Exciting: Wrote his research proposal inside a tank – and won an honors scholarship

Could the next big engineering breakthrough emerge from a tank? Shai Ben-Ami, a 31-year-old PhD student from Givatayim at Bar-Ilan University's Faculty of Engineering, wrote his research proposal inside a tank during his military service in Gaza.

After many months of dedication, Ben-Ami has been awarded an excellence scholarship from the Azrieli Foundation for Advanced Studies. Prof. Amnon Albek, the rector, remarked, "Your win is particularly impressive given the high caliber of candidates from all the universities who applied. It is a testament to your skills and abilities." Ben-Ami even prepared for the final interview for the scholarship inside the tank – in the narrow corridor.

Describing his research, Ben-Ami said, "We are exploring the interaction between light waves and sound waves on a nanometer silicon device. When two lasers meet inside the device, they generate a force that causes mechanical vibrations, similar to a sound wave. While this phenomenon is scientifically intriguing, it also has practical applications. We aim to reproduce this phenomenon on the widely used silicon-on-insulator platform," he said.

"I want to express my heartfelt thanks to everyone who has supported me – my dear wife and daughter, my family, Prof. Avi Zadok who is currently guiding me, Prof. Avi Farr who guided me during my master's degree, my research partners over the years, the excellent faculty, and especially Prof. Orit Shafi, who greatly assisted in securing the scholarship."