Donald Keck facts for kids

Donald B. Keck, born on January 2, 1941, is an American scientist. He is famous for helping create a special kind of optical fiber. This fiber lets light travel long distances without losing much power.

He grew up in Lansing, Michigan and studied at Michigan State University. After college, he started working at Corning, Inc.. At Corning, he worked with Robert D. Maurer and Peter C. Schultz. Together, they invented the first optical fiber that could carry light signals very far. This invention was key for modern telecommunications.

Mr. Keck spent his whole career at Corning. He became a Vice President, helping the company explore photonics. Photonics is the science of light. Because of his amazing work, he joined the National Inventors Hall of Fame in 1993. He also received the important National Medal of Technology in 2000.

Early Life and Education

Donald Keck was born and grew up in Lansing, Michigan. In 1958, he started at Michigan State University. He first planned to study electrical engineering. However, his father convinced him to study physics instead.

He earned his Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degree in physics in 1962. He then received his Master of Science (M.S.) degree in physics in 1964. Both degrees were from Michigan State. He continued his studies, focusing on infrared spectroscopy for his doctorate. In 1967, he earned his Ph.D. in physics from Michigan State.

After getting his Ph.D., Mr. Keck accepted a job offer from Corning. He moved to New York and began working there in January 1968. He started as a senior research scientist.

Inventing Optical Fiber

At Corning, Donald Keck joined the Optical WaveGuide Project team. Instead of trying to make existing fibers better, the team looked for new materials. They explored using pure silica, a type of glass.

They began their work as soon as Keck arrived in early 1968. They tried different glass mixtures and ways to heat the glass. In August 1970, Keck measured their newest fibers. He noticed that light passed through a 65-foot fiber with almost no loss. He was so surprised he said, "Good grief, what do I have here?"

Keck took more measurements. He found the fiber had a very low light loss, much better than their goal. He wrote in his notebook, "Attenuation equals 16 db it says. Eureka," and then "Whoopee!". Keck and his team had invented the first low-loss optical fiber. It was made of heat-treated titanium-doped silica. They wrote papers about their discovery and filed for patents.

Improving the Fiber

Donald Keck kept working to make the fiber even better. He changed the titanium oxide glass to germanium oxide doped glass. By June 1972, he consistently achieved even lower light loss.

By the end of the 1970s, Keck had made four key inventions. These helped Corning become a leader in optical fiber. These inventions included:

• Fused silica doped with titanium.
• Fused silica doped with germanium.
• The inside vapor deposition (IV) process for making fiber.
• The outside vapor deposition (OV) process for making fiber. This OV process became the main way to make optical fiber.

By 1979, Corning was making huge amounts of this improved optical fiber. This happened in Wilmington, North Carolina.

Later Career at Corning

In 1989, Keck was chosen to be the editor-in-chief of the Journal of Lightwave Technology. He held this job until 1994. After starting as a senior research scientist in 1968, he rose through the ranks. In April 1997, Corning made him the division vice president of core technology for optics and photonics.

Donald Keck retired from Corning in 2002. When he retired, he was the vice president and director of research. Right after retiring, Keck helped start the Infotonics Technology Center. This center in Canandaigua (town), New York works on new ideas in photonics and nanotechnology. Because of his knowledge, he became the first chief technology officer of Infotonics for a short time.

Personal Life and Community

Donald Keck and his wife, Ruth, live in Big Flats (town), New York. They have two adult children. Both of their children also work in technology fields. Their daughter, Lynne Vaia, is a civil engineer. Their son, Brian Keck, is a software expert.

Mr. Keck is very involved in helping his local community in Corning. He serves on the board for the American Red Cross. He is also on the board of the Community Foundation and the Science Center. He still advises Infotonics. He also stays active in the science world. He is on the oversight board for the National Institute of Standards and Technology. He is also on the board of the IPO Education Foundation. Plus, he is the vice-chair of the National Inventors Hall of Fame Board of Directors.

He also supports his old university, Michigan State University. He is on the advisory board for the university's College of Natural Science.

Awards and Honors

Michigan State University, Donald Keck's alma mater, named him a Distinguished Alumnus. In 2004, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute gave him an honorary degree. In 1992, he received the John Tyndall Award. This award came from The Optical Society and IEEE Photonics Society.

The Optical Society also made him a Fellow in 1972. In 2012, they made him an Honorary Member. This is the Society's highest honor. For his discovery of low-loss optical fiber, Keck was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame in 1993. After that, he served as President of the National Inventors Hall of Fame Foundation. Also in 1993, Keck became a member of the National Academy of Engineering. This was for his invention and development of ways to make low-loss glass fibers for communication.

He also received the Department of Commerce American Innovator Award. He got the SPIE Technology Achievement Award too. For his work with photonics, Keck was honored with Laurin Publishing's Distinction in Photonics Award in 2002.

In 2000, U.S. President Bill Clinton gave Keck, along with his Corning teammates Maurer and Schultz, the National Medal of Technology. This is the highest honor for innovators in the nation. Their award said: "Their invention has enabled the telecommunications revolution, rapidly transformed our society, the way we work, learn and live – and our expectations for the future. It is the basis for one of the largest, most dynamic industries in the world today."

Patents

Donald Keck holds 36 U.S. patents. He also wrote over 150 papers about optical fibers and related parts. Here are a few of his selected patents:

• U.S. Patent 3,659,915  (1972-05) Maurer, et al., "Fused Silica Optical Waveguide."
• U.S. Patent 3,711,262  (1973-01) Keck, et al., "IV Method of producing optical waveguide fibers."