The first Photonics Technology Roadshow of 2015 visited the University of Southampton in March for a special event celebrating the launch of an EPSRC funded project on the manufacturing and application of Chalcogenide glasses including an exhibition of over 40 companies and a programme of technology tutorials.

Attendance numbers beat previous records for a one-day Roadshow event.

Partners within the Chalcogenide Advanced Materials Partnership (ChAMP) conference at Southampton (Heriot-Watt, Exeter, Oxford and Cambridge Universities) were welcomed by Dan Hewak, who leads the ChAMP Partnership. He explained, "Unlike many large research collaborations which hold open days near the end of their project to communicate their results, we wanted to engage with UK universities and companies right from the start of our project, ensuring that what we do is relevant both to our industrial partners and compliments other university research teams and their activities."

The exhibition showcased a broad range of components, instruments and systems, allowing visitors to see the latest technology and meet face-to-face with industry suppliers. Exhibiting companies further supported the event by giving tutorials.

Impressed by the success of the event was Nicholas Wong, President, OSA Student Chapter, Optics and Photonics Society, Optoelectronics Research Centre, University of Southampton. “The Roadshow is very appealing,” he told organisers “particularly because it includes exhibitors from companies whose equipment researchers and graduate students use on a daily basis. Coupled with the industrial tutorials, it provides us with opportunities to discover new ways and tools to enhance our work - a very impressive roadshow indeed.” The Photonics Technology Roadshow visits Scotland on 3rd June and will be held at the new Technology and Innovation Centre at the University of Strathclyde, Glasgow. The conference will follow the theme of “Advances in Photonic Tools and Techniques for the Life Sciences”.

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