The Enabling Technology of Photonics

The key enabling technology of photonics - a two-way street of basic research and innovation

Photonics is a key enabling technology that drives innovation across multiple areas of societal importance including communications, healthcare, agriculture, and energy. The potential of photonics in achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals is recognized internationally through the annual UNESCO International Day of Light which is held on 16 May, a date commemorating the first demonstration of the laser in 1960. A significant factor in the selection of this date is because the story of the laser illustrates how both basic and applied research have successfully worked together to yield genuine disruptive applications.

This talk will present a general overview of the interplay between basic science and innovation, with examples of how curiosity-driven research has enabled truly transformative technologies, and equally how practical challenges have in turn stimulated fundamental scientific insights. We will also consider some different funding approaches used internationally that attempt to support the full spectrum of research from open-ended discovery to industrial application

Brought to you by the Faculty of Science, Waipapa Taumata Rau University of Auckland, and Te Whai Ao - Dodd Walls Centre.

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Host or Publisher Faculty of Science, University of Auckland