Latest updates: 06 July 2022

Optoelectronics Research Centre (ORC), University of Southampton, United Kingdom
Title: Signal Fading in Distributed Acoustic Sensors: Analysis and Mitigation Strategies
Abstract: Signal fading is one of the hallmarks of most distributed acoustic sensor (DAS) systems that plays an adverse role in the fidelity of the strain measurement. There are three processes that give rise to signal fading in DAS systems: phase, polarization, and intensity fading. In this presentation, three main DAS arrangements used to map dynamic strains along optical fibre will be reviewed first. Next, the three fading processes and their effect on each one of these sensing arrangements will be analysed. Finally, different strategies that have been adopted to eliminate signal fading in each sensing arrangements and their effectiveness will be presented. 
Bio: Dr Ali Masoudi is a senior research fellow in the Optoelectronics Research Centre (ORC) at University of Southampton and leads the distributed optical fibre sensing group at the ORC. He received his PhD degree in 2014 for his work on distributed acoustic sensors. After receiving his PhD, Dr Masoudi designed and developed portable DAS units which he subsequently used in several industrial collaborations with entities such as Network Rail, BT, and Carbon trust. The DAS unit has also been used in several interdisciplinary collaborations with other research institutes such as National Physical Laboratory (NPL), the Institute of Sound and Vibration Research (ISVR), and National Oceanography Centre (NOC). So far, he has secured more than £2.5m of research funding as PI/Co-I/Research Co-I from various research councils and industrial partners. He has authored 3 patents and published more than 50 papers in international scientific journals and conferences and has presented his research as an invited and keynote speaker on 5 different occasions

Sunway University, Malaysia
Title: Mode Division Multiplexing:  Additional Degree of Freedom for Future Networks
Abstract: Internet-of-Things is revolutionizing industries and gaining prevalence in our  data-driven society.  To support increasing data capacity requirements, mode division multiplexing is valuable for multiplexing several data channels using orthogonal spatial modes, in conjunction with wavelength and polarization division multiplexing.  The talk elaborates on challenges and opportunities in mode division multiplexing in free space optics, with potential applications in 5GB and Internet-of-Things networks.
Bio: Prof. Ts. Dr. Angela Amphawan received her PhD in optical communications from University of Oxford, UK. She then won the prestigious Fulbright Award to work on optical devices and networks at the Research Laboratory of Electronics and MIT Media Lab, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA. She currently leads the Photonics Laboratory at Sunway University. Before joining Sunway University, she was Deputy Vice Chancellor of University Malaysia of Computer Science & Engineering, and previously, Director of the Optical Technology Research Laboratory at Universiti Utara Malaysia. Prior to that, she lectured at Multimedia University and served as Computing Officer at University of Oxford, UK. She is currently on the National 5G Task Force for development of 5G infrastructure. She also serves on the IEEE Joint Sensor and Nanotechnology Councils. In addition, she is on the Editorial Board of the APL Photonics Journal under the American Institute of Physics and several other international journals. In addition, she has served as Co-Chair, Technical Program Committee and International Scientific Committee for numerous international conferences. She has given keynote addresses at several Fulbright and IEEE events. She has won the International Academic Award by the Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia, several Excellent Service Awards, Teaching Awards, Best Paper Awards and exhibition medals. She is also a recipient of the distinguished Telekom Malaysia scholarship. Her research has been funded by the Fulbright Foundation, Telekom Malaysia and Ministry of Higher Education.

Shizuoka University, Japan
Title: Deep-UV plasmonics for high-sensitive autofluorescence imaging
Abstract: Surface plasmon resonance in deep-ultraviolet spectral region is significant attention in the analysis of organic and biomolecules by applying it to biosensors, surface-enhanced Raman scattering, fluorescence enhancement, and so on. One of the features of deep-ultraviolet light is the autofluorescence excitation of biological molecules in cells. We have demonstrated the high-sensitive autofluorescence imaging of living yeast cells using surface plasmon resonance in deep-ultraviolet. In my presentation, I will present science of deep-UV plasmonics and our recent research results of enhanced fluorescence imaging.
Bio: Dr. Atsushi Ono received the B.S., M.S., and Ph.D. degrees in applied physics from Osaka University, Osaka, Japan, in 2001, 2003, and 2006, respectively. In 2006, he joined RIKEN as the special postdoctoral researcher. Since 2009, he has been an assistant professor of tenure track in the Division of Global Research Leaders, Shizuoka University. In 2013, he was appointed Associate Professor in Engineering Department of Shizuoka University, and he was promoted to full Professor in 2021. He has been focusing on research of near-field optics and plasmonics.

