LEOS TECHNICAL AFFAIRS
Under the Vice President, Technical Affairs, 18 Technical Committees have been set up to understand and represent key areas of interest to the IEEE-LEOS community. These Committees provide advice and assistance to the officers and Board of Governors in matters which impact publications, meetings, workshops, and cooperative activities with other Societies and Professional associations. Dr. Nan Jokerst, the current Vice President of Technical Affairs, has said “Optics and photonics are foundation technologies for critical economic sectors such as communications and security, and are being explored for rapidly emerging applications such as nanoengineering and biophotonics. A key goal of Technical Affairs in LEOS is to nurture innovation and application in areas of ongoing strength, as well as to position LEOS for optimal impact in emerging areas.” Below are listed the existing LEOS technical committees, a list of some of their areas of interest, and the names of the committee chairs.

Displays - active-matrix liquid-crystal displays (AMLCD), organic and inorganic (EL) electroluminescent displays; plasma display panels (PDP); vacuum fluorescent displays (VFD); and field-emission displays (LEOS is one of the co-sponsors of the new Display journal). Chair - Arokia Nathan, University of Waterloo, anathan@uwaterloo.ca

Electro-Optical Sensors & Systems - remote and in-situ sensors using lasers and electro-optics, compact laser spectral absorption sensors, fiber sensors, opto-chemical sensors, systems on chip, display systems, biomedical information systems, optical systems for enhanced computing, and image acquisition and enhancement sensors. Chair - Kazuyoshi Itoh, Osaka University, itoh@ap.eng.osaka-u.ac.jp

Integrated Optics & Optoelectronics - novel devices and integration methods (hybrid as well as monolithic), III-V semiconductor devices, photonic-band-gap structure devices, micro-disk structures, and MOEMS. Chair - Yu-Hwa Lo, University of California - San Diego, ylo@ucsd.edu

Lasers in Medicine & Biology - bioimaging, biosensors/assays, contrast agents, multicolor probes, biomolecular mechanisms and functions, biomolecular structures, advanced medical devices, biocomputers, optical limiters, high-density data storage (3D memories). Chair - Ramesh Shori, UCLA, rshori@ee.ucla.edu

Microwave Photonics – distribution and control of microwave and millimeter-wave signals by optical-fiber links, antenna remoting, fiber radio, optical control of phased-array systems, photonic-assisted microwave signal processing, photonic analog-to-digital conversion, and optoelectronic measurements of high-speed electronic devices, circuits, and instrumentation. Chair - Paul Juodawlkis, MIT Lincoln Laboratory, juodawlkis@ll.mit.edu

Nanophotonics - atom-photon interactions in the optical near-field and their potential applications for atom-trapping and manipulation experiments, microscopy and imaging with sub-wavelength resolution, linear and nonlinear spectroscopy of nanostructures, nanocavities and nanoapertures, light in confined structures, photonic bandgap (PBG) structures, quantum dots, and plasmon optics. Chair - Selim Unlu, Boston University, selim@bu.edu

Nonlinear Optics - molecular synthesis and engineering; nonlinear spectroscopy and characterization; frequency conversion; stimulated scattering; solitons; self-focusing and defocusing; and optical switching, modulation, limiting, computing, storage, and communication. Chair - Gaetano Assanto, University Degli Studi Roma Tre, assanto@ele.uniroma3.it

Optical Communications - semiconductor laser sources, semiconductor photodiodes, erbium-doped fiber amplifiers (EDFA), wavelength-division multiplexing(WDM) techniques, terrestrial and undersea systems, cable television optical-fiber subsystems for efficiently transporting traditional analog television signals, and free-space optics, Chair - Sheryl Woodward, AT&T
Labs – Research, slwoodward@ieee.org.

Optical Fiber & Planar Waveguide Technology - glasses based on silica and compound glasses, electro-optic materials such as LiNbO3, and thin films of silica on silicon and compound semiconductors, Erbium-doped fiber amplifiers (EDFAs), Raman amplifiers, soliton transmission systems, arrayed-waveguide gratings ( AWGs), channel multiplexers, demultiplexers, optical switches, dispersion compensators, electrically activated Optical Cross Connects, and hybrid optoelectronic circuits. Chair - Christi Madsen, Texas A&M University, cmadsen@ee.tamu.edu

Optical Interconnects & Processing Systems - integrated circuits containing emitters, detectors and electronic logic, micro-mirror devices, or microoptoelectromechanical systems (MOEMS), smart pixel arrays, and ultrafast optical logic. Chair - Yeshaiahu Fainman, UCSD, fainman@ecepops.ucsd.edu

Optical Networks & Systems - optical switches, optical routers, dense wavelength-division multiplexing (DWDM), and high-speed, high-capacity nationwide optical networks. Chair - Keren Bergman, Columbia University, bergman@ee.columbia.edu

Optoelectronic Materials & Processing - synthesis, growth, processing, and characterization of semiconductor materials for passive and active optoelectronic and photonic applications, novel materials and structures and their growth methods, and new processing technologies. Chair - Sanjay Krishna, University of New Mexico, skrishna@chtm.unm.edu

Optoelectronic Packaging, Manufacturing & Reliability - package design, component and fiber integration, die bonding, flip-chip bonding, chip-scale packaging, wafer bonding, hermetic and non-hermetic bonding/sealing, active alignment, passive alignment, assembly techniques, reliability testing, and wafer-scale testing. Chair - Karen I. Matthews, Corning Incorporated, matthewski@corning.com

Photodetectors & Imaging - discrete and array photodetectors operating in the ultraviolet, visible, near-IR, and long-wavelength IR regions of the spectrum, photodiodes, avalanche photodiodes, photoconductors, and phototransistors. Chair - Leda Lunardi, North Carolina State University, leda@ieee.org

Semiconductor Lasers –ultralow-power vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers (VCSELs), unipolar injection mid-infrared lasers that operate without a p-n junction, blue and ultraviolet lasers made from III-nitride materials, and lasers based on new active materials made from quantum dots that behave as “artificial atoms.” Chair - Kent D. Choquette, University of Illinois, choquett@uiuc.edu

Short Wavelength & Gas Lasers – ArF (193 nm) and KrF (248 nm) excimer lasers, F2 lasers (158 nm), CO2 and copper vapor lasers, and high-order harmonic generation (HHG), photolithography, corneal refractive surgery (PRK, LASIK), stereolithography, semiconductor annealing and laser-based medical procedures. Chair - Katsumi Midorikawa, RIKEN, Laser Technology Laboratory, kmidori@postman.riken.go.jp

Solid State Lasers - current development of new laser materials, tunable lasers, short-pulse-width lasers, diode pumping and ceramic and fiber lasers. Chair - Nils Fernelius, Air Force Research Lab, nils.fernelius@wpafb.af.mil

Ultrafast Optics & Electronics – soliton generation and propagation, high-bandwidth photodetection and modulation, short-pulse mode-locking of semiconductor lasers, amplification of short pulses via semiconductor optical amplifiers, fast all-optical switching, and the investigation of the ultrafast properties of novel materials for devices. Chair - Daniel M. Mittleman, Rice University, daniel@rice.edu

I encourage you to contact these committee chairs if you have any questions about their technical committees. I would like to thank all the members of these committees for the time and effort they provide to help LEOS stay on top of all these emerging technologies. Although the world is changing, the commitment of the LEOS leadership is to find new and better ways to meet the needs and wants of our membership. If you have any comments or suggestions, please contact me at h.s.hinton@ieee.org.