SPIE Photonics West 2009 is once again drawing a large regional and international crowd to learn about photonics technologies that can cut costs in industry and pave the way for new products and capabilities in medicine, sustainable energy and other high-impact fields. The annual event includes 85 technical conferences and two exhibitions and is seeing growth this year despite global economic woes. Programs cover advances in biomedical optics, optoelectronics, lasers and MOEMS/MEMS, and they are expected to draw more than 17,000 attendees by the end of the week.The biomedical optics program kicked off Saturday with a record number of technical papers and a 165-company weekend exhibition characterized by businesses happy with the volume of visitors.A standing-room-only hot-topics session Saturday evening featured reports on advances in cancer detection, stroke treatment management and other medical applications.Innovation showcaseThe Photonics West exhibition, with approximately 1100 companies, will run through Thursday and showcase the latest in components, systems, and applications for optics and photonics manufacturing, electronic imaging, IR sources and detectors, optical detectors, fibers and materials, cameras and displays, and other innovations. The exhibition is open to registrants at no charge, as are executive panels on topics including:• Silicon Photonics and Optical Interconnects.• Hot Markets in Photonics: Solar.• Perspectives on the World of Photonics.• Applications of High-Power Solid-State Lasers.The Photonics West exhibition has become the preferred venue for product launches in this field, and dozens of companies are demonstrating products each day. Regional optics and photonics clusters are represented in eight national and five state pavilions showcasing the technology and talent in each region.SPIE and Laurin Publishing, publisher of Photonics Media, will announce winners of the inaugural Prism Awards for Photonics Innovation tonight (Wednesday) during the conference week. The awards were introduced in 2008 to recognize the best in innovative technology within the multibillion-dollar business of optics and photonics. A panel of 28 independent judges acknowledged as experts in their respective fields reviewed entries in nine categories, including optics; lasers; other light sources; detectors, sensing and imaging systems; analytical, test and measurement; photonics systems; photonics processes; sustainable/green technology; and life sciences. A list of finalists, along with additional information, is available on the award program Web site: www.photonicsprismaward.com.Sustainable technologiesPlenary sessions highlighting the program of 3300 technical papers are scheduled on topics such as the pivotal role of photonics in novel nano-/bio-/information interfaces, new applications of high-power fiber lasers in industry, new potentials for laser processing in photovoltaics manufacturing, and opportunities for increased versatility in micro-optical modulators.Several conferences include papers on enabling technologies and their applications for solar energy and sustainable lighting, such as:• Conf. 7202, Laser-Based Micro- and Nano-Packaging and Assembly (laser processing for fabrication of environmentally friendly devices, such as high-brightness white LEDs, lightweight thin-film solar cells, advanced batteries, etc.).• Conf. 7211, Physics and Simulation of Optoelectronic Devices (materials for optoelectronic devices; wide-bandgap semiconductors; e.g., lasers, LEDs, detectors, solar cells, etc.; band structure, band offsets, gain and recombination in II-VI and nitride-based III-V structures, materials and microstructures for mid-infrared optoelectronic devices).• Conf. 7213, Organic Photonic Materials and Devices (polymer solar cells and photodetectors).• Conf. 7222, Quantum Sensing and Nanophotonic Devices (solar cells).• Conf. 7231, LEDs: Materials, Devices and Applications for Solid-State Lighting.For more information about Photonics West 2009, www.spie.org.