Prof. Efrain Solarte

Physicist, National University of Colombia, (BSc. 1975) graduated as the best graduating from the College of Science of the University. Master Science (1978). During MSc research, I built the first plasma ion source in my country and I won the DAAD -National University scholarship for doctoral studies in Germany. I graduated as Dr.rer.nat of the Technical University of Kaiserslautern. My thesis on interactions between lasers and ion beams was qualified Sehr Gut. I was Associate Professor at the National University of Colombia, Bogota (1985-89). Since 1990, Professor at Universidad del Valle. I lead the Quantum Optics group, devoted to study the laser light and matter interactions

We built our first CO2 for materials processing (1996-2005) producing the first micro-structured optical waveguide using CO2 laser annealing (2006). Studying the interaction between laser and soft tissues, we demonstrated the Laser-induced exocytosis effect, as a synergic action of light on fat cells (2003-2006). We developed a digital imaging method to study light interferences and light propagation in turbid media (2006-2010). Looking for laser and LED effects on cell cultures (2002-2015), we developed new methods of control and maintenance of cell cultures that allow the study of their optical and physiological properties. We apply spectroscopic techniques and fluorescence to study cell physiology, stress effects in plants and fruit ripening, air and water quality and wastewater flows (2005-2017)

I encouraged some students to research nonlinear optics and photonics. We calculated induced chaos in laser systems in 2004, and developed a laser source with induced chaos (2008), also photonic structures and pulse propagation in photonic crystals and nonlinear media (2005-2011). Develop software to study plasmonic effects in semiconductor solar cells (2010), light propagation in turbid media (2006-2011), and high energy laser pulses in nonlinear photonic media (2008-2016)