Events
Amplify Optics Immersion Program
07 - 10 October, 2023
Tacoma, Washington USA
The Amplify Optics Immersion Program will bring together Black physics and engineering undergraduate or graduate students to explore the research and career opportunities within optics and photonics at our annual meeting Frontiers in Optics.
The Amplify Optics Immersion Program is designed to highlight the research, technology and careers in optics and photonics for Black undergraduate and master's students. Co-located with Optica's annual meeting Frontiers in Optics (FiO) and Student Leadership, participating students will attend a dedicated program and participate in FiO technical and professional development sessions and student activities.
You will hear from world-renowned lecturers with time split between programming designed specifically Immersion attendees, joint activities with the Optica Student Leadership program, and FiO talks and programming. Topics and activities:
- Overview of optics and photonics research, technologies and career opportunities.
- Introduction to Optica and of FiO technical program and special events with programming on getting the most out of the experience.
- Participation in the APS Division of Laser Science (DLS) Symposium on Undergraduate Research.
- Participation in FiO activities including small group guided tours of FiO exhibit floor and the opening Plenary talk.
- Informal networking activities and meals.
The Amplify Optics Immersion Program is established by the Optica Foundation in partnership with founding donor Edmund Optics:
Schedule
Saturday, 07 October
Afternoon - Arrivals
17:30 – 19:00 - Welcome Reception, Point Defiance, Marriott
Sunday, 08 October
07:30 – 08:30
Breakfast, Ruston, Marriott
08:30 – 08:45
Welcome, Chambers I, Marriott
Elizabeth Rogan, CEO, Optica, USA
Marcia Lesky, Sr. Director Diversity & Foundation Programs, Optica, USA
08:45 – 09:15
Introductions & Kick-off with Master of Ceremonies
Peter Delfyett, CREOL, UCF, USA
09:15 – 10:15
Enabled By Optics
Biomedical Optics – Caroline Boudoux, Polytechnique Montréal, Canada
Fabrication, Design & Instrumentation – Jannick Rolland, University of Rochester, USA
Information Acquisition, Processing & Display – Adam Fleisher, NIST, USA
Optical Interaction Science – TBD
Photonics & Opto-Electronics – Winnie Ye, Carleton University, Canada
Vision & Color Division – Brian Vohnsen, Aalborg University, Denmark
10:15 – 10:30
Break
10:30 – 11:30
An Engineers Path to NASA and a career in Light Management
Lyndsey McMillon-Brown, NASA Glenn Research Center, USA
11:30 – 12:30
The L.A.S.T. Lecture
Donnell Walton, Corning, Inc., USA
12:30 – 13:30
Networking Lunch
13:30 – 14:30
Opportunities in Optics
Kenneth Barber, Edmund Optics, USA
Faezeh Gholami, IBM, USA
Ivy Krystal Jones, Hampton University, USA
Justus Ndukaife, Vanderbilt University, USA
14:30 – 15:30
Paving the Way
Jami Valentine Miller, PhD, Founder, African American Women in Physics, Inc. & Primary Patent Examiner, U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, USA
15:30-16:00
Break
16:00 – 17:30
Being Black in STEM
George Okyere Dwapanyin, University of St Andrews, UK
Timothy Oshiobughie Imogore, Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena, Germany
Joshua Burrow, Brown University, USA
17:30 – 18:00
Q&A and Closing
Peter Delfyett, CREOL, UCF, USA
18:00 – 19:00
Joint dinner to Student Leadership Conference, Location
19:00 – 22:00
Ghost Tours, McMenamins Elks Temple. 565 Broadway, Tacoma, WA 98402
Monday, 09 October
07:30 – 08:30
Breakfast, Commencement I and II, Marriott
08:00 – 08:30
