Melville, NY, November 18, 2025 — AIP Publishing today announced that Professor Andrew Forbes has been named the new Editor-in-Chief of APL Photonics, an open access journal showcasing high-impact research across the breadth of photonics, including nanophotonics, quantum photonics, integrated photonics, ultrafast optics, and emerging photonic materials and devices.
Forbes, a Distinguished Professor in the School of Physics at the University of the Witwatersrand in South Africa, becomes the first Editor-in-Chief of any AIP Publishing journal to be based on the African continent. A globally recognized leader in structured light and quantum photonics, Forbes founded the Structured Light Laboratory at the University of the Witwatersrand in 2015 and has played a central role in advancing photonics research and infrastructure across Africa. He is a founding member of the Photonics Initiative of South Africa and Director of South Africa’s Quantum Roadmap.
“Andrew’s scientific leadership and global outlook make him an exceptional choice to guide APL Photonics into its next chapter,” said Penelope Lewis, Chief Publishing Officer at AIP Publishing. “His commitment to advancing the field aligns with our mission to support researchers and accelerate discovery.”
Forbes is a Fellow of SPIE, Optica, PIERS, and the South African Institute of Physics, and an elected member of the Academy of Science of South Africa. He holds South Africa’s highest National Research Foundation rating and is the country’s only physicist to appear on the 2024 and 2025 Clarivate Highly Cited Researchers lists. His many honors include the SAIP Gold Medal, the Alexander von Humboldt Georg Forster Prize, the Sang Soo Lee Award, the TWAS Physics Prize, the national NSTF Award for Quantum, and the Harry Oppenheimer Trust Fellowship — South Africa’s most prestigious science award.
“I’m excited to lead APL Photonics at a moment when photonics is shaping the future of quantum technologies, communications, and imaging,” Forbes said. “I look forward to working with authors, reviewers, and the broader community to strengthen the journal’s role in advancing transformative research.”
APL Photonics publishes innovative, high-quality research that advances fundamental understanding and enables next-generation photonic technologies, with an emphasis on conceptual breakthroughs and impactful applications.
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