Noureddine Melikechi, D.Phil (born in 1958) is an Algerian atomic, molecular, and optical physicist, educator and inventor. He is the author of more than 125 peer-reviewed publications, three book chapters and 15 patents. Melikechi is a member of the Mars Science Laboratory, NASA’s largest Mars exploration effort to date. Early years Melikechi was born in 1958 in the town of Thénia, in the wilaya of Boumerdès, Algeria. After graduating from Thénia's middle school, the young Noureddine left his family home located on the Yahia Boushaki Boulevard for the Lycee Abane Ramdane in El-Harrach, Algiers. There he received his Baccalaureate in Mathematics. He enrolled at the University Houari Boumediene of Sciences and Technology of Algiers where he earned a Diplôme d'Études Supérieures in Physics. He went on to pursue graduate work in England where he worked towards his Masters and Doctorate in the laboratory of Professor Leslie Allen on optical coherent control of electronic dipole transitions in sodium atoms. Professional years Upon graduating and following a postdoctoral research experience with Professor Allen, Melikechi joined the University of Sciences and Technology in Algiers as an Assistant Professor of Physics as part of his national service (1988-1990). Melikechi left Algeria for the United States in 1990 and joined the research group of Professor Edward E. Eyler as a postdoctoral research fellow. With Dr. Eyler, Melikechi worked on multiphoton excitation schemes in atoms and molecules, precise pulsed laser spectroscopy of few-electron systems, the generation of vacuum ultraviolet laser radiation, the development of Fourier-transform limited laser pulses. In 1995, he was appointed assistant professor of physics at Delaware State University (DSU). At DSU, Melikechi founded the Applied Optics Center of Delaware (AOC-DE), a center dedicated to research, education and innovation initially focused on nonlinear optics and laser spectroscopy in liquids. In 2006, he founded a National Science Foundation (NSF) Center for Research Excellence in Science and Technology focused on optics. In 2009, this center was fused with a NASA University Research Center to form the Optical Science Center for Applied Research (OSCAR). Melikechi is also the principal investigator of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) – Maximizing Access for Research Careers and the DSU Idea Network for Biomedical Research programs. Melikechi's recent research is focused on two major projects: (1) Developing sensitive optical techniques for the early detection of cancers (with a focus on epithelial ovarian cancer and prostate cancer). This work brings together laser