Key Lab of In-Fiber Integrated Optics, Harbin Engineering University, China
Title: Advances in multi-wavelength ultrafast Photonics
Abstract: Multi-wavelength ultrafast lasers play an important role in a variety of applications ranging from optical communications to medical diagnostics and optical sensing. Here, we will report the recent advances in the exploitation of multi-wavelength ultrafast photonics, including physical mechanism, laser device and related nonlinear optical phenomena.
Bio: Bo Guo received his Ph. D. degree in physical electronics from Harbin Institute of Technology in 2015. Currently, he is a Professor at the Key Lab of In-Fiber Integrated Optics of Ministry Education of China, Harbin Engineering University. His research interests include 2D materials photonics, ultrafast optics and ocean optics. He has authored nearly 30 international journal papers, including Laser & Photonics Reviews, 2 ESI Hot Papers/3 Highly-Cited Papers and 2018 Editor-in-Chief Choice Award of Chin. Opt. Lett.. He has long been a peer reviewer for 30 international journals, such as Adv. Opt. Mater./Appl. Phys. Lett. /Opt. Lett., and so on.

Universidad Carlos III de Madrid (UC3M), Spain
Title: Power over fiber in 5G mobile networks and beyond
Abstract: Power over Fiber (PoF) can play a new role in support of 5G networks with optical fronthauling with different types of optical fibers from single mode to multicore fibers with spatial division multiplexing capabilities. Analog Radio over Fiber (ARoF) systems have synergies with PoF that will be explored in dedicated and shared scenarios, showing different tests on ARoF transmission for different modulation formats in compliant with 5G New Radio (NR) . Some results on H2020 BlueSPACE (https://bluespace-5gppp.squarespace.com/news), TEFLON (http://teflon-cm.es/) and 6G-Xtreme will be discussed.
Bio: Carmen Vázquez is Full Professor at Electronics Technology Department of Universidad Carlos III de Madrid (UC3M), Spain. She is leader of Displays and Photonics Applications Group and Head of Master Sc degrees on Photonics Engineering and on Electronics Systems Engineering. She was Vice-President for 4 yrs and Department Head for 3 yrs. She was Visiting Scientist at RLE in Massachusetts Institute of Technology for 1 yr. Her research interest focus on integrated optics and optical communications including: power over fiber, broadband access networks and monitoring techniques, RoF systems, plastic optical fibers, fiber optic sensors and 5G & WDM networks. She is SPIE Fellow and IEEE senior member. She was the president of the Optoelectronics Committee at Spanish Society of Optics. She has published more than 300 scientific publications, more than 90 JCR and holds 8 patents.

British Telecom, United Kingdom
Title: BT’s QKD Field Trials and Applications
Abstract: Quantum key distribution networks are moving from experimental laboratories to field trials following the maturity of QKD as a reliable distribution method of symmetric keys. QKD offers security against any computational or mathematical advance present in the attacks by quantum computers. In this invited talk, BT’s activities on QKD will be presented including practical QKD network field trials. In addition, exploratory projects will be described for future applications in quantum networks.
Bio: Dr. Emilio Hugues Salas received his M.Sc. and Ph.D. degrees from the University of Essex, UK, in 2002 and 2008, respectively. In 2006, during his Ph.D. research, he was employed as a Senior Research Officer and in June 2009, he joined the Optical Communications Research Group at Bangor University, UK, as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow. From 2013 to January 2021, he was employed as a Research Fellow by the University of Bristol, in the High Performance Networks group. Currently, he is a Specialist Research Professional working for British Telecom (BT) where he is involved in the Innovate UK AIRQKD and the Quantum Data Centre of the Future projects. He also contributes to other activities aiming at the design of experimental quantum networks. Dr. Emilio Hugues Salas is a Full College Member of the UK EPSRC Peer Review Associate College and he is an Associate Editor of the IEEE/OSA Journal of Lightwave Technology. He is a Senior Member of the Optica (formerly OSA).

