Adam Widomski

Adam Widomski is an enthusiast of light-based technologies, with particular interests in quantum key distribution (QKD), photonic integrated circuits (PICs), optical communication, and optical system design. He obtained his PhD in Physics, as well as his earlier MSc degree with a specialization in Optics, from the Faculty of Physics at the University of Warsaw. He is also a graduate of the Faculty of Physics at the Warsaw University of Technology, where he earned an engineering degree in Photonics.

He gained research experience during international research stays at the Istituto Nazionale di Ricerca Metrologica (INRIM) in Turin, the University of Oxford, and the Fraunhofer Heinrich Hertz Institute (HHI) in Berlin.

His research focused on methods to improve encoding efficiency and noise resilience in QKD systems through high-dimensional encoding and the use of integrated photonics. His work also covered novel quantum-state detection methods and analyses of how realistic system parameters affect security. These studies were conducted in collaboration with researchers from Germany and Italy within the QuICHE project (QuantERA). He was also involved in the National Laboratory of Photonics and Quantum Technologies (NLPQT), where he was responsible for testing a nationwide inter-city QKD link and a reference optical signal.

During his studies, he was actively engaged in the local academic community. From 2018 to 2023, he was a member of the Optics and Photonics Student Association at the University of Warsaw (KNOF), serving as Vice-President, President, and Secretary. He co-organized the prestigious OSA Siegman International Summer School on Lasers 2020 and numerous meetings with scientists from around the world and representatives of the photonics industry. As part of his teaching activities, he designed and taught a course on optical system design using Zemax OpticStudio. His scientific, educational, and community activities were recognized with the IEEE Photonics Society Graduate Student Scholarship 2024 and the Dr. Zygmunt Hajduk Teaching Award, granted by the Dean of the Faculty of Physics at the University of Warsaw.

He currently works at the Fraunhofer Heinrich Hertz Institute, where he is involved in the development and deployment of QKD systems, their miniaturization using photonic integrated circuits, and experimental work based on real-world telecommunication infrastructure within the QuNET project. At HHI, he was also responsible for air-to-ground quantum key distribution experiments conducted during an airborne measurement campaign.

When it comes to cakes, he disagrees with both Piotr Węgrzyn and Mihai Suster. Their debate is pointless anyway—the undisputed queen of desserts is karpatka.

Adam is one of the four co-founders of Candela Foundation and serves as Vice-President of the Management Board.