Prof. Dr. Zoran Jakšić was co-founder of the ODS, its president from 2016 to 2018, member of the ODS presidency from 2014 to 2021 and an active member of the society until his last days.
Prof. Jakšić left us leaving a deep mark on optics and photonics and the development of these fields in Serbia. He made a special contribution to research in the fields of photonic crystals, plasmonics, metamaterials and their applications in sensors and detectors. He was a pioneer of this research in Serbia and the founder of the first Serbian research group for plasmonics and metamaterials.
He started his career as a leading development engineer at the Utva Aircraft Factory in Pančevo, and in 1987 he joined the Institute of Chemistry, Technology and Metallurgy (IHTM), where he worked as a scientist for the next 31 years. For eight years he was the scientific director and deputy director of the Center for Microelectronic Technologies at IHTM. During his tenure, the center was accredited as a national center of exceptional value.
Prof. Jakšić created and taught several courses at the Faculty of Electrical Engineering, University of Belgrade. He was the mentor of several doctoral dissertations, master's and diploma theses. Many of the ODS members who are active today went through his school and remember him as an exceptional lecturer and mentor who was always accessible to students. He selflessly supported and helped the scientific work of younger colleagues in continuity, from doctoral studies to senior positions in ODS and international optical societies. The professor himself was a Senior Member of IEEE and OPTICA (Optical Society of America), an honorary member of ETRAN, and was awarded multiple times for his scientific and peer-reviewed work.
In addition to his scientific results, pedagogical and organizational work, Professor Jakšić leaves us as a legacy several books in the science fiction genre and an unsurpassed Serbian translation of "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" by D. Adams. Many of us read them with pleasure and pride and recommend them to younger generations.
We remember Prof. Zoran Jakšić as a diligent scientist, a great lecturer and a colleague who was very accommodating to his associates and members of the society. His expertise, friendly attitude and modesty will remain in our memory and serve as a role model.