Walter Belardi is an associate Professor within the Department of Engineering and Architecture at the University of Parma, Italy.
He obtained his Laurea degree in Electronics Engineering, in 2000, at the University of Pavia, Italy, and his PhD in Optoelectronics at the Optoelectronics Research Centre, University of Southampton, United Kingdom, in 2004, with a Thesis on “Microstructured Optical Fibers for high nonlinearity applications”. He also obtained a University Degree in Business Management, in 2022, at the Institut d'Administration des Entreprises (IAE), Caen, France.
Since his PhD studies, he has cumulated over 20 years’ experience in the field of fiber optics, including research activities both in the industrial and academic sector. He has contributed to over hundred scientific publications, conference contributions and patents on the design, fabrication, and applications of Specialty Optical Fibers.
After having worked six years in STMicroelectronics and Osyris, a consulting firm in France, he rejoined Academia to develop his interest in the specific area of Hollow Core Optical Fibers, at the University of Bath and the University of Southampton, in the United Kingdom, and, later, at the University of Lille, in France.
Since 2018, he held an Excellence Research Chair in Photonics at the University of Lille and, after 2020, he was the General Coordinator of the European Research Project GADEIRE.
Prof. Belardi is one of the main pioneers in the field of hollow core antiresonant optical fibers, particularly with the very first theoretical conception, proposal, and fabrication, in 2013, of a revolutionary structure of hollow core optical fiber, later referred to as nested antiresonant nodeless optical fiber.
Moreover, he has given major contributions to the development of simplified hollow core optical fibers for practical use in the mid-infrared spectral range.
Prof. Belardi has contributed to secure an overall research funding exceeding 2.5 M€ either as co-investigator or principal investigator. He has served as reviewer for several journals including “Optica” and "Nature Communications". He has been an evaluator for research projects submitted to the “European Commission”, the “Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council” (UK), l’ “Agence National de Recherche”(FR), the “European Research Council”, “The Danish Council for Independent Research”, ”The Department of Energy”(USA), the “Hercules Foundation”(BE), “The National Science Centre”(PL).
Prof Belardi has been the editor of a book including updated contributions and reviews within the field of Hollow Core Optical Fibers. He is an associate editor for the journal “Fibers”, chair of an annual workshop on “Microstructured Optical Fibers” and committee member for the conference Photoptics.
Google Scholar : https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=3Co-FFYAAAAJ&hl=fr
Linkedin : https://www.linkedin.com/in/walter-belardi-596ab725/
