physics

Marin Soljačić

Marin Soljačić is a physics topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Marin Soljačić rather than just read about it. In short: Marin Soljačić (born February 7, 1974) is a Croatian-American physicist and electrical engineer and Cecil and Ida Green Professor at physics department, MIT. He is credited as a co-founder of Lightelligence.

Key takeaways

Marin Soljačić belongs to physics; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Marin Soljačić to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Marin Soljačić from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Marin Soljačić (born February 7, 1974) is a Croatian-American physicist and electrical engineer and Cecil and Ida Green Professor at physics department, MIT. He is credited as a co-founder of Lightelligence.

Biography Marin Soljačić was born in Zagreb in 1974. After graduating from XV Gymnasium (MIOC) in Zagreb he attended MIT, where he got his BSc in physics and electrical engineering in 1996. In 1998 he got his MSc from Princeton University and in 2000 he got his PhD in Physics. In 2005 he became a professor of Physics at MIT. In 2008, he was awarded a MacArthur "genius" Fellowship. In 2014, he was awarded Blavatnik National Award, and in 2023 Max Born award of Optica.

Work In 2007 Marin Soljačić and his assistants successfully made the first efficient non-radiative power transfer at a distance of 2 meters turning on a 60 W light bulb. Energy transfer was 40% efficient. Professor Soljačić's experiments and work in wireless energy transfer are related in spirit to the work of Nikola Tesla in the early 20th century, but also have significant differences: unlike Tesla's long-range wireless energy transfer in Colorado, the Soljačić group focuses only on short-range transfer, and unlike Tesla coils which resonantly transfer power with electric fields (which couple strongly to surrounding matter, most famously inducing artificial lightning) the Soljačić proposal uses coupling primarily via magnetic fields. This work is currently being pursued in Soljačić's WiTricity company. In addition to wireless energy transfer, Prof. Soljačić works on numerous problems on electromagnetism in materials structured on the scale of the wavelength, such as micro- and nano-structured materials for infrared and visible light, including nonlinear optical devices and surface plasmons.

References

External links BBC article explaining non-radiative power transfer TED presentation on technology application Marin Soljačić publications indexed by Google Scholar

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Marin Soljačić

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Marin Soljačić claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In physics, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Marin Soljačić before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Marin Soljačić ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Marin Soljačić

In research: Marin Soljačić appears in physics research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Marin Soljačić in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Marin Soljačić is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 1974 births, 21st-century American physicists, 21st-century Croatian scientists, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Marin Soljačić outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study Marin Soljačić in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Marin Soljačić means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Marin Soljačić out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Marin Soljačić in simple terms?

Why does Marin Soljačić matter?

Because it connects several physics ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Marin Soljačić?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Marin Soljačić.