Professor Harvey Rutt

Although Professor Harvey Rutt clearly has a passion for machines and building things, people mean everything to him. He lives by the philosophy that machines can always be replaced, but people are priceless. Harvey comes across as somebody with a great zest for life. A keen diver, mountaineer, pilot and parachutist, he has been interested in science since he was a little boy. In fact, he almost blew himself up when he converted a built-in wardrobe into a tiny electronics laboratory after he met a man who supplied ex-World War II equipment. ‘Honestly, I nearly killed myself,” he said. ‘It is a miracle that I didn’t die or lose some fingers doing things that would get you locked up now!’
At an early age, he developed a keen interest in transistors and he wrote articles for Practical Wireless and Radio Constructor for £5 each, which enabled him to buy his first transistor. ‘At that time, transistors performed very poorly,’ he said. ‘I came to realise that if I over-heated them very carefully, it was possible to make them work before they destroyed themselves.’ He has the scars to prove it!

Harvey was inspired by some of his tutors who helped him throughout his life. When he was in sixth form, he learned a huge amount about electronics from his Physics teacher, Jeff Hutton, and in fact, with his support, went on to build a radio telescope.

When he came to study an Electronics Science degree at the University of Southampton, he was very influenced by Bob Smith, his undergraduate tutor. Harvey had been undecided about whether to study chemistry or biology instead of electronics, but he obviously made the right choice, as he got a first and won the E E Zepler prize, a commemoration of the work of Emeritus Professor E E Zepler, Professor of Electronics from 1949 to 1963 .

Harvey went on to do a PhD in non-linear optics and lasers and decided at the end of it that he wanted to work somewhere different, so he grasped an opportunity which took him to Brazil where he worked for the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul. Within three days, he had three research students and a contract to research nitrogen and iodine vapor lasers, but very little equipment. It was here that he learned the value of working closely with the workshops and local industries so that he could have the equipment made.

After three and a half years, Harvey began his journey back to the UK, but not before doing a series of trips in the wilds of South America. ‘There were lots of new challenges there too,’ he said. ‘I managed to get eight punctures in one day, I often had to shoot supper and had big problems carrying enough water.’

Before returning to the University of Southampton in 1992, he worked at Culham Laboratory, south of Oxford, where he did classified work on laser isotope separation where he worked closely with workshop staff and technicians to develop infrared lasers.

He decided to return to the University because he wanted to continue to be involved in active research. ‘I didn’t want to be a full-time manager at that stage,’ he said. ‘I wanted to get my hands dirty and work with research students. I love sitting with research students and talking about unexpected results, you can really learn something from unexpected results.’

As the years progressed, his role developed and he is now Head of the School of Electronics & Computer Science (ECS), and is still very much involved in research. ‘When I came here, I found that much of my research was materials focused, but I could see that it had promise for various applications,’ he said. ‘For example, my machines for measuring the concentration of minerals in metal ores are in daily use in industry.’
He has just won a research grant for a new machine to manufacture glass fibres which will be the best in the world and could speed up the way messages are communicated through the Internet. Research into infrared modulators which can control the intensity of invisible light, which is something he has been researching for years, looks very promising and has attracted much interest. But as ever, it is the really new things that create most excitement.

He commented: ‘We have new ideas in the medical field which may assist surgeons in the operating theatre, others with the possibility of assisting the understanding of Alzheimers disease, and some really novel concepts in Terahertz microscopy.’
Harvey is adamant that this research could not be carried out without his co-investigator, Ken Frampton, head of the ECS mechanical workshop and feels very strongly about the fact that academics need to foster closer relationships with workshop staff if they are to encourage the ‘Kens’ of the future.
He continues to be inspired by people and by the courage of his team, particularly since the fire which destroyed a major part of the Mountbatten Building which housed much of ECS’ research facilities.
‘People are of the essence,’ he said. ‘We can rebuild faculty buildings. Our School is made up of people and our research profile depends on the quality and application of our academics, research students and support staff. Through them we build our future.’