WQCES-2026

Özgür E. Müstecaplıoğlu is a Professor of Physics at Koç University, Istanbul, where he leads the Quantum Enabling System Technologies (QuEST) research group. He received his B.Sc. in Physics from Bilkent University in 1993 and his M.Sc. and Ph.D. degrees in quantum optics under the supervision of Prof. Alexander S. Shumovsky in 1995 and 1999, respectively. Following postdoctoral research at the Georgia Institute of Technology (1999–2002) on atomic Bose–Einstein condensates and degenerate Fermi gases, he joined Koç University in 2002 and became a full professor in 2012. His research spans quantum optics, thermodynamics, and quantum technologies, with a focus on light–matter interactions for photonic, thermal, and sensing applications. He has held visiting positions at ETH Zurich, Princeton University, Queen’s University Belfast, and Humboldt University of Berlin, and currently serves as an affiliated researcher at the TÜBİTAK Institute for Fundamental Sciences (TBAE). Professor Müstecaplıoğlu has authored over 180 scientific publications, including several cover-featured papers in leading physics and popular science journals. He represented Turkey on the management boards of the EU Quantum Technologies for Space and Atomic Quantum Technologies networks (2017–2021). His honors include the TÜBA Young Scientist Award (2004), TÜBİTAK Incentive Award (2007), METU Mustafa Parlar Research Award (2009), Koç University Outstanding Achievement Award (2019), and the TÜBİTAK 100th Year Science Award (2023) for his pioneering contributions to quantum optics and thermodynamics. He is a member of the Turkish Academy of Sciences Association and has been recognized by the American Physical Society as a Distinguished Science Reviewer and by the Institute of Physics (IOP) as a Trusted Reviewer.