Hans Riesen earned his PhD from the University of Berne, Switzerland, in 1987, under the supervision of Professor Guedel. From 1987 to 1998 he worked at The Australian National University (with Professor Krausz). Since 1998 he has been with UNSW Canberra where he is a Professor of Optical and Laser Spectroscopy. His main research interests are in the laser spectroscopy of the solid state (spectral hole-burning and coherent transients) with applications in data storage and signal processing, and, X-ray dosimetry and imaging using inorganic materials.