This full-day consortium brings together clinicians and engineers to discuss state-of-the-art optical neuromonitoring technologies for extracorporeal membrane oxygenation (ECMO) patients. 

The main three goals are:

(1) Bring together clinicians and engineers for direct conversation about challenges and opportunities for optical neuromonitoring in ECMO care.

(2) Document current strengths, gaps and opportunities through structured SWOT analysis for group dissemination.

(3) Establish connections for new collaborations and fundable projects. To achieve this, the meeting will feature clinical and engineering keynote addresses, two 90-minute topic-focused sessions, each with 4-6 short (10m) panelist talks followed by a 30m panel discussion.

The event will conclude with an interactive SWOT analysis to summarize discussion, document key challenges and opportunities and establish next steps for this new working group. Optica Members Only. RSVP Required. Please RSVP here. 

Sponsored By: Optica Technical Group on Tissue Imaging and Spectroscopy

This networking event brings together researchers, engineers, industry professionals and students to connect, share experiences and celebrate the contributions of women advancing the field of optics and photonics. All congress participants are welcome to attend and engage with the growing global community of women in optics.

Join us for the Lunch and Learn on Sunday, 26 April, during the Optica Biophotonics Congress. This interactive session will feature insights and discussions from leading companies in the field, including Single Quantum, Light Conversion, INO and PIONIRS. Attendees will enjoy lunch while learning about emerging technologies, industry perspectives and opportunities for collaboration across the optics and photonics community.

How do you go from working with optical fibers to building implantable devices for the brain? A candid and interactive session on navigating interdisciplinary research, career pivots and translating photonics into real-world impact — where in vivo sensing serves as a key pathway toward clinical translation. This session is designed for undergraduate and graduate students who aspire to build impactful careers in technology while navigating their academic and professional paths. 

Join fellow attendees for the congress reception.

This panel discussion will examine the expanding role of artificial intelligence (AI) across the biophotonics research spectrum, from basic discovery science to translational and clinical applications. Panelists will highlight how AI is being used to analyze complex biological data, generate new hypotheses and accelerate the translation of fundamental findings into practical tools and therapies. The discussion will also address key challenges, including data integration, model interpretability, reproducibility and ethical considerations and will emphasize the importance of interdisciplinary collaboration. Overall, the panel will underscore AI’s potential to enhance biophotonics research at multiple levels while highlighting the need for responsible and rigorous implementation and standardization. This panel discussion is a joint event by the Clinical and Translational Biophotonics, Optical Coherence Tomography and Optical Tomography and Spectroscopy Topicals. Please note this panel is part of the technical program and accessible to full technical registrants only. 

This will be a happy hour-style speed networking event where attendees will have the opportunity to interact with invitees across career stages, including early, mid and advanced level faculty and industry professionals, in a relaxed setting. Featured participants will include leading experts Inga Saknite, Christa Haase, Dongkyun Kang and Milind Rajadhyaksha. Optica Members Only. RSVP here.