All Things Photonics
From space exploration and quantum optics, to biomedical imaging and defense, today’s top scientific minds are using lasers, spectroscopy, sensors, and optics to deliver cutting-edge innovation to our society. In intimate conversations with those pushing the boundaries of human knowledge, “All Things Photonics” spotlights photonics industry progress from beyond the lab.
Hear how 3D printed microscopes — and those developed for a fraction of the cost — offer our best hope for diagnosing disease in the developing world; why spectroscopy might be the most valuable tool in the crime scene technicians’ arsenal; how light can motorize drug delivery; and how the quantum cascade laser, CMOS image sensor, and robot-assisted surgery became realities.
Notable guests include Nobel Prize winner Donna Strickland; Columbia University Eugene Higgins Professor of Electrical Engineering Michal Lipson; inventor of the CMOS image sensor Eric Fossum; serial entrepreneur Jason Eichenholz; co-namesake of the Hockney Falco Thesis Charles Falco; and SPIE President and founder of the Vanderbilt Biophotonics Center Anita Mahadevan-Jansen.
“All Things Photonics”® is produced by Photonics Media and airs biweekly, on Tuesdays. The podcast was a shortlisted finalist in two categories — Best Science & Medical Podcast and Best Technology Podcast — for The Publishers Podcast Awards in 2021. It has again earned shortlist honors in the Best Science and Medical Podcast category for 2022.
Contact us at [email protected].
- Update frequency
- every 12 days
- Average duration
- 37 minutes
- Episodes
- 107
- Years Active
- 2020 - 2025
Battling Heart Disease with Photonics – With Yuqi Zhou
Photonic technologies are already being used to battle cardiovascular disease, but emerging technologies could further advance the treatment and diagnosis of the world’s leading cause of death. Yuqi …
Summer Camp in the Sunshine State — with Mike McKee
Mike McKee, undergraduate advisor at the University of Central Florida's College of Optics and Photonics (UCF CREOL), and high school student Griffin Whiteside, a rising sophomore, discuss UCF CREOL’…
Spotlight: Quantum Nonlinear Photonics 101 with Yannick Salamin
We may not all be experts in the field of quantum nonlinear photonics, but we can all appreciate the applications it could advance. Whether it is in medical diagnostics or LIDAR systems, quantum tech…
Next Generation of Phase Change Materials and Scientists — With Jasper Stackawitz
Jasper Stackawitz, a rising senior at Pennsbury High School in Pennsylvania and recipient of the 2025 Teddi C. Laurin Scholarship, discusses his path to the world of photonics research, his work with…
Spotlight: Inspiring the Next Generation of Photonics Professionals With Garrett Cole
Garrett Cole, associate professor at the Wyant College of Optical Sciences, has returned to academia after working with famed research labs and turning his own work into a successful startup. His foc…
Spectroscopy in the MIR — With Søren Friis
Søren Friis, head of sales and business development at NLIR, breaks down the technique of MIR spectroscopy, overviewing technology, applications, and instrumentation. As a key addition to the end use…
Holographic Displays: From the War Room to the Living Room — With Wally Haas
Long thought of as a technology of the future, holographic displays are now making their way to the commercial market. In this episode, Avalon Holographics CEO Wally Haas explains how the technology …
Brightening the Future of Display Technologies — With Reza Chaji
Reza Chaji, CEO of VueReal, discusses current challenges in micro-LED display technologies, and the potential of VueReal’s MicroSolid Printing platform to address them, as well as to push the technol…
Spotlight: All Eyes on Munich for Laser World of Photonics 2025 With Exhibition Director Anke Odouli
Laser World of Photonics is one of the top trade shows for the laser and photonics industry. Tens of thousands of visitors from around the world will travel to Munich to take part in this year’s even…
Pushing the Bounds of Industrial Laser Performance — With Aldas Juronis
Aldas Juronis, CEO of EKSPLA, discusses key parameters in the design and manufacture of industrial laser systems in this final episode before the start of Laser World of Photonics 2025. EKSPLA’s dire…
Spotlight: Today’s Federal Policies Shape Tomorrow’s Photonics Landscape with Rep. Joe Morelle
A group of bipartisan lawmakers formed the Optics and Photonics Caucus back in 2020. At that time, the U.S., along with the rest of the world, was grappling with the pandemic and the disruptions to t…
Laser-Powered Time Travel — With Physicist and Professor Emeritus, Ron Mallett
Time travel is not just theoretical, it’s proven. But that doesn’t mean we are anywhere close to a functioning time machine just yet. Professor Ron Mallett has been fascinated with the idea of time t…
Closing Connection Gaps through Free Space Optical Communications — With Tom Chaffee, Jim Olson, and Wayne Knox
Free space optical communication could offer high speed connectivity without the need of optical fibers. That's where groups like Attochron come in. They are actively working to develop the next gene…
Spotlight: Trade War Threatens Global Semiconductor Industry — With Lita Shon-Roy, President/CEO and Founder of TECHET
No one can be sure how this current trade war between the U.S. and China will end. But we’re feeling its impacts every day. While no person or business can escape the effects of this volatile market,…
Laser-Based Additive Manufacturing Steps into the Blue — With Lukas Hoppe
Additive manufacturing garners considerable attention — but the methods and underlying technology often take a back seat to the remarkable designs and properties of finished works. Lukas Hoppe, R&D d…
Graphene: At the Intersection of Photonics and 2D Materials Science — With Andy MacInnes
Graphene’s recent and ongoing ascent into commercial applications and consumer devices is the focus of our conversation with Andy MacInnes, chief development officer at Paragraf. The Cambridge, Engla…
Spotlight: Frank Winkler, Professor for Neuro-Oncology, Heidelberg University
Dr. Frank Winkler, at Heidelberg University focuses on the emerging field of cancer neuroscience, and the way brain cancers proceed. Winkler has used two-photon imaging to confirm that glioma cells l…
Directed Energy: Into the Battlefield and Out of this World — with Martin Richardson
Martin Richardson, director of the University of Central Florida’s Center for Directed Energy, joins us to discuss the progression of directed energy technology, from historic uses to its emergence i…
Placing “Test” on the Integrated Photonics Value Chain — With Iñigo Artundo
Iñigo Artundo, CEO of photonic test and design house VLC Photonics, breaks down the function of test as it relates to PICs and integrated photonics. How developers advance chip and wafer architecture…
Spotlight: John Ballato, Professor of Materials and Science Engineering at Clemson University
John Ballato is a professor of materials science and engineering at Clemson University. He knows the importance of glass in the photonics industry, even if some downplay its importance. Across his mo…