Father of Fibres

Although many scientists experimented with sending light down thin fibres of glass by refracting or bending its path, it wasn’t until 1953 that a flexible bundle of around 10,000 fibres – a 'fibrescope' – carried clear images over a short distance. In perfecting these techniques, Narinder Singh Kapany – born on this day in 1926 – is regarded as the “Father of Fiber Optics". His ideas inspired the first fibre optic gastroscope, fetching images from deep inside the human body and paving the way for modern key-hole surgery. Elsewhere fibre optics is used for high-speed communication, and in engineering, allowing – just as in the human body – a window on the workings of internal structures. Professor Kapany’s work is also perhaps a reminder for young scientists to question everything – “One day the professor told us that light ‘always travels in a straight line’. But that can’t be true, I thought – it must be bent sometimes”.

Written by John Ankers

John Ankers

Writer

A former researcher in systems biology, John is now an online biology tutor and professional coach supporting the wellbeing of scientists and NHS professionals. He's writing, too, of course.

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• Image by Carol Foote. Center for Innovation and Entrepreneurial Development (CIED): Narinder Singh Kapany, Professor of Physics
• ©Regents of the University of California. Courtesy Special Collections, University Library, University of California Santa Cruz.
• Carol Foote photographs of the University of California, Santa Cruz.