Periklis Petropoulos serves as Professor of Optical Communications and Deputy Director of the Optoelectronics Research Centre (ORC) at the University of Southampton. The ORC is one of the world's leading photonics institutes, with around 300 researchers and a long history of innovation in optical fibre technology, lasers and advanced photonic systems that underpin modern telecommunications and today's global internet. His association with the ORC began early in his career and has continued ever since. Born in Patras, Professor Petropoulos graduated from the Department of Electrical Engineering at the University of Patras, and received his PhD from the ORC in the field of Optical Telecommunications.
 
He has produced over 600 research publications in international journals and conferences, including many invited and post-deadline presentations at leading conferences in the field. He has led and participated in major research projects funded by the EU and the UK, and holds several patents in photonics.
Through his work, Professor Petropoulos has made a significant contribution to advancing the technologies that enable fast and reliable communication worldwide. His research focuses on topics that include all-optical signal processing, novel optical fibres and waveguides, and nonlinear photonics. To date, he has supervised (or is supervising) the doctoral research of 25 PhD students.
Professor Petropoulos has served on the technical and organising committees of major international conferences (including ECOC and OFC), and is the incoming co-Chair of ECOC 2029. He is Editor-in-Chief of the academic journal IET Optoelectronics, and is a Fellow of Optica.