Two teams at the University of Southampton in the UK have received five-year research awards under the Portfolio Partnership initiative, which also is providing funding to four other UK groups. The Portfolio Partnership in Photonics, valued at $13.5 million, is based within the university's Optoelectronics Research Centre, while the nanophotonics grant of $7.5 million will support investigation in its School of Physics and Astronomy.

The initiative was introduced by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, based in Swindon, UK. The funding is designed to enable the teams to explore new directions and to establish collaborations.