European Optical Society

European Optical Society
Name	European Optical Society
Formation	1991
Type	Learned society
Purpose	Optics and photonics

European Optical Society

The European Optical Society is a learned society dedicated to optics, photonics, and related technologies across Europe. Founded in 1991, it connects researchers, engineers, and institutions from nations such as France, Germany, United Kingdom, Italy, and Spain and engages with international bodies including IEEE, OSA (The Optical Society), and SPIE. The Society fosters cooperation among national societies like Deutsche Physikalische Gesellschaft, Société Française d'Optique, Istituto Nazionale di Ottica, and Optical Society of Japan through conferences, publications, and awards.

History

The Society traces origins to meetings involving stakeholders from European Commission, CERN, and national research institutes such as Max Planck Society and CNRS following the end of the Cold War and the signing of the Treaty of Maastricht. Early founders included scientists affiliated with Imperial College London, École Polytechnique, Universität Heidelberg, Politecnico di Milano, and Delft University of Technology. Its development paralleled initiatives like Horizon 2020 and collaborations with projects funded by European Research Council and European Space Agency. The Society organized early symposia alongside events such as the International Commission for Optics congresses and contributed to policy discussions referenced in Lisbon Strategy and Bologna Process dialogues. Over time it expanded ties with regional entities including EUREKA and networks such as COST and Knowledge4Innovation.

Structure and Membership

Governance is typically carried out by an elected Board and Officers drawn from academic and industrial institutions, often including representatives from University of Cambridge, ETH Zurich, Karolinska Institutet, University of Warsaw, and Trinity College Dublin. Membership categories mirror models used by Royal Society, Max Planck Society, and Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, with individual members from labs at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory and companies like ASML, Thales Group, Nokia, Philips, Zeiss, and Roche Diagnostics. The Society interfaces with national optics societies such as Optical Society of America, Society of Photo-Optical Instrumentation Engineers, and regional organizations like Nordic Optical Society. Committees often include delegates from European Patent Office, European Standards Organisation, European Telecommunications Standards Institute, and universities including University of Oxford, Universität Stuttgart, Sorbonne University, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, and University of Helsinki.

Activities and Programs

Programs include topical conferences, schools, and workshops hosted in cities like Paris, Berlin, London, Milan, Barcelona, Vienna, Amsterdam, Prague, and Lisbon. The Society organizes events on themes spanning quantum optics informed by research at Max Planck Institute for Quantum Optics, integrated photonics influenced by firms such as Rohm Semiconductor and research centres like CNR, to biophotonics connected with Karolinska University Hospital and Wellcome Trust initiatives. It runs summer schools similar to those by European Molecular Biology Laboratory and organizes special sessions in collaboration with conferences such as CLEO, ECOC, Photonics West, SPIE Photonics Europe, and IESF Forum. Training programs include partnerships with funding agencies like Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions and infrastructure projects such as ESFRI and research infrastructures like ELI and XFEL.

Publications and Communications

The Society supports journals, conference proceedings, newsletters, and digital platforms. Publications align with outlets such as Nature Photonics, Optica, Journal of the Optical Society of America, Applied Optics, Light: Science & Applications, and regional titles like European Journal of Physics. Communications include collaboration with publishers such as Springer Nature, Elsevier, Wiley-Blackwell, and IOP Publishing and indexing in databases like Scopus and Web of Science. The Society curates resources for educators and researchers comparable to those from CERN Document Server and disseminates reports to stakeholders including Council of the European Union, European Parliament, and agencies like European Commission Directorate-General for Research and Innovation.

Awards and Recognition

The Society grants prizes that recognize contributions akin to awards given by Royal Society, Wolf Prize, Nobel Prize in Physics, ERC Advanced Grant recipients, and honours analogous to members of Academia Europaea or fellows of Institute of Physics. Award categories celebrate achievements in fundamental optics, applied photonics, education, and industry innovation, with laureates drawn from institutions such as École Normale Supérieure, Johns Hopkins University, Harvard University, Stanford University, Moscow State University, and companies like Schneider Electric and Siemens. Awards ceremonies take place during major symposia and are sometimes sponsored by partners including European Investment Bank and technology consortia like Photonics21.

Collaborations and Outreach

The Society engages in collaborative initiatives with research organizations including European Space Agency, CERN, Fraunhofer Society, Helmholtz Association, CNRS, and international partners such as National Science Foundation, Japanese Society of Applied Physics, and Australian Optical Society. Outreach programs target schools and the public using exhibits similar to those by Science Museum, London and Cité des Sciences et de l'Industrie and partner with festivals like La Fête de la Science and European Researchers' Night. It contributes expertise to standardization work at ISO and IEC and supports innovation clusters like EIT Digital and regional hubs such as Silicon Roundabout and Cambridge Cluster.

Category:Scientific societies