Keynote Lectures

Abstract
Advances in photonics are bringing the fundamental nature and properties of the photon under fresh scrutiny.  Numerous developments in the field of optical vortices, plasmonics and nonlinear optics hinge on exotic properties of the wave-front and phase structures of light, down to the level of the photon itself.  As a result we are discovering new fundamental principles, and finding new applications ranging including nanomanipulation, quantum information and all-optical switching. This address highlights some of the latest discoveries.

Abstract
Metal oxide materials are an old class of materials but represent today a revolutionary idea highlighted by the recent demonstrations of invisible transistors leading to worldwide interest in what is called “Transparent Electronics”. Metal oxide conductors/semiconductors exhibit an intriguing combination of high optical transparency, high electron mobility, and in some cases amorphous microstructures. Other advantages include low temperature deposition routes and ultra-smooth surfaces for suppressing interface traps and scattering centers. In this presentation we will present some highlights developed in our laboratory concerning the following topics: (i) n- and p-type TFTs; (ii) Integrated circuits; (iii) Paper electronics (iv) Biosensors (v) Electrochromic devices and (iv) Photodiodes, all of them based on metal oxide conductors and semiconductors.

Abstract

It is well known and established that, for the most popular imaging mode in optical microscopy, i.e. fluorescence, the diffraction barrier does no longer provide an unsurpassable limitation for resolution and localization accuracy. Terms lil “super resolution” and  "optical nanoscopy", coined earlier, have been implemented in real far field optical microscopes taking advantage on the knowledge of the photo physics of the labelling molecules. We  will discuss both targeted and stochastic readout methods using both one- and two-photon  excitation(2PE)/absoprtion, in terms of resolution and localization precision accuracy. Individual molecule localization (IML) implemented within selective plane illumination microscopy (SPIM) will be addressed towards 3D super resolution imaging in thick biological samples including non linear photo-activation. 2PE-STED microscopy will be discussed reporting about the utilization of  a single wavelength (SW) both for 2PE and fluorescence depletion. A variety of architectures will be outlined and further variations on the super resolution theme addressed. (LANIR FP7 Nanoscopy Project (NMP4-SE-2012-280804)).

Abstract
The performance of semiconductor amplifiers and lasers has made them the preferred choice for optical gain on a micro-chip. In the past few years, we have demonstrated that also rare-earth-ion-doped dielectric waveguides show remarkable performance, ranging from a small-signal gain per unit length of 1000 dB/cm, via integrated distributed-feedback lasers with ultra-narrow linewidths in the 1-kHz range, to 1.6 W of output power from a fundamental-mode channel waveguide laser with a slope efficiency exceeding 80%. These performance parameters, combined with the distinct advantages of rare-earth ions, their long emission lifetimes, temporally and spatially stable gain, high-speed amplification into the Tb/s regime, reduced time jitter in ultrafast-pulse generation, and reasonably low heat generation, make these dielectric devices viable alternatives that can easily compete with the common semiconductor devices.

Abstract
Telecommunication systems routinely generate, capture and analyze data at rates exceeding billions of bits per second.  Interestingly, the scale of the problem is similar to that of blood analysis. With approximately 1 billion cells per milliliter of blood, detection of a few abnormal cells in a blood sample translates into a “cell error rate” of 10-12, a value strangely similar to the bit error rate in telecommunication systems.
Motivated by WDM and time-stretch dispersive Fourier transform technologies, a new type of bright-field imaging known as STEAM has demonstrated imaging of cells with record shutter speed and throughput leading to detection of rare breast cancer cells in blood with one-in-a-million sensitivity. A second technique called FIRE is a new approach to fluorescent imaging that is based on wireless communication techniques. FIRE has achieved real-time pixel readout rates one order of magnitude faster than the current gold standard in high-speed fluorescence imaging.
Finally, a new physics-based signal transformation will be introduced and demonstrated. The Anamorphic Stretch Transform enables a digitizer to capture signals that would otherwise be beyond its bandwidth and at the same time, it compresses the digital data volume. This method is inspired by operation of Fovea centralis in the human eye and by anamorphic transformation in visual arts. The Anamorphic Stretch Transform makes it possible to (i) capture high-throughput random signals in real-time and (ii) to alleviate the storage and transmission bottlenecks associated with the resulting “big data”.