‘Best Chapter’

The UC Santa Barbara student chapter of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineer’s Photonics Society has been named Chapter of the Year for 2016.

Established four years ago, the student organization of young engineers at UCSB is recognized for its effort in promoting professional growth and career development in the field of photonics. “This international award exemplifies the strength of our local photonics community and the hard work of our members to promote relationships between students and industry professionals,” said Eric Stanton, chapter president.

Guided by faculty advisor John Bowers, director of UCSB’s Institute for Energy Efficiency, Stanton and 15 other student engineers devoted much time and energy over the past year to initiatives aimed at informing the community of the technology behind and use of photonics The utilization of light to transmit information, the technology has enormous implications in the fields of energy efficiency and computation.

Not only can photonics increase the quantity of data transfer — essential in a world that is generating more and more data every day — it can do so with less energy and heat than conventional electronics.

“This past year we held more events than ever before and expanded our membership,” said Stanton. “We also participated in the International Year of Light celebration at UCSB and hosted seminars to display the latest photonics research to our UCSB community.”

In addition to UCSB, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) recognized chapters in Boston, Southeast Michigan, Long Island, Malaysia and Italy. Chapter members will be honored at the 2016 IEEE photonics conference at Waikoloa, Hawaii, in October.