Assoc. Dr. Alexander Shalin is currently an Associate Professor at Riga Technical University and a Senior Researcher at Kotel'nikov Institute of Radio Engineering and Electronics of the Russian Academy of Sciences. Dr. Shalin got his PhD in physics (Optics) in 2007 from Ulyanovsk State University, Russia. In 2014 he was awarded the title of Full Doctor of Sciences from ITMO University (Saint Petersburg). In 2015, he became the head of the Laboratory of 'Nano-Optomechanics and NanoPhotonics' at ITMO. He possesses significant scientific experience and has more than 150 publications in prestigious journals and several monographs.

He has contributed extensively to the development of all-dielectric nanophotonics, including but not limited to the introduction of higher order toroidal moments and hybrid anapole states, studies on the optomechanical interactions of dielectric nanoparticles, or the first proposal of the unusual transverse Kerker effect. In 2017, he was recognized as Best Young Scientist in ITMO.