Distinguished Optics Leader Joins PhotonEx as Chief Scientist; Dr. Curtis Menyuk Brings High Speed Transport Optics and Modeling Expertise to PhotonEx' World Class Team.

Business/Technology Editors

BEDFORD, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 12, 2001

PhotonEx Corporation, a developer of services-aware photonic backbone systems for the core public services network, today announced the appointment of Dr. Curtis R. Menyuk as Chief Scientist. Dr. Menyuk will help drive the commercialization of PhotonEx' advanced optical innovations, including the company's smart photonic system which will start with 40 Gbps line speeds, span distances from hundreds to thousands of kilometers and provide the highest deployable capacity and flexibility in a single system.

"Dr. Menyuk's proven ability to bring advanced optics knowledge to commercial deployment closely resonates with the PhotonEx team," said Dr. Kristin Rauschenbach, co-founder, President and CEO, PhotonEx. "In addition, his unique expertise in high speed optics and modeling builds upon PhotonEx' strategy to give service providers the speed, distance, capacity and flexibility to optimize their existing networks."

Dr. Menyuk brings over 15 years of optical communications experience to PhotonEx, including pioneering research in WDM system modeling. His work has concentrated on optical fiber nonlinearities and polarization mode dispersion (PMD). Understanding these effects and how to compensate for them is critical to the design of next-generation transport systems.

Dr. Menyuk's advanced modeling research allows service providers to consider the effects of integrating new equipment in an existing network environment, prior to actual deployment. His innovative modeling approaches further strengthen PhotonEx' ability to support service providers with the essential planning tools used to maximize system performance.

In addition, Dr. Menyuk's high data rate fiber communications research reinforces PhotonEx' commitment to deliver the fastest core photonic systems to ensure that core transmission channel rates are faster than the access interfaces, enabling faster, easier provisioning across the network.

Dr. Menyuk has led several projects exploring nonlinear optics, which involve new techniques to increase the transparent distance for an optical data signal and to balance and compensate for the various effects that distort an optical signal as it propagates. This approach supports PhotonEx' strategy to cost-effectively paint the public network backbone at the fastest channel speeds, without trade-offs in speed or distance.

"I chose to join PhotonEx for two reasons: the people and the technology. The company has an amazing roster of talent that has successfully commercialized leading edge technology in the past and has now joined PhotonEx under Dr. Rauschenbach's leadership," said Dr. Menyuk. "By coupling that team with a technology that starts at 40 Gbps, PhotonEx has the right equation for commercial success."

Dr. Menyuk currently serves as the Director of Optical Networking at the Department of Defense Laboratory for Telecommunications Sciences. This research laboratory was created for Department of Defense scientists to collaborate with industry and university experts regarding advanced optical networking technologies.

Earlier in his career, Dr. Menyuk was the founding member of the Electrical Engineering Department at University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC) and its first head. He has participated in collaborative projects with organizations such as the Naval Research Laboratory, AT&T Bell Laboratories, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, and Science Applications International Corporation. He is a member of the scientific advisory board of Virtual Photonics, Inc. and Phaethon Communications, Inc.

Dr. Menyuk is a UMBC Presidential Research Professor, Fellow of the Optical Society of America (OSA), and Fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE).

Dr. Menyuk is currently on leave from UMBC where he serves as Professor in the Computer Science and Electrical Engineering Department. He received his B.S. and M.S. degrees from M.I.T. and his Ph.D. from U.C.L.A. in the areas of theoretical plasma physics and nonlinear dynamics.

About PhotonEx Corporation

PhotonEx Corporation (www.photonex.com) is a new developer of services-aware optical backbone systems for the core of the public telecommunications network. Purpose-built to deliver an uncompromising combination of system speed, distance, capacity and flexibility, PhotonEx' smart photonic systems will lead the service provider migration from the explosive capacity demands of today to the undefined services of tomorrow. Founded in September 1999, the company is led by a team of renowned scientists and business executives formerly of M.I.T. Lincoln Laboratory, Nortel Networks, and Lucent Technologies - a seasoned group bringing real science and service provider deployment experience to today's market complexities.

Headquartered in Bedford, MA, PhotonEx has a team of over 170 employees, who bring the unique knowledge base of forward-thinking optical innovation and carrier-class product development expertise required for building next-generation core networks. Privately-held PhotonEx received $88 million in first-and second-round equity financing from venture and strategic investors, including Oak Investment Partners, Matrix Partners, North Bridge Venture Partners, Essex Investment Management, the Photonics Fund, and Intel Capital.

Note: PhotonEx is a trademark of PhotonEx Corporation. All other trademarks mentioned in this document are the property of their respective owners.