Engaging CCNY with Photons
Yang Yue, Juniper Networks
On December 5th, I visited the OSA City College of New York (CCNY) Student Chapter in New York, USA. The visit was hosted by CCNY OSA Student Chapter advisor Professor Robert Alfano, president Nicholas Proscia. Furthermore, I had the great opportunity to had 1:1 meetings with professors Robert Alfano, and Vinod Menon before and after my talk. We shared the latest academic/industrial trend during these meetings.
During the lecture, I first shared the importance and significant impact of optics/photonics today to society and industry. For the paramount scientific award, “Nobel Prize in Physics”, ~40% achievements are in optics and photonics. Optics and photonics are deeply embedded in our daily life nowadays. From the most popular smart phone to the upcoming virtual/augmented reality and driverless car, they are ubiquitous.
Then I presented my academic research to the audience, “terabit-scale fiber and free-space optical communications using orbital-angular-momentum multiplexing”. I introduced the basics of orbital angular momentum (OAM), its application as a recently explored dimension for spatial division multiplexing (SDM) to increase the data capacity. Moreover, I presented the latest research on high capacity and spectral efficient systems of using OAM modes for SDM in fiber and free space. Furthermore, we discussed different methods to reconfigurably manipulate and perform different networking functions on multiplexed OAM beams. After the academic work, I shared the industrial trend in optical communications. The critical issue is the challenge of meeting the needs of increasing the data capacity without compromising size, weight, power and cost (SWaP-C) constraints. Latest industrial development on packet-optical engine was discussed together with our recently developed transmitter de-skew technique.
After the technical presentation, I also shared some personal experience of doing scientific research and my understanding of PhD. Finally, I wished the students being 'Piled Higher and Deeper' without 'Permanent Head Damage' through their 'PhD'. The topics fitted the audience’s background and interest well and thus generated strong resonance. After my talk, both students and professors actively express their opinions and new ideas. The Q&A session trigged questions for both academia and industry. Afterwards, I was invited to visit some laboratories, and the CUNY advanced science research center. CCNY students introduced their frontier research works in different applications of supercontinuum, and light matter interaction, and extremely triggered my interest.
It is my great honor to be invited by CCNY OSA Student Chapter. I owe a big “Thank you!” to the organizers, especially the chapter advisor Professor Robert Alfano and president Nicholas Proscia. Without their hardworking and dedication, this activity will not be so successfully. Last but not least, I would like to sincerely express my gratitude to the OSA Traveling Lecturer Program. Without its strong support, nothing shared above would be possible. I am looking forward to another opportunity to serve and learn through this program in the near future!
