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Welcome to the IEEE Photonics Newsroom

Stay ahead with the latest community news from our members, volunteers, chapters, & community partners. You can read about regional advancements in the field of Photonics, under Featured Stories, or what's happening worldwide, within the Newsroom's post grid.

Of course, you will not want to miss our favorite cartoon, Nick!

Featured Stories

Photonics in the Hard Tech Investment Cycle: How IEEE Venture Summit Can Help

By Bruno Iafelice and Daniel Renner From silicon photonics and integrated lasers to optical interconnects and quantum sensing platforms, IEEE Photonics Society members are driving innovations that are foundational to next-generation computing, communications, sensing, autonomous systems, instrumentation and advanced manufacturing. What is shifting, however, is the broader innovation and investment context in which these technologies evolve. As hardware...

Celebrating a Century of Quantum Breakthroughs: IYQST Wins Global Recognition

As many know, the United Nations has proclaimed 2025 as the International Year of Quantum Science and Technology (IYQST) to commemorate the 100th anniversary of modern quantum mechanics. This milestone has not only set out to honor a century of groundbreaking scientific achievements but also has shined a light on the transformative potential of quantum...

IEEE Milestone: How Bell Labs Helped Prove the Big Bang

The question of how our universe began has fascinated scientists and philosophers for centuries. In 1927, Belgian physicist and priest Georges Lemaître proposed that the universe originated from a single “primeval atom” that exploded to create space, time, and an expanding cosmos, a concept that would later become known as the Big Bang theory. Yet...

Advancing Optical Sensing: IEEE Sensors Council Webinar Series and Tutorials

The IEEE Sensors Council, a technical council within IEEE that brings together multiple Societies, including support from the IEEE Photonics Society, offers a comprehensive series of tutorials and webinars designed to advance knowledge in optical science, technology, and other multidisciplinary fields. Within the Council, the Optical Sensors Cluster leads initiatives that strengthen collaboration, foster innovation,...

Women in Nitrides Panel: A Platform for Mentorship Exchange

The IEEE Photonics Sweden Chapter, in partnership with dedicated volunteers from RISE and members of the broader nitride semiconductor community, proudly hosted the "Women in Nitrides” event during the 15th International Conference on Nitride Semiconductors (ICNS15) in Malmö, Sweden. Held on July 7, 2025, this impactful event created a vibrant platform where scientists, engineers, students, and...

The Birth of the Visible LED: Nick Holonyak Jr. and a Turning Point in Photonics

Photo Credit: UIUC As we mark the 60th anniversary of the IEEE Photonics Society, it’s an ideal time to honor the visionary pioneers whose discoveries have illuminated the modern world. Photonics has reshaped our lives in profound ways, and few have had a more enduring impact on that transformation than Nick Holonyak Jr. (1928–2022), the father...

The Emergence of Quantum Electronics: A Pivotal Moment in Our Society’s History

As we reflect on the IEEE Photonics Society's 60th Anniversary, it’s important to look back at the key moments that shaped the field of quantum electronics, which today plays an integral role in advancing photonics technologies. Many of the defining moments in this journey occurred in the mid-1960s, marking the inception of a dedicated platform...

Illuminating the Quantum Era: How 2025 Will Transform Science and Technology

The year 2025 marks a significant milestone for science and innovation as the United Nations designates it as the International Year of Quantum Science and Technology (IYQ). This initiative is designed to spotlight groundbreaking advancements in the quantum field, with the IEEE serving as a Distinguished Partner. IYQ also aims to raise awareness of the...

IEEE Partners with CAPES to Enhance Open Access Publishing for Brazilian Researchers

IEEE has recently announced a groundbreaking unlimited read and publish open access agreement with Coordenacao de Aperfeicoamento de Pessoal de Nivel Superior (CAPES), a federal agency within the Brazilian Ministry of Education. This new three-year partnership aims to provide Brazilian researchers with expanded opportunities to publish their work through open access, making their research instantly...

Member Recognition: How to Achieve Senior Member Status with IEEE

The IEEE Senior Member grade is the highest distinction within IEEE that can be attained through self-nomination, making it a unique and exceptional milestone for engineers, scientists, educators, and technical leaders. This prestigious status is a recognition of both technical expertise and professional excellence, marking a major achievement in a member's career. It highlights not...

Book Review: Understanding Design Through Don Norman's Lens

Don Norman's "The Design of Everyday Things" is a foundational text that delves into user-centered design, emphasizing that effective design should be intuitive and enhance our daily interactions with objects. Norman’s insights are grounded in cognitive psychology, helping readers understand why many everyday items frustrate us—often due to poor design rather than user error. One of...

