Photonics for a Better World

DYNAMIC FORCE: Patel enjoys a rainy day at the Gufufoss waterfall in Iceland Salut!  Meet Deven Patel, a graduate student at Université Laval's Center for Optics, Photonics, and Lasers (COPL) in Quebec City who is also working as an opto-mechanical designer at Esterline Technologies Corporation. Over the past two years, Patel was instrumental in Laval’s exoplanet-imaging project  HiCIBaS , or High-Contrast Imaging Balloon System. He had two main jobs: designing a dynamic structure for the star-pointing system and front-end optics (telescope, etc.), and developing a passive-cooling thermal system for the back-end optics system. "Basically, I developed the mechanical solutions that were necessary for the other systems to function correctly and to perform the science of the mission," he explains. I CAN SEE CLEARLY NOW: HiCIBaS' telescope. Credit: Cédric Vallée The HiCIBaS project received quite a bit of media attention , and for good reason: "The proje...

WOMEN-IN-STEM ADVOCATE: Madison Rilling shares her knowledge Meet Canada-native and this week's SPIE Faces of Photonics feature, Madison Rilling. Madison is pursuing a PhD in Physics at Université Laval, in the Center for Optics, Photonics, and Lasers. She is also a part of the Université Laval’s Cancer Research Center. Both are located in Québec City, Canada. Madison is enthusiastic about science policy: "I am making my first steps in the world of science policy. I am -- or I try to be -- a strong advocate for next-generation scientists and women and girls in STEM." When she isn't in the lab, you’ll probably find Madison running, hiking, playing volleyball, or "...enjoying a good book in one hand and a tea in the other." STEP IT UP:  Rilling's  favorite hike, Garibaldi Lake in BC, Canada Enjoy the interview! 1. How did you become interested in the optics and photonics field? I did more of a theoretical undergraduate in math & phy...