Frank K. Tittel

Frank Klaus Tittel (November 14, 1933 – February 17, 2026) was a German-born British-American laser physicist, engineer and inventor, who was J.S. Abercrombie Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Rice University. He was best known for his contributions to tunable lasers and laser absorption spectrometry, as well as for the invention of quartz-enhanced photoacoustic absorption spectroscopy.

Biography Tittel was born on November 14, 1933, in Oranienburg, Germany. His father was an industrial chemist while his mother was Jewish. In 1941, his father died in a skiing accident, while his brother died from an ear infection after being denied medical care due to his heritage. His mother committed suicide in the same year, after their family home was seized by the Nazi Party. During the World War II, he lived with various foster families and in a Czechoslovak camp for orphaned children. In 1948, he moved to England to live with his aunt.