Our Leaders
Experience | Passion | Integrity
Our Executives
Dr. Gregory Quarles
President & CEO
Dr. Gregory Quarles was hired as the CEO and Board member for Applied Energetics, Inc. in May 2019. He had previously served on the AE Scientific Advisory Board. Prior to joining Applied Energetics, Dr. Quarles served as the Chief Scientific Officer for The Optical Society (now Optica) since November of 2015. He is an experienced Chief Executive Officer, Board Member and renowned physicist with 25 years of experience driving cutting-edge laser, optics and photonics technology development and operations within advanced industrial companies. Greg is a globally recognized leader for his strategic partnerships with the Department of Defense, the U.S. Congress, and his innovative work in the progression of global materials research, specifically developing new laser devices for medical, defense, and industrial applications. He has also spent the past decade mentoring early career professionals in optics and photonics and interacting with global leaders in the optics, photonics, and academic communities discussing policy opportunities. Greg has been awarded five patents related to his research in solid-state lasers, has eight pending, and has published over 120 peer-reviewed and conference publications. His previous experience includes serving on eight Corporate and not-for-profit Boards, including the Optica Board of Directors, working at B.E. Meyers, Inc, II-VI Incorporated for 18 years, and the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory for 5 years. Dr. Quarles is a graduate of Oklahoma State University and holds a Ph.D. and MS in Physics, and a dual BS in Math and Physics. He has served as Assistant Editor for Optical Engineering and IEEE Journal of Quantum Electronics and is a Fellow of both the Optica and SPIE and a Senior member of IEEE. Dr. Quarles has also served on the US Dept. of Commerce, Bureau of Industry and Security, Sensors and Instrumentation Technology Advisory Committee (SITAC) since 2016.
Dr. Stephen McCahon
Co-Founder & Chief Scientist
Dr. Stephen McCahon has been a scientific researcher, technology developer, and entrepreneur for over 30 years. He has co-authored more than 50 scientific publications and has more than 30 patents issued, patents pending, or invention disclosures in preparation for patent submission. He was a Member of the Research Staff in the Optical Physics Department at the Hughes Research Laboratory in Malibu, California from 1986 to 1996 performing basic research in the area of optical physics and non-linear optical materials. In 1996, Dr. McCahon moved to Raytheon (Hughes) Missile Systems Co, in Tucson, AZ during which time as was significantly responsible for the successful creation and development of the Directed Energy Weapons Product Line and served as its Chief Scientist. He left Raytheon in 2002 to co-found Applied Energetics Inc. in Tucson, AZ to develop Directed Energy Weapons for the DoD including very high energy and average power USP laser sources and Laser Guided Energy Technologies. In April 2010 Dr. McCahon left Applied Energetics to form Applied Optical Sciences where he developed technologies related to the application of optical physics to a broad range of areas, including photonics and USP laser development. Dr. McCahon is a graduate the University of Southern California (BSEE, MSEE) holds a Ph.D., Photonics, Inter-disciplinary Physics and Electrical Engineering from the University of Iowa. Since February 2016, he has served as a consultant to the Applied Energetics Board of Directors. In 2019 Applied Energetics purchased his company Applied Optical Sciences and integrated it into Applied Energetics where Dr. McCahon currently serves as its Chief Scientist.