Fans of the science and industry of photonics are joiners, not loners. Usually because of the influence of one or two giants of industry or renowned academic institutions, clusters of like-minded enterprises sprout like mushrooms over particular geographical regions. Here we present the largest, best-represented areas of photonics expertise – judged mainly by the sheer number of contributing companies and institutions within a definable region.
Optics Valley France
Headquarters: Palaiseau
Serves: France
Founded: 1999
Members include: Renaud Lasers, Acces Vision, Thales Optronique.
www.opticsvalley.org
KAPID – Korea Association for Photonics Industry Development
Headquarters: Gwangju
Serves: South Korea
Founded: 2000
Members include: 3i, Coset Inc., Symphony Energy Co.
www.kapid.org
Arizona Optics Industry Association
Headquarters: Tucson
Serves: Arizona’s “Optics Valley”
Founded: 1992
Members include: Lowell Observatory, Zygo Corp., Kyocera Solar, NP Photonics Inc.
www.aoia.org
POPsud – OPTITEC
Headquarters: Marseille
Serves: Southern France
Founded: 2000
Members include: Cilas, Horiba, Centre de Physique Théorique de l’Ecole Polytechnique
www.popsud.org
Optoelectronics Industry and Technology Development Association (OITDA)
Headquarters: Tokyo
Serves: Japan
Founded: 1980
Members include: Sumitomo Electric Industries Ltd., Toshiba Corp., NEC Corp., Mitsubishi Electric Corp.
www.oitda.or.jp
Ontario Photonics Industry Network (inactive)
Headquarters: Ottawa
Served: Ontario province in Canada
Members included: University of Ottawa Centre for Research in Photonics, Optiwave Systems Inc., Group IV Semiconductor.
NB: Although the OPIN suspended operations recently, its 110+ member companies and institutions remain vital to the region.
Optical Valley of China
Headquarters: Wuhan
Serves: China
Founded: 2000
Members include: Yangtze Optical Fibre and Cable Co. Ltd., Huagong Laser Engineering Co. Ltd., HuaZhong University of Science and Technology.
www.ovcexpo.com.cn
South of England Photonics Network (SEPNET)
Headquarters: Southampton, England
Serves: Southern UK
Founded: 1999; shuttered in 2001; restarted in 2007
Members include: Fianium Ltd., Bentham Instruments Ltd.
www.sepnet.net
New York Photonics Industry Association
Headquarters: Rochester
Serves: New York – includes Rochester Regional Photonics Group
Members include: Bristol Instruments Inc., Cornell University Center for Materials Research, G-S Plastic Optics, Universal Photonics Inc.
www.newyorkphotonics.org
OpTec-Berlin-Brandenburg
Headquarters: Berlin
Serves: Berlin-Brandenburg region of Germany
Founded: 2000
Members include: Bruker Nano GmbH, Holoeye Photonics AG, Optronik Berlin GmbH, TEC Microsystems AG.
www.optecbb.de
Honorable mentions: Taipei, Taiwan; Singapore; Thuringia, Germany; Scotland; Switzerland; the Aquitaine region of France; and the Bavaria region in Germany.