Breakfast Talk: A Word About Frontiers in Optics from the Chair
Turan Erdogan, Plymouth Grating Laboratory, Inc., USA
08:30 – 12:00
Free time to Explore the Conference
09:00 – 12:00
DLS Undergraduate Symposium, Chambers I, Marriott
12:00 – 13:00
Joint Lunch Symposium on Undergraduate Research, Chambers I, Marriott
13:00 – 14:00
Starting Point: Meet the Exhibitors, NextGen Lounge, Science & Industry Showcase
14:15 – 14:45
Black in Optics Meetup, NextGen Lounge, Science & Industry Showcase
14:00 – 16:00
Optica Foundation Challenge Symposia, Room 405 Convention Center
Use Photonics. Change the World: Environment Symposium
Gilberto Brambilla, University of Southampton,UK
Dismas Choge, University of Eldoret, Kenya
Ashim Dhakal, Phutung Research Institute, Nepal
Michela Florinda Picardi, ICFO – the Institute of Photonics Sciences, Spain
Wanvisa Talataisong, Suranaree University of Technology, Thailand
16:30 – 16:30
Ambassador Mixer, NextGen Lounge, Science & Industry Showcase
18:30 – 19:30
Joint Dinner DLS Symposium, The Old Spaghetti Factory, 1250 Pacific Ave
The goal is to introduce 50 Black physics and engineering undergraduate or first year Master’s students annually to the research and career opportunities in optics and photonics and to the Optica community.
Following is a general overview of the program timeline and description.
Program Timeline
The program will run 07-10 October 2023 (4 days and 3 nights) co-located with the Optica annual meeting Frontiers in Optics:
- Saturday, 07 October – arrival and networking event
- Sunday, 08 October – Immersion programming, Student Leadership plenary and party
- Monday 09 October – FiO/Student Leadership programming, DLS Symposium on Undergraduate Research
- Tuesday 10 October – show floor tour, Plenary and departure
Program Description
Time will be split between programming designed specifically for this group, joint activities with the Optica Student Leadership program, and attending FiO talks and programming. The activities for the Immersion attendees will include:
- Overview of optics and photonics research, technologies and career opportunities.
- Introduction to Optica and of FiO technical program and special events with programming on getting the most out of the experience.
- Participation in the DLS Symposium on Undergraduate Research
- Participation in FiO activities including small group guided tours of FiO exhibit floor and the opening Plenary talk.
- Informal networking activities and meals
Schedule and speakers subject to change.
Saturday, 07 October
Afternoon - Arrivals
17:30 – 19:00 - Welcome Reception, Point Defiance, Marriott
Sunday, 08 October
07:30 – 08:30
Breakfast, Ruston, Marriott
08:30 – 08:45
Welcome, Chambers I, Marriott
Elizabeth Rogan, CEO, Optica, USA
Marcia Lesky, Sr. Director Diversity & Foundation Programs, Optica, USA
08:45 – 09:15
Introductions & Kick-off with Master of Ceremonies
Peter Delfyett, CREOL, UCF, USA
09:15 – 10:15
Enabled By Optics
Biomedical Optics – Caroline Boudoux, Polytechnique Montréal, Canada
Fabrication, Design & Instrumentation – Jannick Rolland, University of Rochester, USA
Information Acquisition, Processing & Display – Adam Fleisher, NIST, USA
Optical Interaction Science – TBD
Photonics & Opto-Electronics – Winnie Ye, Carleton University, Canada
Vision & Color Division – Brian Vohnsen, Aalborg University, Denmark
10:15 – 10:30
Break
10:30 – 11:30
An Engineers Path to NASA and a career in Light Management
Lyndsey McMillon-Brown, NASA Glenn Research Center, USA
11:30 – 12:30
The L.A.S.T. Lecture
Donnell Walton, Corning, Inc., USA
12:30 – 13:30
Networking Lunch
