The 2015 CLEO Conference and Exposition concluded today with 4,400 attendees, 226 exhibitors and 1380 presentations from around the world. Conference and exhibition programming provided attendees with valuable insights into a broad range of topics such as optical microscopy for brain imaging, three dimensional printing and single-photon nonlinear optics. CLEO 2015 took place 10-15 May at the San Jose McEnery Convention Center in San Jose, California, USA.

 “During the CLEO 2015 Plenary I presented on Microscopy 2.0. The invention of new imaging technologies is having a profound impact on biological sciences,” stated Dr. Steven Chu, 1997 Nobel Prize Winner in Physics and professor at Stanford University, California. “We are in the midst of a revolution in optical and electron microscopy — a revolution which will have an intense effect on biology, biomedicine and bioengineering for years to come.”

Reflecting on his presentation, Dr. Shuji Nakamura, 2014 Nobel Prize Winner in Physics and professor at University of California, Santa Barbara, California, said "Over the past 30 years LEDs have become universal in our daily lives and I have been pleased to witness their growth. At CLEO 2015, I spoke about laser lighting and how my research team is using a semiconductor device to produce coherent radiation in the visible or infrared spectrum when current passes through it. Laser lighting is on its way to replacing incandescent lightbulbs in the near future."

Sharing their insights on microscopy, trends in lighting and optics:

Eric Betzig, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, USA, 2014 Nobel Prize Winner
Presentation: Imaging Life at High Spatiotemporal Resolution

Hiroshi Amano, Nagoya University, Japan, 2014 Nobel Prize Winner
Presentation: Current and Future of Solid State Lighting

Miles Padgett, University of Glasgow, Scotland, UK
Presentation: Light’s Twist

Shuji Nakamura, University of California Santa Barbara, USA, 2014 Nobel Prize Winner 
Presentation: Energy Savings by LED Lighting

Stefan W. Hell, Max Planck Institute for Biophysical Chemistry, Germany, 2014 Nobel Prize Winner
Presentation: Nanoscopy with Focused Light

Steven Chu, Stanford University, USA, 1997 Nobel Prize Winner
Presentation: Microscopy 2.0

Tony Heinz, Stanford University, USA
Presentation: Electrons in Atomically Thin Two-Dimensional Crystals

W. E. Moerner, Stanford University, USA, 2014 Nobel Prize Winner
Presentation: Light Paves the Way to Single-Molecule Detection and Photocontrol, Foundations of Super-Resolution Microscopy

Quality Programming from Beginning to End
“This year CLEO 2015 attendees had a unique opportunity to hear from some of the greatest minds in the optics and photonics industry. From our notable list of plenary speakers, to the 1300+ presentations given there, we offered opportunities for those of all career levels to learn,” said Alfred Leitenstorfer, general co-chair of CLEO fundamental science program and professor at The University of Konstanz, Germany. “The programming highlighted nanophotonics, ultrafast optics, novel two-dimensional compound materials and interesting physics of many-body quantum systems.”

Jonathan D. Zuegel, program co-chair of CLEO science and innovation program and senior scientist at University of Rochester, USA, added, “As the applications for scientific optics and photonics continue to grow, CLEO will continue to provide valuable content to attendees of the conference and the exhibition. We look ahead to preparing for CLEO 2016 based on growth in diverse topics ranging from quantum optics to applications of nonlinear optics, optical metrology and biomedical and industrial applications.”

Prominent Companies in Optics and Photonics on Display
The exhibit hall showcased products and services from companies, such as Coherent, Menlo Systems, Newport, Thorlabs, Toptica Photonics and many others. In the exhibit hall, CLEO attendees heard presentations on global trends in the photonics market, updates on the changing landscape of U.S. export control regulations and recent developments in ultra-fast lasers.

Milton Chang, managing director at Incubic, keynoted “The Technology Transfer Program.” Dr. Chang was president of Newport and New Focus, which he took public. Since then he has incubated more than a dozen companies as an angel investor, which resulted in six IPOs and seven acquisitions; none failed. This interactive session offered an opportunity for startups to hear best practices for taking innovations from the lab into the marketplace.