Yuri Kivshar
Australian nonlinear and optical physicist
About Yuri Kivshar
Born 1959. Yuri Kivshar is a Russian, Ukrainian and Australian physicist, researcher and university teacher, known for Metamaterials and Topological insulator.
Yuri S. Kivshar (born in Kharkiv, Ukrainian SSR, USSR), Australian physicist of Ukrainian origin, distinguished professor, head of Nonlinear Physics Centre of The Australian National University (ANU) (Canberra, Australia) and research director of The International Research Centre for Nanophotonics and Metamaterials (St. Petersburg, Russia), Australian Federation Fellow.
Education Yuri Kivshar was born in Kharkov, USSR (now Kharkiv, Ukraine). He studied at Kharkiv Theoretical Physics School. In 1984 he received Doctor of Philosophy degree and in 1989 aged 30 he became the youngest research fellow of Verkin Institute for Low Temperature Physics and Engineering.
Career Starting from 1991 he worked as a scientist in USA, Finland, Spain, Germany and in 1993 he was invited to the Optical Sciences Centre of Australia and later founded his own laboratory Nonlinear Physics Centre of ANU.
Starting from 2000 Yuri Kivshar worked in different fields of nonlinear optics and carried out research of solitons and metamaterials, nonlinear photonic crystal and composite materials theories.
He made fundamental impact into self-focusing effect, metamaterials, dielectric nanoantennas, topological insulators, optic signal processing and optic communications. He also discovered series of solitons and described their properties.
In 2010 Yuri Kivshar was invited to St. Petersburg, Russia in terms of government Megagrant program. He became a scientific leader of the International Research Centre for Nanophotonics and Metamaterials of the ITMO University (Saint-Petersburg, Russia).
Publications Professor Kivshar authored and co-authored more than 900 scientific papers. His h-index is 140. His work has generated over 38,000 citations.
Awards Throughout his career he has received awards, including the Stefanos Pnevmatikos International Award, in his continued contributions to nonlinear optics and electrodynamics. Professor Kivshar is also the recipient of the 2022 Max Born Award and is an Optica Fellow.
Medals
Books
Don’t just read it —
keep it.
Full-length biographies made to live with: read them, listen on the way to work, watch them tonight.
- E-book
- Audio
- Video
Instant download · yours to keep · every purchase keeps this site free
Important facts
People in Yuri Kivshar's life
Named in this biography and alive at the same time
Contemporaries
People whose lives overlapped Yuri Kivshar's
Frequently asked questions
Who is Yuri Kivshar?
Australian nonlinear and optical physicist
When was Yuri Kivshar born?
Yuri Kivshar was born on 3 April 1959 in Kharkiv.
What is Yuri Kivshar's occupation?
Yuri Kivshar is a physicist, researcher and university teacher.
What is Yuri Kivshar known for?
Yuri Kivshar is known for Metamaterials and Topological insulator.
What nationality is Yuri Kivshar?
Yuri Kivshar is Russian, Ukrainian and Australian.
Sources & further reading
Cite this page
APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Yuri Kivshar. https://biography.guide/yuri-kivshar/
MLA: "Yuri Kivshar." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/yuri-kivshar/.
Chicago: "Yuri Kivshar." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/yuri-kivshar/.
Data last updated: 2026-09-20 · Spot an error? Report a correction.
Portrait: Wikimedia Commons · author & licence
Page generated 2026-09-27 04:57 UTC