Book Review: Liquid Crystals, 3rd Edition, by Iam-Choon Khoo

It is often the case in science and technology that things with humble beginnings later come to have profound impact or ubiquity in the world. Such is the case with liquid crystals, which originated as a curiosity to an Austrian botanical chemist who extracted cholesterol derivatives from a carrot almost a century-and-a-half ago. Since then...

IEEE Photonics Society Congratulates our 2024 Award Recipients

The Photonics Society Joint Awards Committee serves as the evaluation and selection committee for our four Society Career Awards; the Aron Kressel Award, the Engineering Achievement Award, the Quantum Electronics Award, and the William Streiffer Scientific Achievement Award. The Aron Kressel Award recognizes those individuals who have made important contributions to opto‐electronic device technology. The device technology...

Meet The New Editor-In-Chief Of The IEEE Photonics Journal

The IEEE Photonics Society’s Board of Governors appointed Dr. Jian Wang, a distinguished professional with an extensive background in optics and photonics, as the Editor-in-Chief (EiC) of the IEEE Photonics Journal (PJ), for a three-year term beginning January 2024.

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Book Review — Optical Communications From a Fourier Perspective

by Palle Jeppesen and Bjarne Tromborg, Elsevier 2023 Reviewed by Klaus Petermann, Technische Universität Berlin, Germany There exists already a large variety of books on optical communications so that one might ask what might be the role of a new book on a similar subject. The present book by Palle Jeppesen and Bjarne Tromborg is indeed...

The IEEE Photonics Society Distinguished Lecturers for 2024

The IEEE Photonics Society Distinguished Lecturer Program was designed to honor excellent speakers who have made technical, industrial, or entrepreneurial contributions to the field of photonics and to enhance the technical programs of the IEEE Photonics Society Chapters. Chapters may request Distinguished Lecturers to present at chapter meetings, chapter-related events or technically co-sponsored conferences organized by...

Book Review - Photonic Instrumentation: Sensing and Measuring with Lasers

Reviewed by Sheng-Kwang Hwang, National Cheng Kung University, Taiwan Full Book Title: Photonic Instrumentation: Sensing and Measuring with Lasers, by Silvano Donati CRC Press, 2023 It has been 14 years since the IEEE Lasers and Electro-Optics Society (LEOS) changed its name into the now more familiar IEEE Photonics Society. That name change came in part as the...

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Leveraging External Capabilities and Infrastructure to Enable Success

Nicholas G. Usechak
AFRL – Sensors Directorate, Wright–Patterson, OH 45433 1. Introduction The field of advanced photonics research and development has rapidly evolved over the past few decades. Today, working in photonics presents unique challenges, especially for those performing research and development involving hardware. These difficulties exist not only for small photonics companies, but across all sectors including...

IEEE Technical Skills Educator Award Recipient Announced

We are delighted to announce that Jens Hofmann, pro ANH e.V. / Eagleyard Photonics GmbH, German, has been chosen as the IEEE Technical Skills Educator Award. For bringing companies and institutes together in innovative programs that enable career changes into photonics.
Jens Hofmann started his professional career in September 2003 with a dual apprenticeship as a microtechnologist for microsystems...

IEEE Photonics Society Industry Achievement Award Recipient Announced

The IEEE Photonics Society is pleased to announce the recipient of the 2023 IEEE Photonics Society Industry Achievement Award. For outstanding contributions to the translation of photonic ideas into successful commercial products and demonstration of entrepreneurial leadership in introducing innovative solutions to the market. Dr Simon Poole AO, FAA, FTSE, FIEAust, FIEEE is an engineer/scientist/entrepreneur with 40 years’ experience...

IEEE Working to Make a Difference on Climate Change

IEEE’s mission is to advance technology for the benefit of humanity. Today the world faces its largest modern-day threat—climate change. The organization recognizes this global crisis and is committed to helping combat and mitigate the effects of climate change through pragmatic and accessible technical solutions and providing engineers and technologists with a neutral space for...

Ming-Jun Li Wins 2023 John Tyndall Award

We are delighted to announce that Ming-Jun Li, a Corporate Fellow at Corning Incorporated, USA, has been selected by IEEE Photonics Society and Optica as the 2023 John Tyndall Award recipient! Li is recognized for “seminal contributions to advances in optical fiber technology”. His work having made a remarkable impact on society. Read...

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Note From The President

January 2026

As I begin my term as President of the IEEE Photonics Society, I am deeply honored and grateful for the opportunity to lead a community that truly embodies this spirit — generating new light through innovation and reflecting it through mentorship, collaboration, and shared knowledge. When I first joined the Society as a student member in 2000, I could not have imagined that this decision would so profoundly shape my career and professional growth. Over ...