SPIE Photonics Europe 2014

Abstracts for SPIE Photonics Europe 2014, which will introduce neurophotonics as a new topic, will be accepted through 4 November.

SPIE Photonics Europe returns to Brussels 14-17 April 2014, along with 2000 leading optics and photonics researchers and innovators who share their latest R&D in micro/nanotechnologies, organic and biophotonics, photonic components, lasers, quantum optics, and industrial applications.

Application of light-based technologies for stimulating neural activity in the peripheral and central nervous system using different wavelengths from the UV through the IR has seen tremendous interest in the past few years.

The importance of neurophotonics is evident not only from the considerable growth rates of the related industries, but also from the significant amount of publicly funded research efforts in this field.

Developers of optogenetics, for instance, received Denmark’s €1 million annual Brain Prize in March. The EC-sponsored Human Brain Project is preparing for its inaugural event in October, and the Brain Research through Advancing Innovative Neurotechnologies (BRAIN) Initiative is being scoped by a working group of the US National Institutes of Health with an eye on securing funding in the fiscal 2014 budget.

“Optical microscopy methods are fast becoming central to neurobiological research, leading to fascinating research discoveries and stimulating conceptual advances, some of which will be presented at Photonics Europe,” says Jürgen Popp, co-chair of Biophotonics: Photonic Solutions for Better Health Care, the conference that will include reports on the latest research developments in neurophotonics.

Other conferences will cover:

• Metamaterials
• Nanophotonics
• Photonic Crystal Materials and Devices
• Micro-Structured and Specialty Optical Fibres
• Micro-Optics
• Optical Modelling and Design
• Optical Micro- and Nanometrology
• Silicon Photonics and Photonic Integrated Circuits
• Semiconductor Lasers and Laser Dynamics
• Laser Sources and Applications
• Nonlinear Optics and its Applications
• Organic Photonics
• Optics, Photonics and Digital Technologies for Multimedia Applications
• Real-Time Image and Video Processing
• Photonics for Solar Energy Systems
• Optical Sensing and Detection
• Quantum Optics

In addition to these conferences, SPIE Photonics Europe 2014 offers workshops, seminars, and a product exhibition. The event serves as a platform for updates on Horizon 2020, the EU’s program for research and innovation for 2014-2020.

An Innovation Village provides exposure for new products developed by universities and research centers, and the European Village showcases projects of EC initiatives, Networks of Excellence, and other consortia.

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