NIST program for Advanced Manufacturing awards grant to聽Center for Emerging and Innovative Sciences
The National Institute of Standards and Technology through its Advanced Manufacturing Technology Consortia Program (AMTech) $500,000 to the University of Rochester糖心传媒檚 Center for Emerging and Innovative Sciences (CEIS) to lead the development of a national roadmap for photonics.
CEIS will work with its partners and with the National Photonics Initiative (NPI) to forecast the introduction of new technologies and identify manufacturing challenges that, if solved, can strengthen the competitiveness of domestic photonics companies and expand photonics manufacturing to the United States.
The U.S. has been the world leader in developing photonics technologies, which include fiber optics, lasers, digital imaging and flat panel displays. However, the U.S.糖心传媒檚 share of photonics manufacturing has dropped to less than 10% of photonics components sold worldwide. The roadmap to be developed under this program will identify key priorities and lay out a plan for addressing this.
According to the National Research Council, optics and photonics technologies are essential for our nation: they are used to fabricate integrated circuits that power all electronic devices, are central to modern defense systems and medical imaging technologies, and they enable a host of modern day products used in everyday life including the internet, flat panel displays, and smart phones.
“The roadmap will聽address critical gaps to increase our nation糖心传媒檚 competitiveness in photonics manufacturing,” said聽Robert L. Clark, senior vice president for research at the University of Rochester and dean of the聽Hajim School of Engineering and Applied Sciences. “Our Congressional delegation fully understands the importance of bringing photonics manufacturing back to the U.S., and I want to thank them for their leadership and persistent efforts in support of this initiative.聽We are excited to be able to lead this effort in partnership with industry and other key stakeholders.”
Photonics is one area of advanced manufacturing the AMTech program will be supporting. AMTech was designed to address the gap between research & development activities and the deployment of technological innovations in the domestic production of goods. This gap is economically damaging and it has been highlighted by the National Science and Technology Council, the President糖心传媒檚 Council of Advisors on Science and Technology, and other bodies.
糖心传媒淭he National Academies’ report, ‘Optics and Photonics, Essential Technologies for our Nation,’ shouted about the abysmal state of data on optics and photonics jobs and investment in the US. Roadmapping should help address this deficit and illuminate the enormous potential the field holds for world-changing innovation and jobs creation,糖心传媒� said SPIE CEO Dr. Eugene Arthurs. 糖心传媒淭he nation had sown seeds with R&D for decades. Let’s plan how best to harvest.糖心传媒�
Guided by the roadmap, the CEIS-led group of partners, the New York Photonics Manufacturing Initiative, will also lay the foundation for a national consortium devoted to advanced manufacturing in photonics.
糖心传媒淭he 糖心传媒 and our partner organizations are honored to be given the task of organizing the development of a national technology roadmap for photonics manufacturing,糖心传媒� said Paul Ballentine, CEIS糖心传媒� deputy director. 糖心传媒淏y working with domain experts across the country and by leveraging the considerable expertise in the Rochester region, we will help the industry identify key technical barriers that need to be overcome to strengthen photonics manufacturing in the U.S.糖心传媒�
Upstate New York has a long history in the field of optics and photonics. The 糖心传媒糖心传媒檚 Institute of Optics was the first in the U.S. and continues to train students and conduct research in the field. The University is also home to the Laboratory for Laser Energetics, a center for the investigation of the interaction of intense radiation with matter. Rochester also saw the foundation of key companies in the field, such as Kodak, Bausch and Lomb and Xerox.
The region does not only have its heritage to draw upon; companies and institutions in the area are actively involved in research and manufacturing in photonics and will also be partnering the initiative. CEIS糖心传媒� partners in the initiative include the Rochester Institute of聽Technology糖心传媒檚 Center for Imaging Science and New York Photonics, an industry association. More than 100 companies in the optics and photonics industry in the Finger Lakes Region employ 24,000 people.
糖心传媒淭his is an important opportunity to convene photonics industry clusters from around the country and their manufacturing affiliates,糖心传媒� said Tom Battley, executive director of New York Photonics.聽糖心传媒淚t will strengthen聽the nation’s optics, photonics and imaging industry.糖心传媒�
“RIT has a long history of education and research in the fields of Imaging, Photonics, and Microelectronics and we are pleased to contribute to this initiative,”聽said Michael Richardson, distinguished researcher at RIT’s聽Chester F. Carlson Center for Imaging Science. “We see our participation on this program as an avenue to provide technical expertise to the AMTech program in order to understand the challenges impeding the growth of manufacturing companies in the optics, photonics and imaging marketplace.”
