Sharing My Experience With Others
Enkeleda Balliu, Mid Sweden University
Amazed from the flow of students on bicycle and the majesty of Thermotechnical Institute immerse into the Arenberg park … this was the start of the marvelous experience as a Traveling Lecturer at OSA/SPIE Student Chapter at KU Leuven.
The Symposium started with a lecture from Professor Chris Van Haesendonck on Introduction to Optics. The explanation of the physics through words and diagrams was what really shined; he described the phenomena in comprehensible ways that brought the material alive to the audience. He introduced the fundamental phenomena of the light, explained the propriety of the light, interference and diffraction. The introduction on optics and electromagnetic waves were both clear and concise, covered both traditional topics as well as recent developments. I was really inspired from his experienced way of explaining.
Before starting my lecture on Large Area Flexible Electronics by Laser Processing I introduced the audience to the endless opportunity that OSA offer to students, researchers and professionals, which made me very proud of being a member of it. I started my lecture introducing the audience on the world of Photonics, in particular introducing them into the Large Area Flexible Electronics Production. It was an amazing feeling being able to explain my research work to such a diverse audience - students, PhD students and researchers which were working on different fields of Photonics.
The first part of my lecture was oriented to explain the laser system, first going through the laser history and then through different animations for a better understanding of the laser mechanism. All this followed by the results of my research on development of a compact, high power, single frequency fiber amplifier. Then I explained the possible methods to develop cost effective Large Area Flexible Electronics Production, compatible with the roll to roll manufacturing. The lecture covered recent advances of laser-assisted processing of thin films coated on flexible paper based substrates with the objective to make conductive tracks. I presented the results of my research on laser sintering of thin films of silver nano - particles and laser-assisted reduction of graphene oxide to graphene with the aim of developing a method compatible with the roll-to-toll (R2R) manufacturing technique for the production of large area electronics with potential applications such as cost effective solar cells, sensors and super capacitors.
The most gratifying moment was when they started asking different questions related to the theory, the results of my research that I presented and my own work experience. The feeling of being a young role model was particularly motivating for me. After the presentation of the OSA/SPIE chapter from Nick Van Steerteghem, the president of the chapter, invited me to lunch in which it was another fantastic opportunity to share useful experiences with other students, PhD students and Post Doc students and continue to discuss with them about common research work and possibilities for future collaboration opportunities. Overall it was an amazing experience that I would recommend to every student, professor, researcher, to the ones who love to share the research experience and network with other colleagues around the world.