13:30 – 14:30
Opportunities in Optics
Kenneth Barber, Edmund Optics, USA
Faezeh Gholami, IBM, USA
Ivy Krystal Jones, Hampton University, USA
Justus Ndukaife, Vanderbilt University, USA
14:30 – 15:30
Paving the Way
Jami Valentine Miller, PhD, Founder, African American Women in Physics, Inc. & Primary Patent Examiner, U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, USA
15:30-16:00
Break
16:00 – 17:30
Being Black in STEM
George Okyere Dwapanyin, University of St Andrews, UK
Timothy Oshiobughie Imogore, Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena, Germany
Joshua Burrow, Brown University, USA
17:30 – 18:00
Q&A and Closing
Peter Delfyett, CREOL, UCF, USA
18:00 – 19:00
Joint dinner to Student Leadership Conference, Location
19:00 – 22:00
Ghost Tours, McMenamins Elks Temple. 565 Broadway, Tacoma, WA 98402
Monday, 09 October
07:30 – 08:30
Breakfast, Commencement I and II, Marriott
08:00 – 08:30
Breakfast Talk: A Word About Frontiers in Optics from the Chair
Turan Erdogan, Plymouth Grating Laboratory, Inc., USA
08:30 – 12:00
Free time to Explore the Conference
09:00 – 12:00
DLS Undergraduate Symposium, Chambers I, Marriott
12:00 – 13:00
Joint Lunch Symposium on Undergraduate Research, Chambers I, Marriott
13:00 – 14:00
Starting Point: Meet the Exhibitors, NextGen Lounge, Science & Industry Showcase
14:15 – 14:45
Black in Optics Meetup, NextGen Lounge, Science & Industry Showcase
14:00 – 16:00
Optica Foundation Challenge Symposia, Room 405 Convention Center
Use Photonics. Change the World: Environment Symposium
Gilberto Brambilla, University of Southampton,UK
Dismas Choge, University of Eldoret, Kenya
Ashim Dhakal, Phutung Research Institute, Nepal
Michela Florinda Picardi, ICFO – the Institute of Photonics Sciences, Spain
Wanvisa Talataisong, Suranaree University of Technology, Thailand
16:30 – 16:30
Ambassador Mixer, NextGen Lounge, Science & Industry Showcase
18:30 – 19:30
Joint Dinner DLS Symposium, The Old Spaghetti Factory, 1250 Pacific Ave
Tuesday, 10 October
07:30 – 08:30
Breakfast, Commencement I and II, Marriott
08:00 – 08:30
Breakfast talk: FiO's Science & Industry Showcase: What to Expect
Jose Pozo, Optica Chief Technology Officer, Netherlands
10:30 – 11:30
FiO Plenary: Towards Wearable Adaptive Optics for Vision, Showcase Theater
Pablo Artal, University of Murcia, Spain
11:30 – 12:00
Plenary Q&A, NextGen Lounge, Science & Industry Showcase
12:00 – 12:45
Career Perspectives Roundtable: Academia, NextGen Lounge, Science & Industry Showcase
Mitchell Cox, University of the Witwatersrand, South Africa
Mateusz Szatkowski, Wrocław University of Science and Technology, Poland
Sejeong Kim, University of Melbourne, Australia
12:30 - 13:30
Outreach & Gender Equity in Pakistan, Optica Booth, Science & Industry Showcase. Imrana Ashraf, Quaid-i-Azam University, Pakistan
Speakers
Kenneth Barber, Edmund Optics
Caroline Boudoux, Biomedical Optics
Joshua Burrow, Brown University
Peter Delfyett, CREOL, UCF
George Okyere Dwapanyin, University of St Andrews
Turan Erdogan, Plymouth Grating Laboratory, Inc.
Adam J. Fleisher, National Institute of Standards and Technology
Faezeh Gholami, IBM
Timothy Imogore, Friedrich Schiller University Jena
Ivy Krystal Jones, Hampton University
Lyndsey McMillon-Brown, NASA Glenn Research Center
Jami Valentine Miller, United States Patent and Trademark Office
Justus Ndukaife, Vanderbilt University
Jose Pozo, Optica
Jannick P. Rolland, University of Rochester
Johannes Trbola, Trbola Engineering
Brian Vohnsen, University College Dublin
Donnell Walton, Corning West Technology Center
Winnie Ye, Carleton University
