Washington, DC, June 15, 2004--Attendance at the 2004 Conference on Lasers and Electro-Optics/International Quantum Electronics Conference (CLEO/IQEC), which presents research and applications in laser science, quantum optics, and related fields, grew by 7% over its 2003 figures. Taking place May 16-21 at the Moscone Center West in San Francisco, California, CLEO/IQEC also had a 31% increase in papers, with 1,733 presentations and 16 parallel sessions.
"The increase in attendance this year and the success of our new conference, PhAST, reinforces CLEO/IQEC's important role as a leader in encouraging scientific innovation within the field," said Elizabeth Rogan, the Optical Society of America's executive director.
Attendance at the 2004 CLEO/IQEC was 5,857, a 7% increase over last year. With 2,674 technical attendees, the conference also saw a significant 10% increase in those attending the scientific sessions. Events including the celebration of the 50th anniversary of the maser, attosecond photonics, and the plenary session itself were standing room only.
Hot technical topics at the 2004 conference included terahertz spectroscopy, a BioCD with interferometry, lasers in nanotechnologies, high speed communications and photonics crystals that ranged from nanocavities to butterfly wings. In addition, CLEO/IQEC added four new program areas this year, including optical metrology, displays and solid-state-lighting devices, high-field physics, and other topics in quantum electronics and laser science.
PhAST
The introduction of PhAST, the collocated conference focused on Photonic, Applications Systems and Technologies, provided attendees with another option for analyzing applications of laser science and quantum electronics, focusing on such timely topics as biophotonics instrumentation, photonics for national security, and lasers in manufacturing.
Highlights from the PhAST program included a special lunch with industry leaders - a sold-out event that included a business management and panel discussion and three additional keynote presentations. These presentations included Steve Brueck's (Univ. of New Mexico) discussion on photonics in nanotechnology, Joe W. Gray's (Lawrence Berkeley Natl. Lab.) review on complex cancer genomes and Len Marabella's (JDS Uniphase) presentation on lasers in manufacturing.
Exhibitor announcements
Nearly 300 companies participated this year in the exhibit, unveiling new products and initiatives at CLEO. About 20% of the companies came from outside the United States, including Europe and the Pacific Rim.
Ambios Technology Inc. (Santa Cruz, CA) announced the introduction of a low-cost, high-performance non-contact 3-D optical profiler designed for fast and accurate precision step height and surface roughness measurements. The Xi-100 is designed for the researcher who needs fast, repeatable surface-topography measurements from an instrument that is not encumbered by unneeded levels of complication. It is able to provide precise, high-resolution, non-contact 3-D profiles of both smooth and rough surfaces.
Headwall Photonics (Fitchburg, MA), which develops nanophotonics manufacturing and spectrometry for industry and defense, announced the expansion of its Hyperspec family of concentric imaging spectrographs with the introduction of the Hyperspec VS25 and VS50. Both products incorporate the company's original holographic diffraction gratings and produce large, distortion-free images for high-resolution, low-noise applications. The concentric spectrograph design enables high-quality imaging over the full extent of an 18-mm-tall slit, providing the highest spatial resolution available.
New Focus Inc. (San Jose, CA) made its world debut as a division of Bookham Technology PLC at CLEO/IQEC 2004. The company, a provider of photonics tools to the research and industrial markets, also used the exhibition to launch and preview several new products with an emphasis on high quality and value.
Nufern (East Granby, CT), a manufacturer of fiber-intensive subassemblies and specialty optical fibers, announced a polarization-maintaining (PM) Panda-style erbium-ytterbium (Er/Yb) co-doped, double-clad fiber for high-power and high-energy fiber lasers and optical amplifiers used in military, industrial, and medical applications. In addition, the company introduced polarized laser subassemblies, enabling manufacturers to bring fiber lasers to market.
Sensors Unlimited (Princeton, NJ) introduced working prototypes of their new SDV camera, said to be the smallest, most economical, most stable and easiest to use. Applications for the company's SDV camera line are expected to include industrial machine vision, hot-process monitoring, and laboratory instrumentation, as well as defense and security surveillance. Commercial quantities for the SU640SDV-1.7RT 2-D camera and the SDV linescan camera will be available beginning August 1, 2004. Other models are slated for introduction later.