University of Southampton, United Kingdom
Title: Recent Developments in Hollow-core optical Fiber research
Abstract: The past few years have witnessed rapid improvements in the performance of hollow-core optical fibers culminating in their attenuation being reduced to 0.174 dB/km, on par with solid-core single mode fibers. Theoretical analysis predicts the possibility of further loss reduction, which when combined with their unique properties of low latency, wide bandwidth, ultralow optical nonlinearity and low environmental sensitivity would bring a revolution to many application fields from telecoms to sensing. In this talk, I will review our recent work in hollow-core optical fiber technology and discuss potential developments that lie ahead.
Bio: Dr Eric Numkam Fokoua is a Royal Academy of Engineering Research Fellow at the Optoelectronics Research Centre, University of Southampton. He has worked for more than a decade on the development of low-loss hollow-core optical fibre technology for applications ranging from telecoms to sensing, with a particular focus on developing theoretical models for light propagation in these fibers. Eric has published over 180 articles with 50+ in peer-reviewed journals. His work on loss analysis and fundamental propagation effects in hollow-core fibers has won him many awards including the Tingye Li innovation award in 2019.

Abdullah Gul University, Turkey
Title: Nanocrystals for superior optoelectronics
Abstract: Quantum dots are important materials to use for a variety of applications, from light-emitting diodes and solar cells to tissue imaging and photodynamic therapy, due to their narrow emission spectral width, high quantum yield, high extinction coefficient, broad absorption band, and long-term photostability.
This talk will focus on the synthesis of smart nanocrystal emitters along with their applications in photoluminescence and electroluminescence based optoelectronic devices.
Bio: Prof. Evren Mutlugün received the B.Sc degree in Physics from Middle East Technical University in 2005. He got his M.Sc. and Ph.D. degrees, both from Bilkent University Physics Department in 2007 and 2012 respectively. Prior to joining Abdullah Gül University/Turkey as a faculty of Electrical-Electronics Engineering in 2014, he worked as a National Research Foundation Competitive Research Programme (NRF-CRP) research fellow at Nanyang Technological University, between 2012 and 2014. Since 2015, he is acting as the vice dean of School of Engineering at Abdullah Gul University. His research focuses on the colloidal quantum dot-based exciton harvesting systems for novel optoelectronic applications. He is the recipient of the 2014 BAGEP Science Academy Young Scientist Award, 2017 Turkish Academy of Sciences Outstanding Young Scientist Award, 2019 Young Scientist Award of the Science Heroes Association, and has co-authored numerous conference papers and more than 60 SCI journals in high rank journals in the field

FEMTO-ST Institute, France
Title: Progress in applying machine learning techniques in nonlinear fibre optics
Abstract: Recent years have seen a number of important developments applying the powerful techniques of machine learning in nonlinear and ultrafast optics. This talk will review in particular our own work applying advanced deep learning and regression techniques to several different areas of nonlinear fibre optics: the identification of temporal rogue wave events from only spectral measurements; the automatic classification of soliton solutions in modulation instability; the use of deep learning for model-free description of nonlinear Schrödinger equation and supercontinuum dynamics; the use of sparse regression for data-driven discovery of underlying physics models in four wave mixing. The aim is to provide an accessible overview of the field for a broad audience.
Bio: John Dudley is Professor of Physics at the CNRS Research Institute FEMTO-ST in Besancon, France. His research covers broad areas of optical science and he has published over 500 contributions in journals & conference proceedings and delivered over 120 invited talks at major conferences. He served as the President of the European Physical Society for a two year term from April 2013- March 2015. In 2009, he initiated and Chaired the International Year of Light & Light-based Technologies 2015 and he currently chairs the follow-up International Day of Light. He was awarded the Harold E. Edgerton Award of SPIE for 2019, and the OSA R. W. Wood Prize for 2020, recognizing his contributions to ultrashort pulse measurements, nonlinear fibre optics, and supercontinuum generation. He has won a number of other prizes and distinctions both for his research and his commitment to outreach and public engagement, and was recently made an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Society of New Zealand.

