14G }}</ref>
<ref name="ref125">{{cite journal | last1=Gordon | first1=J. P. | last2=Ashkin | first2=A. | title=Motion of atoms in a radiation trap | journal=Physical Review A | publisher=American Physical Society (APS) | volume=21 | issue=5 | date=1980-05-01 | issn=0556-2791 | doi=10.1103/physreva.21.1606 | pages=1606–1617| bibcode=1980PhRvA..21.1606G |doi-access=
<ref name="ref13">{{cite journal | last1=Mollenauer | first1=L. F. | last2=Stolen | first2=R. H. | last3=Gordon | first3=J. P. | title=Experimental Observation of Picosecond Pulse Narrowing and Solitons in Optical Fibers | journal=Physical Review Letters | publisher=American Physical Society (APS) | volume=45 | issue=13 | date=1980-09-29 | issn=0031-9007 | doi=10.1103/physrevlett.45.1095 | pages=1095–1098| bibcode=1980PhRvL..45.1095M }}</ref>
<ref name="ref14">{{cite journal | last=Gordon | first=J. P. | title=Theory of the soliton self-frequency shift | journal=Optics Letters | publisher=The Optical Society | volume=11 | issue=10 | date=1986-10-01 | pages=662–4 | issn=0146-9592 | doi=10.1364/ol.11.000662 | pmid=19738721 | bibcode=1986OptL...11..662G }}</ref>
<ref name="ref15">{{cite journal | last1=Gordon | first1=J. P. | last2=Haus | first2=H. A. | title=Random walk of coherently amplified solitons in optical fiber transmission | journal=Optics Letters | publisher=The Optical Society | volume=11 | issue=10 | date=1986-10-01 | pages=665–7 | issn=0146-9592 | doi=10.1364/ol.11.000665 | pmid=19738722 | bibcode=1986OptL...11..665G }}</ref>
<ref name="ref16">{{cite book|title=Nonlinear Fiber Optics|first=G.P. |last=Agrawal|edition=2nd |publisher=Academic press|location=New York|year=1995|isbn=978-0123958211}}</ref>
<ref name="ref16.5">{{cite journal | last1=Gordon | first1=J. P. | last2=Mollenauer | first2=L. F. | title=Phase noise in photonic communications systems using linear amplifiers | journal=Optics Letters | publisher=The Optical Society | volume=15 | issue=23 | date=1990-12-01 | pages=1351–3 | issn=0146-9592 | doi=10.1364/ol.15.001351 | pmid=19771087 | bibcode=1990OptL...15.1351G }}</ref>
<ref name="ref17">{{cite journal | last1=Gordon | first1=J. P. | last2=Kogelnik | first2=H. | title=PMD fundamentals: Polarization mode dispersion in optical fibers | journal=Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences | volume=97 | issue=9 | date=2000-04-25 | issn=0027-8424 | doi=10.1073/pnas.97.9.4541 | pages=4541–4550| pmid=10781059 | pmc=34323 | bibcode=2000PNAS...97.4541G |doi-access=free}}</ref>}}
== External links ==
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[[Category:1928 births]]
[[Category:2013 deaths]]
[[Category:Deaths from cancer in New York (state)]]
[[Category:Columbia
[[Category:
[[Category:
[[Category:Laser researchers]]
[[Category:Fellows of
[[Category:Massachusetts Institute of Technology alumni]]
[[Category:Members of the United States National Academy of Engineering]]
[[Category:Members of the United States National Academy of Sciences]]
[[Category:
[[Category:People from Forest Hills, Queens]]
[[Category:People from Rumson, New Jersey]]
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