Mohammad Hafezi received his diplome d'ingenieur from Ecole Polytechnique (Paris) in 2003 and his Ph.D. from Physics Department at Harvard University in 2009. He moved to the Joint Quantum Institute (NIST/University of Maryland) as a research associate and since 2012 he is a research faculty. His research is at the interface of theoretical quantum optics and condensed matter physics with a focus on fundamental physics and applications in quantum information science, precision measurement and integrated photonics. Hafezi and his collaborators have pioneered theoretical approaches to investigate topological orders in discrete systems, e.g. atoms on optical lattices and photons on arrays of optical resonators, both in the linear and many-body correlated regimes. His experimental efforts have led to the first experimental observation of topological edge states in Silicon photonics.