This week we were in DC for Congressional Visits Day and STEM on The Hill, combining forces with our colleagues at OSA and SPIE and ASTRA to educate and inform our delegation about the importance of Optics, Photonics and Imaging to our national security and to the economy.  Our work impacts American lives in so...Continue Reading

New York Photonics Cluster Endorses Leadership Accord  ROCHESTER, NY, August 18, 2015 – New York Photonics, based in Rochester, NY, endorses the leadership statement issued today by SUNY Polytechnic Institute President and CEO Dr. Alain E. Kaloyeros and University of Rochester President and CEO Joel Seligman. We salute the leadership of Governor Andrew Cuomo for convening New...Continue Reading

There would be no Integrated Photonics Institute for Manufacturing Innovation were it not for the hard work of our societies OSA and SPIE in Washington DC, and their members.   Kudos to Alan Willner at USC for his leadership, and to Elizabeth Rogan at OSA and Eugene Arthurs at SPIE.  Without their commitment and the...Continue Reading

What is really astounding (to anyone that has ever used Photoshop) is the viral nature of the argument about the blue dress.  Is it blue, or is it white?  The real answer of course is, “Who cares?”  But since the subject has caught the attention of millions, the scientists have to step in.  After all,...Continue Reading

Did you know that the stunning lights of aurora borealis are the result of solar wind? Or that every CD and DVD player contains a tiny laser? Or that some people can trick their brains to see “impossible” colors? Fascinating, right? It’s this fascination with light and an unquenchable interest in researching new concepts that...Continue Reading

Funding Opportunity Announced Through a Funding Opportunity Announcement  (FOA) made on Nov. 6, the U.S. Department of Defense is calling for concept papers for the establishment of an Integrated Photonics Institute for Manufacturing Innovation (IP-IMI). The IP-IMI will be the largest federal investment to date under the Obama administration’s National Network for Manufacturing Innovation (NNMI)...Continue Reading

Big day of news for our industry yesterday, Manufacturing Day in America! First, At an event to celebrate Manufacturing Day at New York Photonics member EMF Corporation in Ithaca, New York with their Congressman from New York’s 23rd district (which includes Corning), Tom Reed, and OSA CEO Liz Rogan. Congressman Reed deserved the wonderful welcome...Continue Reading

“If China shuts off the flow of glass, the United States will be out of drones in six months.” – CEO of a critical components contractor to the DoD It was anticipated and heavily lobbied for.  Does it look like anyone expected? On Monday, June 2nd, the Department of the Air Force, through Air Force...Continue Reading

From Tom Battley, Executive Director of New York Photonics Excerpted from the October 22nd edition of The Hill I am writing in response to Rep. Louise Slaughter’s  Oct. 10 op-ed, “Advancing American competitiveness by harnessing the power of light.” In New York, home of the imaging “Capital of the World,” researchers, engineers and technicians are...Continue Reading

Last week Rochester once again demonstrated its importance in the optics and photonics global economy by hosting the SPIE Optifab meeting — North America’s largest exhibition of optical manufacturing and testing equipment and technology. Sponsored by SPIE, the international society for optics and photonics, and co-sponsored by the APOMA (American Precision Optics Manufacturers Association), the...Continue Reading