Years


Electro Optics


and controlled by photonic point-of-care methods. To achieve these medium term goals,


however, it is a requirement that we all do our homework. This homework consists of ensuring that all the biophotonics technologies and methods able to cure patients and improve their quality of life make it quickly into clinics. Here, we have an enormous backlog caused by firstly the gap between basic and applied research, and secondly development of a prototype into a product. Further obstacles include obtaining FDA approval, as well as acceptance by the health insurance companies and the public healthcare providers. To bridge these gaps, funding is usually not available. To remove the corresponding hurdles


and the backlog is therefore of utmost importance, not only to let biophotonics prosper, both as a research field and a market, but also to remove burden from the patients and society as a whole. EO


Professor Jürgen Popp is director of Physical Chemistry at the Friedrich-Schiller University Jena, and is the scientific director of the Leibniz Institute of Photonic Technology (IPHT), also based in Jena. Thomas Mayerhöfer is a senior researcher, also at the Leibniz IPHT.


Nicoletta Casanova, CEO of Femtoprint, on overcoming the challenges of being a startup


Femtoprint produces 3D microdevices out of glass and other transparent materials. The firm uses femtosecond lasers to generate monolithic microdevices integrating optics, fluidics and mechanical functionality. These devices can be disruptive in fields such as the medical industry or the watch industry, where they are changing the way that microdevices are conceived and built. The production technique is creating


new opportunities in several fields. While it was initially intended to be used for rapid prototyping and at the moment is mainly used to fabricate high-value products, Femtoprint believes the technique could be scaled up for mass production, potentially for optics, photonics, and electronics manufacture. Femtoprint is a growing startup. Its


To optimise the full potential of photonics


requires stability. For example, our ROI in Japan will not occur within the first year of activity. Due to the business culture of the country, it will take several years. However, there is progress. The French government has significantly opened its eyes in support of photonics technologies. It has made competitiveness clusters a national policy, accompanying innovation for economic development and growth. It has sent clear


“The French government has opened its eyes in support of photonics technologies”


signals in support of R&D and technological innovation by transferring powers to the regional authorities, allowing autonomous management of resources and a regrouping of the ecosystem. Although the photonics industry


has received positive signals from the government, more resources are always welcome. Photonics is a domain where we need to raise the curiosity of investors and increase their understanding of how photonics will enable future developments in digital, materials and robotics industries. EO


www.electrooptics.com | @electrooptics


technology is the result of a collaborative European project, with technical and commercial input from academia and industry. I believe that the various entities with different competences around the world have a tremendous advantage by working together in order to succeed. Projects and programmes that bring industry and academia together enable the expertise of each to be shared to increase the speed of development and boost innovation globally. Events like Photonics West and Laser


World of Photonics are also wonderful occasions for startups to demonstrate their technology, capabilities and potential. Thanks to specific programmes in Switzerland, we also have exchanges with offices worldwide – in the US, Israel, Singapore and Germany – that connect startups with partners in industry and universities. These are offered at reduced rates to small companies. One of the general concerns with


programmes like Horizon 2020 is that the application for funds at the European level is quite difficult and competitive, and in general the bigger players are more likely to be successful. However, if smaller companies like Femtoprint are able to get involved in these larger collaborative projects, they can take advantage of the expertise of all partners in the consortium. Since Femtoprint works in a new,


disruptive field, there aren’t as many experienced individuals available as there might be in other fields. Education is therefore important, and one of Femtoprint’s employees serves as a member of the education committee of SPIE. This activity aims to inform and stimulate educational and training activities related to what the market really needs in terms of new competences, because, technology and the market are changing, with new trends coming through such as Industry 4.0. In terms of working in Switzerland, I am a member of a local industry association in Ticino, in the southern part of Switzerland, called AITI – the association of Ticino’s industries – which aims to secure an effective environment to the industries and to suggest strategies that will support innovation. We need the government to


“Application for funds at the European level is quite difficult and competitive”


support small companies to enable us to be creative, as we have new competition coming from nearby European companies, and there is the Swiss franc exchange rate as well to contend with as well when doing business. With foresight, in Ticino, a law supports financially innovative companies when they make investments in ground- breaking projects. The government also provides support in the application phase of European projects, and pays some of the company’s expenses when exhibiting at shows like Photonics West. We’ve secured this government support also through AITI. I am also one of 20 councillors of InnoSuisse, the Swiss innovation agency, nominated to work on the next government’s programme for science- based innovation, which will be operative from 2021-2024. We are considering many ways to support startups and high-tech companies that innovate in a cooperative way. These initiatives will also encourage students graduating from universities to develop their own products, ideas and companies. EO


December 2017/January 2018 Electro Optics 17


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