University of Seoul, South Korea
Title: Ultrafast mode-locked fiber lasers incorporating saturable absorbers based on 2-D materials
Abstract: In this presentation, our recent investigation results on various 2-D materials as effective saturable absorption media for the generation of femtosecond pulses from fiber lasers, is reviewed. This talk is focused on topological insulators, transition metal dichalcogenides, and MXenes.
Bio: Ju Han Lee received the B.S. and M.S. degrees in electronics engineering from Seoul National University, Seoul, South Korea, in 1995 and 1998, respectively, and the Ph.D. degree from the Optoelectronics Research Centre, University of Southampton, Southampton, U.K., in 2003. He was a senior member of the technical staff with the Korea Institute of Science and Technology from 2004 to 2007. He was a Research Fellow with the University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan, from 2004 to 2005. He was a visiting scholar to Institute for Photonics and Advanced Sensing (IPAS), University of Adelaide, Australia from 2013 to 2014. Since 2007, he is Professor with the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Seoul, South Korea. His research interests include ultrafast fiber lasers, nonlinear fiber optics, all-optical signal processing, microwave photonics, and optical communications. He is an author or coauthor of more than 190 international journals and 170 technical conference papers. He is a Vice President of Optical Society of Korea (OSK). He is a Senior Member of the IEEE Photonics Society.

Nicolaus Copernicus University, Poland
Title: Optoelectronics goes flat: tailoring low-dimensional structures for next-generation technologies
Abstract: Materials have always been the driving force behind developments of societal importance. Their crucial impact is reflected in the names of the epochs of humankind’s history chosen according to the materials that were responsible for the change, e.g., the Stone or the Bronze age. In recent years, low-dimensional materials offered a plethora of exciting properties of transformative character. While initially, carbon-based 2D materials in the form of graphene were important, a large variety of different materials were synthesized soon after. Our ability to tune their compositions and arrangements provides unprecedented opportunities from an electrical, thermal, mechanical or optical perspective.
With their tunable properties, low-dimensional nanostructures provide a versatile playground for nanoscale optoelectronics. Effects of
interest are the broadband optical absorption with applications to photovoltaics, the transduction or the light emission from microwave to ultraviolet frequencies. In particular, the incorporation of defect sites enables a tuning knob to tailor the optical response described in terms of absorption spectra or dipole selection rules. In this talk, we will exploit a quantum-mechanical tight-binding formalism to explore the tuning capabilities introduced with atomic defects on the optoelectronic properties of selected one- and two-dimensional materials.
Bio: Karolina Slowik is an associate professor and the head of the Quantum Nanophotonics Theory group at the Nicolaus Copernicus University in  Toruń (NCU), Poland. Her research is focused on light-matter interactions in exotic scenarios exploiting 2D materials, plasmonic nanoparticles or optically dressed media.

The University of Sidney, Australia
Title: Observation of novel soliton families in a fibre laser
Abstract: We recently reported experiments with a fibre laser in which the dispersion is fully programmable. Using this laser we were able to observe solitons with pure, even order dispersion of up to 10^th order. Using mixed dispersion of order up to 18, we also observed solitons consisting of up to five equally spaced frequency components. These frequency components are coherent beat in the time domain, leading to a pulse envelope of approximately 10 ps in duration that is multiplying a complex carrier. I will discuss the properties of these solitons and their possible applications.
Bio: Martijn de Sterke received the Ingenieur degree from the University of Delft in the Netherlands and a PhD from the University of Rochester. After postdoctoral work at the University of Toronto he joined the University of Sydney where he is now a Professor in Physics. His research area is optics and photonics with more recent work in atmospheric water capture and the dynamics of light sails.

