Photonics Spectra Spectroscopy Conference to Showcase Advancements in Biomedicine

Join Photonics Media online April 12-13 for the Photonics Spectra Spectroscopy (PSS) Conference, a virtual event exploring new and evolving trends in spectroscopy. Biospectroscopy is one of four featured tracks in the program, which was curated in collaboration with the Coblentz Society and the Society for Applied Spectroscopy. Sessions will explore technologies ranging from Raman and NIR spectroscopy to laser sources for spectroscopic applications and the manufacture of vaccines.

The three other tracks are Emerging Technologies, Data Analysis, and Embedded Spectroscopy. The full program and registration details can be found at www.photonics.com/pss2022.

“In the four distinct tracks that comprise our program, we aim to introduce techniques and applications and to provide guided roadmaps to members of a wide audience on how they might incorporate spectroscopic methods into facets of their R&D, data science, and commercial pursuits,” said Richard Crocombe, principal of Crocombe Spectroscopy Consulting and past president of the Society for Applied Spectroscopy.

“While many sessions, particularly in the Emerging Technologies track, focus on what we consider ‘hot topics’ — such as fiber optics and novel laser spectroscopy — we have prioritized widespread applicability throughout the program,” Crocombe said. “How do users turn data into useful, actionable information to generate results? How do we chart progress in spectroscopic imaging for biomedical applications? How are multispectral sensors being embedded in ‘smart’ consumer goods? These are questions at the fore of the field of spectroscopy. As a result, they are the same questions that have helped guide us in building the PSS program.”

Fabris and Wiens to keynote

Laura Fabris. Courtesy of Jeff Heckman.

Laura Fabris of Rutgers University will look, in her keynote, at spectroscopy as a mechanism for biophotonics applications. Fabris leads a team that explores current and future methods to monitor drug delivery and disease characteristics, such as by studying the suitability of surface-enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) probes to provide response on population outliers that could indicate superspreader behavior.

Roger Craig Wiens. Courtesy of Los Alamos National Laboratory.

In his keynote, Roger Craig Wiens from Los Alamos National Laboratory and Purdue University, and leader of the SuperCam instrument team on the Mars Perseverance rover, will detail the variety of spectroscopic methods currently deployed on Mars. From sophisticated custom spectrometers to precisely calibrated and combined methods, the Perseverance and Curiosity rover missions are delivering precision insights on the mineralogical, chemical, atomic, and molecular composition of Mars’ surface. Wiens will cover techniques such as laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS), visible and near-infrared (VISIR) spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, and acoustic spectroscopy — all of which are used by the SuperCam instrument.

Industry drivers and key players

Industry leaders such as Oxford Instruments, TOPTICA Photonics, ams OSRAM, and more will host sessions on pertinent topics in the life sciences. Renowned figures from across the spectroscopy landscape — including Crocombe and Conor Evans of Harvard Medical School — will overview their recent work. Crocombe will headline the Embedded Spectroscopy portion of the program with a presentation on the miniaturization of instruments.

Registration for the Photonics Spectra Spectroscopy Conference is free for attendees. The Biospectroscopy track takes place on April 13.