Women in Photonics Week 2019

Women in Photonics Week 2019
Hosted by Photonics Society @ UCSB
October 14 - 25

Starting October 14,  the Photonics Society at UCSB held its fourth annual Women in Photonics event!

The popular UCSB Nanofab and Freedom Photonics tours returned again this year. We held several activities in collaboration with local companies, and we hosted talks given by Prof. Andrea Armani from USC and Megan Birney, President of Unite to Light. We also participated in outreach activities with Girls Inc. and I HEART STEM. 

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Event Schedule

Event	Date and Time	Location	Add to Calendar
Girls Inc. : LaserComm Activity	Thurs. Oct. 17   4:15-5:15 pm	UCSB	-
SPIE Visiting Lecturer Prof. Andrea Armani	Fri. Oct. 18 ​12:00 - 1:00 pm	UCSB: ESB 2001	-
Freedom Photonics Tour	Thurs. Nov. 21 3:30 - 5:30 pm	Freedom Photonics	Register for Event
UCSB Nanofab Tour	Sat. Oct 19 1:00 - 3:00 pm	UCSB: ESB ground floor	-
Megan Birney, President of Unite to Light	Thur. Oct. 24 5:00 - 6:00 pm	UCSB: ​ESB 2001	-
I HEART STEM Conference	Sat. Nov 9  ​9:30 am - 3:45 pm	Student Resource Building	-

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SPIE Visiting Lecturer Prof. Andrea Armani

Fri. October 18, 2019   |   ​12:00 - 1:00 pm

Prof. Armani is the head of a research lab at USC where she "develops advanced materials and integrated optical devices that can be used in portable disease diagnostics and telecommunications." Read more about her research at https://armani.usc.edu/. 

Nanomateial-Enhanced Integrated Photonics
Abstract: Integrated photonics offers a potential alternative to integrated electronics, with reduced heating and faster data rates. However, to achieve many of the desired performance metrics, it is necessary to combine disparate material systems. Heterogeneous integration is plagued by challenges, including different lattice constants, thermal expansion coefficients, and fabrication compatibilities, all of which can impact the final device performance ad lifetime. Therefore, new materials and material systems as well as fabrication methods are desired. One approach is to combine the conventional top-down fabrication methods and optical materials, such as silica and silicon, with bottom-up fabrication and nano-materials. These hybrid systems provide access to optical behavior and performance not attainable with conventional approaches. This talk will present several of the new integrated hybrid photonic devices being developed in the Armani Lab, including approaches based on nonlinear organic small molecules and plasmonic nanoparticles to develop Raman lasers and frequency combs.

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Freedom Photonics Tour

Thurs. November 21, 2019 | 3:30 to 5:30 pm 

Register for Event

Freedom Photonics is a local company that specializes in semiconductor lasers, photodetectors, and photonic integrated circuits.
The tour, led by the women scientists at the company, will show their nanofabrication facility along with a short discussion of photonics and hands-on activities. 

Grade 6+ ONLY
Proof of U.S. Persons required:
ALL tour attendees must bring ONE of the following IDs:
(1) U.S. Passport
(2) U.S. Naturalization Certificate
(3) Permanent Resident/Green Card
(4) U.S. Birth Certificate AND either Photo ID or Social Security card
Note: For parents or chaperones, a driver's license is NOT valid proof. Yes, even children need this proof.

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UCSB Nanofab Tour

Sat, October 19, 2019
1:00 PM – 2:00 PM    and    2:00 PM – 3:00 PM

Lasers, LEDs, photonic integrated circuits -- we make them all and more! Led by women who work in and use the facility, learn what a cleanroom is and why we use it and then gown up for a tour. 
​Expert users lead tours of the NanoFab in groups of 5, where everyone was gowned up in a "bunny suit" before entering the high-tech lab.

Tours will be led by:

• Paula Heu, Innovative III-V Solutions LLC
• Lesley Chan, Grad. Student, UCSB Chemical Engineering
• Kaiyin Feng, Grad. Student, UCSB Electrical and Computer Engineering
• Victoria Rosborough, Grad. Student, UCSB Electrical/Comp. Engineering​

Age 13+ ONLY.
​​Closed-toed shoes required to enter (eg. no sandals or flip-flops).

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Megan Birney, President of Unite to Light

Thur.  October  24, 2019   |   5:00 - 6:00 pm

Megan Birney is President of Unite to Light, a nonprofit organization that manufactures and distributes solar lights to people living without access to electricity across the globe.
Throughout her career Megan has focused on increasing access to clean, renewable energy. She started her career at the Community Environmental Council where she ran the Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Programs, including creation of Solarize, a residential group-purchasing program in California. While there she advocated for renewable energy projects and policies leading to over 1 GW of solar in the Central California region.  Then Megan served as Director of Strategic Affairs and Product Manager for a commercial solar financing company that was aiming to address the financing gap for nonprofits and small businesses. Megan is also a Water Commissioner for the City of Santa Barbara. She has a Masters in Public Policy from the University of Southern California, and a BA in Sociology from the University of California, San Diego. Megan has taught a courses on energy sources, uses and issues through the University of California extension program. 

Photonics and Global Aid & Development: the Power of Solar Lights
Unite to Light, a nonprofit founded at UCSB, manufactures and distributes solar lights and solar power to people living without electricity. Hear from President & CEO Megan Birney about how the organization was founded, the innovation of their lights, and the impact around the world. 

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I HEART STEM Conference

Sat. November 9, 2019   |   ​9:30 am - 3:45 pm

The Photonics Society participated in the annual I HEART STEM Conference. This one-day conference promotes STEM-literacy for young women (and woman-identified students) in grades 9-12. Hands-on workshops and mentorship opportunities that emphasize the diversity of STEM research and its application are facilitated by STEM-graduate students, faculty, and advanced undergraduates at UCSB, as well as industry professionals.