University of Glasgow, United Kingdom
Title: Electro-optical sampling of single-cycle THz fields with single-photon detectors
Abstract: Terahertz time-domain spectroscopy (THz-TDS) relies on electro-optic sampling, a form of time-resolved polarimetry, to measure the THz electric field. Traditionally, a balanced detection scheme relies on measuring the phase shift induced by the birefringent interaction with the THz radiation using photodiodes, where sensitivity is limited by the shot-noise of the optical probe. Here, we report on the first step in demonstrating that THz electric fields can be measured with single-photon detectors using squeezed vacuum as the optical probe.
Bio: Matteo Clerici is a Senior Lecturer at the University of Glasgow since 2019. He leads the Ultrafast Nonlinear Optics group (UNO), a team of 6 researchers at the School of Engineering. His research focuses on photonics, and mainly on the study and application of nonlinear light-matter interaction in the classical and quantum domain.

Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia, Malaysia
Title: Green Communication & Devices Towards a Future of WDM-POF Network with User and Environmentally Friendly
Abstract: Polymer Optical Fibers (POFs) replace traditional communication media such as copper and glass step by step within short distance communication systems, mostly because of their cost-effectiveness and easy handling. POFs are used in various fields of optical communication, e.g. the automotive sector or in-house communication. The current “state of the art” are single mode communication systems. These systems use only one wavelength for communication, which limits the bandwidth. For future scenarios, this traditional technology is the bottleneck of bandwidth (e.g. for HDTV with IP-TV).  One solution to surpass this limitation is to use more than one wavelength over one single fiber, a technique known as WDM (wavelength division multiplexing). This multiplexing technology requires two more technical key elements: a multiplexer, which combines the multi-wavelengths signals into one fiber and a demultiplexer at the end of the network to separate the colored signals. This presentation discusses the overall POF technology for small world communication from device fabrication, device types, configurations and applications. Our solution supports the basis of a wavelength division multiplex (WDM) system in the visible spectrum. Discussion will focus on the technologies that have been developed in our laboratory concerning user friendly approach, ease of maintenance, safety and high-performance solution.
Bio: Mohammad Syuhaimi Ab-Rahman began his career at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), in mid-2007 as a lecturer and appointed as a senior lecturer in early 2008. In January 2010, he was appointed as Associate Professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering, Electronics and Systems. His specialization is in the field of electronic engineering specifically in optical communication system. He has been involved in many impact researches, academic writing, teaching, supervision, leadership positions, registered prototype and innovation, policy development and community services. He was promoted to full Professor at the age of 33 years old; which is very young and rare in Malaysia. This has demonstrated his outstanding personality and contribution to the field of science and technology. He was Deputy Dean Academic in Faculty of Engineering and Built Environment before been promoted to Director of Alumni Relation Center, Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia. He is also professional engineer registered under Board of Engineering Malaysia. He has also been selected as on of the Malaysia’s Top Research Scientists 2021.
To date, he has produced more than 13 PhD graduates, 16 Master of Science students, 301 journal articles, 199 proceeding, 30 books, 12 chapter in book. 24 awards/medals for science and technology exhibitions, 6 granted research patents, lead more than 10 impact research with cumulative MYR 12 million, head more than 5 impact community, held more than 10 administration positions, and involved in more than 5 important committees (e.g., Program Accreditation Evaluation Panel for Washington Accord EAC & ETAC, Malaysia Academic of Science).​ He was giving the keynote speech in several reputable conferences such as 2020 5th International Seminar on Computer Technology, Mechanical and Electrical Engineering (ISCME 2020), 2019 4th International Conference on Information Science, Computer Technology and Transportation (ISCTT 2019), 2020 World Conference of Applied Science, Engineering and Technology (2020 WCASET) and many more.
During his tenure at UKM, he was appointed as the appraiser grants Industrial Grant Scheme (IGS) and was involved in giving advice to the Ministry of Health in the assessment of the use of Long-Range Acoustic Device (LRAD) before they are brought into Malaysia. He is also active in giving motivational talks to university students as well as speakers for Malaysia Ministry of Higher Education (MOHE) to guide the new lecturers/researchers in conducting research.

Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering, Universiti Putra Malaysia, Malaysia
Title: Laser-Induced Backscattering Imaging for Quality Evaluation of Food and Agricultural Products
Abstract: Almost half of all the fruits and vegetables produced are wasted globally due to inefficient postharvest handling. Baseline projections indicated that the total global consumption of fruits and vegetables will nearly double from 2010 to 2050. However, the average per capita availability will only increase by 40%. Thus, reducing losses is one of the leading global strategies for achieving sustainable food security. While increasing cultivation areas seems unrealistic, it is sensible to aim at increasing production yield by improving the current postharvest handling. This paper presents an overview of laser-induced backscattering imaging (LLBI) for rapid and non-destructive quality evaluation of agricultural products. The principles and concept of LLBI techniques are highlighted and the mechanism applied is discussed. The case studies of the application of LLBI techniques are also presented. LLBI offers  promising solution and innovations with sophisticated technology that promotes efficient and better productivity. It promotes automation element in the postharvest handling, in-line with industrial revolutions 4.0 that leads to an improvement in the production chain and indirectly increase production efficiency.
Bio: Ir. Dr. Norhashila Hashim is currently an associate professor and the Head of Department at the Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Universiti Putra Malaysia (UPM). She has authored more than 100 scientific publications including high impact factor journals, proceeding papers, book chapters, etc. Her publications reflect her research interest in postharvest engineering, agricultural process engineering and precision agriculture. She is the pioneering Chief Editor of the Journal of Agricultural and Food Engineering. She was awarded the Regional Professorial Chair Grants by Southeast Asian Regional Center for Graduate Study and Research in Agriculture (SEARCA) for academic year 2019/2020.

National Laboratory of Atomic, Molecular and Optical Physics (FAMO), Poland
Title: Encoding optical qubits in time domain
Abstract: There is a wide range of applications where methods of single photon generation, control and detection are useful. Quantum communication benefits from the ability to generate single wave packets and entanglement. In order to make this protocols useful their range and efficiency must be improved.  During my talk I will present the main results and goals related to implementation of optical quantum communication links at Nicoalus Copernicus University in Torun.
Bio: Piotr Kolenderski received his MSc (2006) and PhD (2010) degrees from Nicolaus Copernicus University in Torun, Poland. In year 2010-2013 he worked as a postdoc at Institute for Quantum Computing, Waterloo, Canada in a group Quantum Photonics Laboratory led by prof. Thomas Jennewein. Since 2013 Piotr Kolenderski is a principal investigator at Single Photon Applications Laboratory at Nicolaus Copernicus University in Torun. He works on quantum optics, satellite quantum and optical communication and photon-matter interaction.

Monash University, Malaysia
Title: Visible Light Communication System – Potentials and Selected Research Works
Abstract: Optical Wireless Communication (OWC) can be an alternative or complementary wireless technology to Radio Frequency (RF) based communication, since it has unlimited bandwidth. One type of OWC is Visible Light Communication (VLC) that uses the spectrum from 380nm to 750nm. By using existing Light Emitting Diode (LED) based illumination infrastructure, VLC can be used for free with limited interference and eavesdropping. In this presentation, a brief introduction will be provided to OWC and VLC and their potential uses will be explored. In addition, the challenges faced in implementing these technologies will be highlighted. After that, some selected glimpses of research works conducted in this area at Monash University will be explained. These include correlated colour temperature control for hybrid Wavelength Division Multiplexed (WDM) VLC, Coarse WDM (CWDM) implementation and hybrid Radio over Fiber (RoF) VLC network.”
Bio: Rajendran Parthiban completed his Bachelor of Engineering with first class honours in 1997, and his PhD in optical networks in 2004 from the University of Melbourne, Australia. In 2004, he joined the ARC Special Research Centre for Ultra-Broadband Information Networks (CUBIN) at the University of Melbourne. In CUBIN, he conducted research in developing new and cost- effective optical network architectures for carrying future Internet traffic. He joined as a lecturer at the School of Engineering in Monash University Malaysia in 2006. He was a Professor at the same school when he left it in July 2022. He was also the Deputy Head of School (Education) of the School of Engineering from August 2010 to July 2022. He is now a Professor in the Faculty of Engineering in Monash University Australia and holds the Associate Dean (Education) role in the same Faculty. He has experience in teaching seven undergraduate and two postgraduate subjects. He has achieved exceptional unit evaluation scores for subjects taught. His research interests are in optical networks, visible light communications, vehicular communication, internet of things and engineering education. He has published over 40 journal articles (with a vast majority of them in ISI Q1) and 50 conference papers. He obtained external grants worth over RM 2 million. Fourteen PhD and two Master students have completed their studies under his supervision. He is a member of Engineers Australia (EA) and a senior member of Optica and Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineering (IEEE).

