The 37-year-old, who has a Ph.D. in electrical and computer engineering, is vice president of research at Nexus Photonics, a U.S.-based semiconductor startup.

Minh (far right) and his colleagues at Nexus Photonics.

His team develops ultra-broadband photonic chips used in data transmission, navigation, autonomous vehicles, quantum computing, and virtual reality.

He has also led research projects funded by NASA and the Department of Defense, which testify to his role as a pioneer in integrated photonic circuits. "I always want to create something that brings real value to society," he says.

Born and raised in Vinh in the north-central Nghe An Province, he grew up in a family of teachers. His fascination with mathematics was evident early.

As a student at Phan Boi Chau Specialized High School, he won third and second prizes in Vietnam’s national math competitions in his junior and senior years. "That was when I began questioning who I was and what my purpose in life was," he recalls.

These reflections continued to shape his academic and professional journey. He was admitted into the elite Talent Engineer Program at the Hanoi University of Science and Technology in 2006.

While majoring in electronics and telecommunications, he was drawn to the complexity of electronic physics and the potential to advance Vietnam’s technological landscape.

Encouraged by his family, he sought to expand his knowledge abroad. In 2008 he received Japan’s MEXT scholarship to study electronics at the University of Tokyo, ranked among the world’s top 10 schools in 2025 by Times Higher Education.

The transition was challenging. The climate, culture and language were vastly different, and coursework that took Japanese students an hour to grasp often took him four to five. "I told myself that I had chosen this path, so there was no option but to push forward," he says.

During his final year he joined Professor Motoichi Ohtsu’s research team to tackle what he called a "billion-dollar challenge"—creating visible-wavelength LEDs on silicon.

If successful, the breakthrough could revolutionize digital data transmission, increasing speeds and reducing costs. "It was a problem the world had yet to solve because silicon inherently does not emit light," Minh explains.

Despite widespread skepticism, he remained determined. His team became the first in the world to identify conditions under which silicon could emit visible light, earning him a prestigious undergraduate research award from the University of Tokyo. Eager to push the boundaries of photonics, he pursued a Ph.D. in the U.S.

His application caught the attention of Professor John Bowers at the University of California, Santa Barbara, a pioneer in integrating lasers on silicon.

Selected for a Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA)-funded research project, he embarked on another transformative phase of his career.

Once again, he faced language and cultural barriers, especially the differences in debate culture. To adapt, he practiced structured argumentation with peers and immersed himself in literature about American society.

His perseverance led to a breakthrough in integrating III-V materials on silicon, producing ultra-low-noise laser sources. The findings, published in the prestigious academic journal Science, captured the attention of major tech firms, including Apple.

They invited him to join a project to develop optical blood glucose monitoring, a concept envisioned by Steve Jobs in 2010.

"If successful, Apple’s resources could immediately bring this invention to consumers," Minh says. "That is every engineer’s dream."

However, around the same time Professor Bowers and Minh’s colleagues proposed launching a startup. After a month of deliberation and with his wife’s support, he turned down the Apple offer to become a founding employee of Nexus Photonics in 2018.

"I was still young. If I did not take the leap into entrepreneurship, I knew I would regret it later," he says.

Startup life proved more demanding than expected. On one occasion, he and his team worked 48 hours straight to repair a critical chip just before a DARPA deadline.

But the biggest challenges were not technical but managerial. "Six months after expanding our team we had not produced a single efficient chip."

Conflicts arose, leading a key veteran member to resign, leaving the team in crisis. "I began questioning whether I was truly creating the value I had envisioned. I lost many nights of sleep."

Determined to turn things around, he spent days in the library studying case studies of successful startups and corporations. Implementing restructuring measures, he faced difficult decisions, including terminating underperforming employees, which he described as "one of the toughest experiences of my career."

"Going through these challenges firsthand was the only way I could truly develop leadership skills and gain deeper business insight."

Following restructuring, Nexus Photonics achieved major breakthroughs. Getting a DARPA grant in 2022, Minh and his team developed the world’s first gallium arsenide integrated photonic chip on silicon nitride (SiN), expanding the potential of high-performance lasers.

He also created a SiN waveguide platform with record-low optical losses, a milestone published in top scientific journal Nature.

Nakamura, Minh’s collaborator, praises his expertise: "Few individuals in this field possess Minh’s skill set and level of contribution. "His research benefits both the academic and industrial communities." His innovations also directly support the U.S. Department of Defense, advancing compact, high-efficiency optical systems.

Despite these achievements, Minh views scientific progress as a tool for human advancement rather than a competition. He sees records as benchmarks that indicate progress, not limits to what can be achieved.

During a visit to Vietnam last year he recognized the country’s potential in the semiconductor industry and sought to bridge the gap by co-founding the VISEMI Foundation, a nonprofit focused on semiconductor education for Vietnamese students.

"Vietnam has great potential in semiconductors, but opportunities and research infrastructure are still limited," he says.

He emphasizes that semiconductors power revolutionary technologies such as computers, the internet and AI, and that photonic chips remain a promising frontier. "The semiconductor industry is being discussed more than ever, but not everyone fully understands its opportunities and risks."

This month VISEMI is launching online seminars to demystify the chip industry, provide career guidance and offer specialized training.

He envisions long-term collaborations with universities, businesses and government agencies to build a sustainable semiconductor ecosystem in Vietnam.

Reflecting on his journey, he considers simply being alive his greatest fortune. Striving to contribute to science and society, he hopes to one day understand the universe.

"That is my endless motivation," he says.