Matjaž Humar

Head of the Lab for Biophotonics, Soft Photonics and Quantum Optics (Humar Lab), Jožef Stefan Institute

Scientific Councillor, Jožef Stefan Institute

Associate Professor, Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, University of Ljubljana

More information: https://humarlab.ijs.si

  • Education
  • Projects
  • Research Areas
  • Publications

Education:

2007 | Diploma in Physics, Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, University of Ljubljana
2012 | PhD in Nanosciences and Nanotechnologies, Jožef Stefan International Postgraduate School

Employment

2005-2007 | Undergraduate Researcher, Jožef Stefan Institute

2007-2012 | Young Researcher (PhD student), Jožef Stefan Institute

2012-2013 | Postdoctoral Researcher, Jožef Stefan Institute

2013-2016 | Research Fellow, Wellman Center for Photomedicine, Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, USA

2014-2019 | Marie Curie Fellow

2016-2017 | Visiting Researcher, Wellman Center for Photomedicine, Harvard Medical School and Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, USA

2016- | Head of the Lab for Biophotonics, Soft Photonics and Quantum Optics (Humar Lab), Jožef Stefan Institute

2018-2025 | Assistant Professor, Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, University of Ljubljana

2020- | Researcher (part-time), CENN Nanocenter, Ljubljana

2025- | Associate Professor, Faculty of Mathematics and Physics, University of Ljubljana

Research titles at the Jožef Stefan Institute

2018 | Scientific Associate

2020 | Senior Scientific Associate

2026 | Scientific Councillor

Selected awards

2025 | Zois Award for top achievements in microscopic sources of laser and quantum light. It is the highest national award for research in Slovenia.

2022 | Blinc Award for physicists at the beginning of their career

2016 | First prize for a poster, Lindau Nobel Laureate Meeting, Germany

The asteroid 17201 Matjazhumar is named after him.

  • – ERC Consolidator Grant SoftQuanta, Soft and biological quantum light sources, No. 101170123 (2025-2030), Principal Investigator
  • – ERC Proof of Concept Grant EdibleLasers, Edible lasers for safety and authentication of food and pharmaceuticals, No. 101188166 (2025-2026), Principal Investigator
  • – ERC Starting Grant Cell-Lasers, Intracellular lasers: Coupling of optical resonances with biological processes, No. 851143 (2020-2025), Principal Investigator
  • – Human Frontier Science Program (HFSP), A living optically-communicating neural network (2020-2024), Leader of the international collaboration (Slovenia, USA, Korea)
  • – MSCA Innovative Training Network FoodTraNet, Advanced research and Training Network in Food quality, safety and security (2021-2025), Partner
  • – Slovenian Research Agency (ARRS) project J1-1697, Study of intracellular forces by deformable photonic droplets (2019-2022), Principal Investigator
  • – ARRS project N1-0104, Bio-integrated lasers for the study of live organisms (2019-2021), Principal Investigator
  • – H2020 Marie Skłodowska-Curie Reintegration Fellowship InjectableLasers, No. 702715, Fellow
  • – FP7 Marie Curie International Outgoing Fellowship LIVINGLASER, No. 627274, Fellow
  • – Research programme P1-0099, Physics of soft matter, surfaces and nanostructures (ARIS), Member
  • Full list of projects: https://cris.cobiss.net/ecris/si/sl/researcher/32141

  • – Soft photonics and liquid-crystal photonics
  • – Optical microresonators and microlasers
  • – Biological lasers: lasers inside living cells and edible lasers
  • – Biophotonics and optical barcoding of cells
  • – Quantum optics with soft matter: entangled photons from liquid crystals
  • – Two-photon 3D printing inside living cells
  • – Optical sensors for biology and medicine