LOFT, Large Optics Fabrication and Testing group with OEFF & RFCML

We would like to express our sincere gratitude towards Philoptics for their generous donation of a substantial amount of optical components and tables. Our collaboration with Philoptics over the past three years has been truly remarkable, particularly in the development of deflectometry for surface metrology in a high-precision fabrication facility. Through this project, we were able to achieve significant milestones, including the development of a cutting-edge surface metrology system and the graduation of two master’s students who worked on these projects. Additionally, we published several papers based on our collaborative efforts.

As Philoptics transitions to the next stage of industry demands, they no longer require the optical testing facility in Tucson. We are deeply appreciative that they have decided to donate this equipment to our group. We have successfully moved two optical tables, two workstation tables, and numerous boxes containing optical components. Currently, we are in the process of finding suitable space and organizing these valuable resources.

If you notice any inconvenience or safety risks related to the arrangement or stacking of the furniture, please do not hesitate to inform Heejoo. Once again, on behalf of the LOFT group, I would like to express our sincere appreciation for the generous donation from Philoptics. We look forward to the possibility of future exciting collaborations.

We are so happy that Mina Yoo (LOFT peer) received the Optica Women Scholars for 2023! “The Optica Foundation recognized the 20 Optica Women Scholars. This program provides visibility, community, and resources for women in optics and photonics via financial support, professional development, and establishing a global network as they enter the field. The scholarship is awarded based on need, academic performance, and demonstrated potential.”

Congratulations, Mina! For more information, please, visit the Optica announcement page.

Our LOFT member, Joel Berkson, was awarded the Student Innovator of The Year 2022 by Tech Launch Arizona at the University of Arizona. We, the LOFT peers, are so proud of him. You can find the official news release here.

Kevin Derby received the Best Student Presentation award at the 2022 SPIE Astronomical Telescopes + Instrumentation conference in Montreal, Canada! Congratulations! LOFT peers are so happy for you.

Here are the announcements: SPIE website and SPIE Twitter

LOFT member, Bo Wang, was elected to the honorary title of Fellow for the Optical Society of Southern California, the most active Optical Sub-Chapter, at their annual end-of-the-year business meeting’. 

Congratulations, Bo! LOFT members keep serving our community!

LOFT member, Henry Quach, received the 2022 ARCS (Achievement Rewards for College Scientists) Scholar Award and joined the dinner event with donors. You can read the full story here.

Congratulations Henry! LOFT family is happy for you.

LOFT peer Vipender in India created a nice yoga video helping LOFT members to stay happy and healthy. 🙂 Enjoy!

Millions of people follow unhealthy lifestyle. Whether it’s sitting at their desks for too long, subjecting their eyes to uninterrupted hours of screen time on phones or desktops, children spending hours on different type of screen, ordering too many takeaways for dinner, or not finding enough time to catch those precious 8 hours of sleep, all these factors have led to people encountering major health issues, that affects not just their physical wellbeing, but also mental health, causing intense stress and anxiety.

In 2022, LOFT Co-PI Heejoo received Optica’s Kevin P. Thompson Optical Design Innovator Award “for innovative design of a UV cross-dispersion space telescope and engineering of a laser-truss Large Binocular Telescope metrology system.” Congratulations!

LOFT is happy to be a part of the educational mission at the Wyant College of Optical Sciences using the optical testing education kit supported by the AOM (Arizona Optical Metrology). Please, read the announcement by AOM below.

“AOM is proud to work with Dr. Daewook Kim, Dr. HeeJoo Choi and the faculty and staff at the University of Arizona Wyant College of Optical Sciences to deploy the first CGH Educational Kit to the OPTI513 Optical Fabrication and Testing Lab and Lecture courses! Dr. Shelby D V Ament highlighted the comprehensive kit which includes multiple CGHs, test optics, alignment targets, mounts and more to enable students and users to gain an understanding of the ins-and-outs of CGH metrology, and the many benefits the technique offers. If you are involved in optics education and have interest in our CGH Educational Kit, please reach out to Tyler Steele, tsteele@cghnulls.com Check out more details on our website: https://lnkd.in/gz_tRTKk“