Spring 2026 Dates:
February 16 – 18

MONDAY, February 16, 2026

10:00 AM – 1:00 PM	IA Corporate Showcase Set Up
1:00 PM – 3:00 PM	Student Poster Sessions with Networking & Light Snacks
3:00 PM – 6:00 PM	IA Member Corporate Showcase
6:00 PM – 7:30 PM	Dinner
7:30 PM – 8:00 PM	Showcase Breakdown & Pack Up

TUESDAY, February 17, 2026

Attend Today’s Presentations Virtually 

7:45 AM – 9:00 AM	Welcome Breakfast
9:01 AM – 9:16 AM	Group Photo
9:17 AM – 9:27 AM	Welcome and Wyant College of Optical Sciences Update, Dean Brian Anderson
9:32 AM – 10:12 AM	Keynote Speaker, Cat Merrill –Risky Business: A discussion of development paradigms for space programs
10:13 AM – 10:33 AM	Yuzuru Takashima, Professor of Optical Sciences – Beam and Image Steering with MEMS-SLMs for Display, LiDAR, Communication, and Beyond
10:34 AM – 10:39 AM	Student Presentation, James Taylor – Fast 3D Metrology for 360degree in-situ monitoring during additive manufacturing
10:40 AM – 10:45 AM	Student Presentation, Hill Tailor – Metrology Techniques to Fabricate Wedged Geometry for Segmented X-ray Mirror Assemblies
10:46 AM – 10:51 AM	Student Presentation, John Bass – Precise holographic field modulation with four-phase encoding
10:52 AM – 11:07 AM	Break
11:08 AM – 11:28 AM	Yeran Bai, Assistant Professor of Optical Sciences – Uncovering single cell function with mid infrared photothermal microscopy
11:29 AM – 11:34 AM	Student Presentation, Jiabin Chen – Deep Ultraviolet Microscopy for Stain-Free Tissue Imaging and Cytology Diagnostics
11:35 AM – 11:40 AM	Student Presentation, Patrick Cornwall – Computational Imaging for Skin Lesion Assessment Using Synthetic Waves
11:41 AM – 11:46 AM	Student Presentation, Lily McKenna – Optimizing a liquid crystal Mueller polarimeter for imaging corneal birefringence
11:47 AM– 12:07 PM	Cris Panda, Assistant Professor of Optical Sciences – Quantum Metrology and Sensing using Atoms and Molecules
12:08 PM – 12:13 PM	Student Presentation, Atkin Hyatt – Torsional Quantum Optomechanics
12:14 PM – 12:19 PM	Student Presentation, Alana Gonzales – Designing an Endoscope for Stomach Cancer Detection with Optical Coherence Tomography and Elastography
12:20 PM – 12:40 PM	Walk to Bear Down Gym
12:41 PM – 1:58 PM	Lunch
1:59 PM – 2:09 PM	Walk back to GCRB
2:10 PM – 2:25 PM	Academics Update, John Koshel
2:26 PM – 2:36 PM	SOCk and OFA Presentation
2:37 PM – 2:57 PM	Industry Update, John Yoon, SPIE
2:58 PM – 3:18 PM	Mark Spencer, Robert M. Edmund Endowed Chair in Optical Sciences, Professor of Optical Sciences – High Energy Laser Perspectives from a Former Government Leader and Current Academic Researcher
3:19 PM – 3:29 PM	Student Presentation, Laura Sawyer – Exploring photocatalytic mechanisms via ultrafast time-resolved spectroscopy
3:30 PM – 3:40 PM	Student Presentation, Clarissa DeLeon – Sky Polarization Neutral Point Tracking for Monitoring Atmospheric Aerosols
3:41 PM – 4:00 PM	Break
4:01 PM – 5:30 PM	Curriculum and Workforce Round Table, John Koshel
4:01 PM -5:30 PM	Open Labs

WEDNESDAY, February 18, 2026

8:00 AM – 9:00 AM	Networking Breakfast
10:00 AM – 11:30 AM	Mirror Lab Tours*
11:30 AM – 1:00 PM	Fairwell Pizza Lunch
9:00 AM – 5:00 PM	Student Interviews**

*Mirror Lab tour sign-ups are now closed. 

**Opportunities for student interviews are available throughout the meeting and must be prearranged through registration.