Shelbi Jenkins

Shelbi Jenkins earned her PhD in 2021 from the Wyant College of Optical Sciences at the University of Arizona, where she conducted research in Dr. Robert Norwood's Photonic Devices and Materials Laboratory. Her work focused on free-space and fiber-optic systems, photonic integrated circuits, magneto-optic polymer material characterization, telecommunication devices and cryogenic focal plane array systems.

Following her doctoral studies,  Jenkins worked in the private sector as an optical engineer and principal investigator on government-funded research programs. She returned to the University of Arizona in late 2022 and joined Boulat Bash's research group, where she is developing analytical models for quantum networks. Her work includes optimizing routing and spectrum allocation strategies for broadband EPR-pair-generating source nodes in scalable, repeaterless quantum network architectures. Jenkins' future research goals center on developing experimental realizations of these network architectures and resource allocation schemes for the demonstration of practical quantum networks.

Degrees

• PhD: Optical Sciences, James C Wyant College of Optical Sciences, August 2021
• MS: Optical Sciences, James C. Wyatt College of Optical Sciences, August 2019
• BA: Physics, Willamette University, May 2016

Teaching Interests

Research Interests

• "Routing and Spectrum Allocation in Broadband Quantum Entanglement Distribution," Accepted with minor revisions to IEEE Journal of Selected Areas in Communications (JSAC), July 2024.
• "Routing and Spectrum Allocation in Broadband Degenerate EPR-Pair Distribution," ICC 2024 - IEEE International Conference on Communications, June 2024.
• "Optical Network Design for Entanglement Distribution," Poster presentation, Southwest Quantum Information and Technology (SQuInT), October 2023.
• "Manufacturability and performance of microdisk resonators from the AIM Photonics foundry," Opt. Continuum, OPTCON 2, 2209–2214 (2023).
• "Magneto-optic and integrated Si3N4 devices for Mid-IR and C-band applications." PhD dissertation, University of Arizona, accepted August 2021.
• "Magneto-optic Modulator Fabricated Using Polymer-Coated Magnetic Nanoparticles with 4.75dB Extinction Ratio," NOMA 2021 proceedings, August 2021.
• "Optical tuning of Si3N4 ring resonators using an external short visible wavelength laser source," OSA Continuum, 4, 5, 1669-1675 (2021).
• "Polymer coated Magnetic nanoparticles as ultra-high Verdet constant materials:  Correlation of nanoparticle size with magnetic & magneto-optical properties," Chemistry of Materials, 33, 13 5010-5020 (2021).
• "Polymer and magnetic nanoparticle composites with tunable magneto-optical activity: Role of nanoparticle dispersion for high Verdet constant materials," Journal of Materials Chemistry 8, 5417 (2020).
• "Magneto-optical properties of highly Dy3+ doped multicomponent glasses," Optics Express 28, 8 11789 (2020).

Awards and Honors

• Outstanding Teaching Associate, College of Optical Sciences, 2020-2021
• Mary Jo Lake Memorial Fellowship in Optical Sciences, 2020-2021
• Harrison H. Barrett Graduate Student Scholarship in Optical Sciences and Medical Imaging, 2016-2017
• Webber Scholar, 2015-2016