Biography earl d. shaw

African American physicist and laser scientist

Earl David Shaw (born 26 November ) is an American physicist and professor, known for his work in laser science and developing laser technology.

He is credited as the co-founder of the spin-flip Raman tunable laser.^[1]

Early life and education

Earl David Shaw was born in in Clarksdale, Mississippi. Both of his parents worked as sharecroppers, and Shaw grew up on Hopson Plantation near Clarksdale, where he attended primary school in a three-room schoolhouse.^[2] At age twelve, he and his mother moved to Chicago, Illinois, where he attended high school at Crane Technical High School.^[3]

Shaw attended the University of Illinois for his undergraduate studies, and received a bachelor's degree in physics in

After completing his undergraduate studies, he moved to Hanover, New Hampshire, to work as a lab technician for the U.S.

Army Corps of Engineers.^[1] He then enrolled in and r