University of Sydney, Australia
Title: All-fibre Wavefront Sensors using Photonic Lanterns
Abstract: Photonic lanterns are low-loss mode convertors easily integrated with optical fibre technologies. Although a simple intensity image of the point spread function (PSF) does not contain the necessary information to reconstruct the wavefront, the combination of modes excited within a MM fibre is a function of both the phase and the amplitude of the incoming light. Hence if the power in each mode of the fibre is known, it should be possible to infer the complex wavefront of an injected PSF. We will present a brief background on photonic lantern technology and the proof of concept of a focal plane low-order wavefront sensors based on photonic lanterns and deep learning. We also demonstrated image plane PSF reconstruction using a photonic lantern on a 8m diameter telescope.
Bio: Sergio Leon-Saval is an Associate Professor at the School of Physics in the University of Sydney where he is now Director of the Sydney Astrophotonics Instrumentation Laboratory (SAIL), and Deputy Director of the Institute of Photonics and Optical Science (IPOS). A/Prof Leon-Saval has more than 16 years of experience in the research area of photonics. He has made breakthrough contributions in the field of specialty optical fibres, Astrophotonics and optical instrumentation systems. He has published over 90 international refereed journals and more than 160 conference papers (> 20 invited talks) since 2004 with over 7900 citations (h-44). A/Prof Leon-Saval has been a member of technical program and management committees on more than 10 international optics conferences. He is currently Senior Member of the Optical Society of America (OSA), and an elected Councillor Member of the Australian-New Zealand Optical Society (ANZOS) Board.

Google LLC
Title: (To be updated)
Abstract:(To be updated)
Bio: (To be updated)

University of Warwick, United Kingdom
Title: Impact of equalization enhanced phase noise in long-haul EDFA-amplified optical fiber communication systems
Abstract: In digital signal processing (DSP) based long-haul coherent optical communication systems, an effect of equalization enhanced phase noise (EEPN) occurs due to the interplay between laser phase noise and electronic dispersion compensation (EDC) module. It will significantly degrade the performance of uncompensated long-haul coherent optical fibre communication systems. Distortions from equalization enhanced phase noise are more severe for systems with larger transmission bandwidths, higher-order modulation formats and longer transmission distances. In this work, the performance and the modelling of long-haul optical fibre communication systems are discussed taking into account both equalization enhanced phase noise and fibre nonlinearities.
Bio: Tianhua Xu received his PhD degree in School of Information and Communication Technology, at Royal Institute of Technology, Sweden, 2012. His research interests include optical fiber communication, optical fiber sensing, optical networking, as well as machine learning and digital signal processing based compensation of signal distortions. He has published over 100 international journal and conference papers. He has been the technical program committee (TPC) co-chair/member of over 20 IEEE conferences, e.g. GLOBECOM, ICC etc., and the Chair of Optics in Digital Systems Technical Group in Optical Society of America.

