Charles Munnerlyn

Charles Munnerlyn
Charles Munnerlyn, 2009
Residence	San Jose, California
Nationality	United States
Citizenship	United States
Alma mater	Texas A&M University, University of Rochester
Scientific career
Fields	Medical physics and medical optics

Charles Munnerlyn (* 1940 in Shreveport, LA) is an American optical engineer. He constructed the first working excimer laser system for vision correction in 1985, and also developed the Munnerlyn Formula that dictates the amount of corneal tissue to be removed by the laser to correct vision disorders such as myopia and astigmatism. Munnerlyn is the founder of VISX, Incorporated, once the world's largest manufacturer of laser-based vision correction (LVC) systems. VISX is now owned by Abbott Laboratories.

Charles Ray Munnerlyn received his bachelor's degree in physics from Texas A&M University in 1962 and a doctorate in optical engineering from the University of Rochester in 1969.

Following a stint in the U.S. Air Force, Munnerlyn continued his studies at the Institute of Optics at the University of Rochester, receiving his Ph.D. in optical engineering in 1969. He remained in the Rochester area as head of research and development for Tropel, a company that designed prototype custom lenses for applications that included Xerox copiers, Polaroid cameras, satellites and semiconductor photolithography. In the early 1970s, he designed the first automatic digital device to measure refractive errors in the eye. He also developed a pressure test to detect glaucoma before pioneering his laser systems for vision correction. Munnerlyn holds more than 30 U.S. patents in the field of optics.