Robert P. Lucht is the Ralph and Bettye Bailey Distinguished Professor of Combustion in Mechanical Engineering at Purdue University and the Director of the Maurice J. Zucrow Laboratories. He received a BS in nuclear engineering (1977) and an MS (1979) and PhD (1981) in mechanical engineering, all from Purdue University. His present research activities include fundamental experimental and theoretical studies of femtosecond and nanosecond coherent anti-Stokes Raman scattering (CARS), two-photon absorption, polarization spectroscopy, the application of dual-pump CARS and other laser diagnostics for measurements in combustion systems ranging from laboratory flames to gas turbine combustion test rigs, and the development and application of diode-laser-based sensors for ultraviolet and infrared absorption measurements. He has authored or co-authored over 170 articles in archival journals, and advised or co-advised more than 35 PhD students. He is a Fellow of the Optical Society of America, the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, and the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. In 2008 he received the AIAA Aerodynamic Measurement Technology Award, and in 2013 he received the Excellence in Research Award from the College of Engineering at Purdue University.