• 2025 Luminary Award Winner•

Dr. Lilian Casias is a Principal Member of the Technical Staff at Sandia National Laboratories, where she is recognized as one of the nation’s rising leaders in remote sensing and nonproliferation research. Her career is distinguished by innovative scientific contributions that directly support U.S. national security.

Since joining Sandia in 2019, Dr. Casias has advanced rapidly through the ranks—first as a post-doctoral researcher, then Senior Member of the Technical Staff in 2021, and by 2024, Principal Member of the Technical Staff. In this role, she leads cutting-edge research in Sandia’s proliferation detection group, developing remote sensing technologies and systems that detect violations of nonproliferation treaties and strengthen global security.

Her expertise in event-based sensing has positioned her at the forefront of remote sensing innovation. She authored several of the original algorithms in Sandia’s event-based sensing code base, pioneering approaches to improve sensor performance under degraded visual environments such as fog. These algorithms are enabling critical advances in persistent facility monitoring, allowing the U.S. to better detect and characterize nuclear proliferation activities.

As Principal Investigator, Dr. Casias has secured Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD) funding for multiple mission-critical projects. Among them is a three-year effort to design a proof-of-concept computational imaging system capable of capturing high-speed transient events with lower power consumption and improved radiometric fidelity. Her leadership has also extended to NNSA-funded initiatives, including the Spectrally Selective Imaging for Monitoring Persistently Using Low-Power (SIMPUL) project and the Persistent Event-Based Sensing at Testbeds program, both aimed at advancing deployable sensing systems for real-world environments.

Her scholarly output reflects both technical rigor and mission impact. She has co-authored peer-reviewed journal articles, technical reports, and conference proceedings on topics ranging from midwave infrared sensor characterization to event-based sensing algorithms for national security applications. In recognition of her contributions, she has received honors such as the New Mexico Technology Council’s Women in Technology Award and multiple Directed Energy Professional Society Fellowships.

Dr. Casias’s journey reflects resilience and determination. Born in La Junta, Chihuahua, Mexico, she immigrated to the United States at age nine. Her parents, who had not finished high school, instilled in her the values of perseverance and education. Inspired by her father’s work as an electrician and encouragement from University of New Mexico (UNM) outreach mentors, she pursued electrical engineering despite discouragement from her school counselor.

As an undocumented student, she faced barriers to scholarships, jobs, and internships, yet she excelled academically, graduating cum laude with her BS in electrical engineering from UNM in 2008. For four years she worked in retail before the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program opened doors to graduate education and research. She earned her MS in 2015 and her PhD in 2019, both in optoelectronics, becoming the first in her family to attain a doctorate.

Her professional ascent has paralleled her dedication to outreach. Through Sandia’s HOLA program, UNM’s Engineering Student Success Center, and as co-lead of Sandia’s Manos initiative, she mentors Hispanic and underrepresented students, inspiring them to pursue STEM careers. Each year, she leads “Leadership in Engineering” seminars and participates in programs like Noche de Ciencias, continuing the cycle of mentorship that once guided her own path.