Monash University, Malaysia
Title: Light Metrology and Spectral Engineering – two tandem domains in Intelligent Lighting
Abstract:As research reveals the physiological impact of light on all living things, measurement of daily light exposure of humans and plants involving spectral information is assuming greater importance. An IOT-integrated mini spectral sensor with cosine directional response, large dynamic range and accurate spectral reconstruction is necessary to facilitate ambulatory and multi-point spectral measurements. We demonstrate our recent work both in the study of miniaturised spectral sensing devices for metrology of light, and its role in developing closed-loop control over multichannel luminaires designed for spectral engineering. Together, the technologies transform the paradigm of intelligent lighting to deliver extraordinary impact.
Bio: Vineetha Kalavally received the B.Tech in Electrical and Electronics Engineering from Calicut University, India, M.Sc in Radio Communications and High Frequency Engineering, University of Leeds, UK and Ph.D. degree from Monash University, Australia. She is currently an Associate Professor with the Electrical and Computer Systems Engineering department at the School of Engineering, Monash University Malaysia, where she leads the Intelligent Lighting Laboratory. Vineetha Kalavally is the director of Photobiology and Photochemistry Division (Div 6) of the International Commission on Illumination’s (CIE) Malaysian chapter and a Chartered Engineer (CENG, IET). Her research interests include diverse applications of solid-state lighting, visual and non-visual quality of light, wearable light sensors as well as visible light communication.

inLAZER Dynamics Sdn Bhd, Malaysia
Title:Principle and Applications of Tapered Optical Fiber-Based Biosensors
Abstract: Optical fiber-based biosensors are sensors derived from optical fibers that can assess biological species such as DNA, proteins and cells based on changes in quantifiable optical properties. These sensors offer exceptional efficiency, accuracy and practicality that makes them a promising alternative to conventional immunological methods. Tapered optical fiber-based sensors are riding today’s trend-wave in optical sensor transducer designs, promoting seamless sensing system solutions with enhanced sensitivity and selectivity. While the uniform cylindrical structure of an optical fiber is intended to propagate light with minimal loss, the tapering process allows the exposure and interaction of evanescent waves with the external medium which create the basic sensing principle of tapered optical fiber-based sensors. This phenomenon can be measured using various optical transduction mechanisms such as refractive index, absorption, transmission, fluorescence and surface plasmon resonance. In recent research studies, tapered optical fiber has been implemented in various bio-sensing systems and yielding good sensing performance. 

This sharing session will focus on the following topics:

• Theoretical concepts of tapered optical fiber-based sensors
• Fabrication of tapered optical fiber
• Surface functionalization of biorecognition molecules to promote selectivity
• Enhancement of sensing performance using nanomaterials
• Applications of tapered optical fiber-based sensor
• Advantages and disadvantages of tapered optical fiber-based sensors

Bio: Yasmin Mustapha Kamil received her bachelor’s degree in Biomedical Sciences (Hons) from Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia in 2012 and her doctorate degree in Biomedical Engineering from Universiti Putra Malaysia in 2019. During her final year of PhD, she partnered up with her co-supervisor and another peer to form a start-up company that specializes in providing fiber optic-based laser solutions. This company is called inLAZER Dynamics Sdn Bhd. Today, she is the CEO of the company while continuing her post-doctoral studies at Universiti Putra Malaysia.

Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology (TUAT), Japan
Title: Distributed and multipoint fiber optic sensors for structural health monitoring and medical use
Abstract: Distributed and multipoint fiber optic sensors can measure various parameters distributed along a single optical fiber. These fiber optic sensors are especially attractive for the applications to structural health monitoring (SHM) and medical use, because of their thin, flexible, and electromagnetic noise free characteristics as well as their high sensitivity. We demonstrate our recent progress in the study of distributed Brillouin fiber optic temperature or strain sensor for SHM and multi-point multicore fiber optic Bragg grating sensor that can be applied to medical use.
Bio: Yosuke Tanaka received the B.E. degree in electronic engineering and the M.E. and Dr.Eng. degrees in electrical engineering from the University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan, in 1991, 1993, and 1996, respectively. After working for Shizuoka University as a Research Associate, he joined Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, Tokyo, Japan, in 1999, where he is currently an Associate Professor. His research interests include fiber optic sensing and related subjects, including laser-based precision measurement, high-speed optical signal processing, application of optical frequency comb, fiber optic power supply, etc. He is a member of IEEE, OSA, SPIE, the Institute of Electronics, Information, and Communication Engineers (IEICE), Japan Society of Applied Physics (JSAP), and the Optical Society of Japan (OSJ).