News from the European Optical Society EOS

EOS Awards for Best Poster Presentations at AOP 2017

Faro, Portugal, 8–12 May, 2017

The European Optical Society (EOS) presented three awards at the 3rd International Conference on Applications in Optics and Photonics (AOP) 2017. The conference was held 8–12 May, 2017, in Faro, Portugal. EOS awarded three best poster presentations with diplomas and cash prizes up to 450 Euros.

The first award went to ‘Photo-induced ultrasound microscopy for photo-acoustic imaging of non-absorbing specimens’ by Elena Tcarenkova, Sami Koha and Pekka E. Hänninen (University of Turku, Finland).

The second award went to ‘Direct formation of nanostructure by focused electron beam on a surface of thin metallic films’ by Janis Snikeris, and Vjaceslav Gerbreders (Daugavpils University, Latvia).

The third presentation awarded was for ‘Photonic integrated circuits for NG-EPON’ by Carla Rodrigues, Francisco Rodrigues, Mário Lima and Antonio Teixiera (Instituto de Telecomunicações, Portugal).

EOS Conferences at the World of Photonics Congress

Munich, Germany, June 26–29, 2017

The EOS organized the EOS Optical Technologies Conferences as part of the World of Photonics Congress in Munich, Germany, where EOS partners with the other societies: SPIE Europe, European Physical Society (EPS), German Scientific Laser Society (WLT), IEEE Photonics Society and the Optical Society (OSA).

The congress gathers together science and industry and is collocated with the LASER World of Photonics Trade fair, which had over 1200 exhibitors this year. The congress attracted approximately 3500 attendees, with around 3000 lectures and presentations.

The EOS Conference on Manufacturing of Optical Systems, chaired by Dr. Oliver Fähnle (Fisba Optik AG, Switzerland) and Sven Schröder (Fraunhofer IOF, Germany), included industrial posters for the first time, bridging academic research with industrial development. Companies were entitled to present their key technology competences during the whole time of the conference in the conference room. The format proved highly appealing to companies and these sessions will again be organized in future EOS Topical Meetings. Companies may already reserve a place for their posters at the EOSAM 2018 in Delft, The Netherlands, www.myeos.org/events/eosam2018. Joint sessions were organized in co-operation with the SPIE Optical Metrology Conference on high-precision measurement of optical components and systems.

The conferences on Light Engineering and Optofluidics both ran for 2 days. Optofluidics was chaired by Prof. Demetri Psaltis (École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, EPFL, Switzerland), and Dr. Andreas Vasdekis (University of Idaho, USA), and Light Engineering by Prof. Wilbert Ijzerman (Philips Lighting, The Netherlands), Prof. Willem Vos (University of Twente, The Netherlands) and Prof. Paul Urbach (TU Delft, The Netherlands). The Optofluidics conference included a plenary speech on Wednesday, June 28, by Prof. Demetri Psaltis on Optofluidics in solar energy harvesting.

Manufacturing of Optical Systems Conference included an industrial poster session within the conference room for the first time.

Changes in the EOS Board and administration

Alongside the congress and trade fair, the EOS held its internal meetings in Munich, as well as the Annual General Assembly, where the situation and activities of the society were reported to members of the EOS.

The Scientific Advisory Committee (SAC) elected a new Chair and Deputy Chair amongst its members. The newly elected SAC Chair is Prof. Thomas Südmeyer (representative of the SSOM – Swiss Society for Optics and Microscopy), and the Deputy Chair is Manuel Filipe Costa (representative of the Portuguese Society for the Development of Optics and Photonics). The EOS Board warmly thanks the previous SAC Chair Prof. Valentin Vlad for his extensive work and strong involvement with the EOS.

Prof. Thomas Südmeyer, newly elected SAC Chair

Prof. Manuel Filipe Costa, newly elected SAC Deputy Chair

After having been the EOS Executive Director during the last 4 years, a period which included a successful and very busy start-up phase of the EOS-Oy, the service company of the EOS, Prof. Jyrki Saarinen decided to withdraw from this position. The Board and members present in the General Assembly expressed their gratitude for the accomplishments of Jyrki for the EOS. The Board elected Ms. Elina Koistinen as the next Executive Director. Mrs. Koistinen has been working for the EOS-Oy for the past 4 years.

A few days after the EOS meetings in Munich, EOS President Jürgen Jahns announced he was to step down. Professor Jahns has been president for the last 2 years having taking over prematurely from the previous president Seppo Honkanen, who was too busy professionally to be able to end his term. An additional Board meeting was called on July 26, to appoint a new president. Professor Paul Urbach, who was president from 2012 to 2014, was unanimously voted by the Board to become President for the remainder of the present term (which ends in October 2018). The Board thanks Professor Jahns for all his efforts for the EOS.