Institute of Photonics

An international leader in use-inspired research

Our research activities are strategically focused to ensure academic excellence is combined with strong industrial engagement.

Our key objective is to bridge the gap between academic research and industrial applications and development in the area of photonics.

optics bench

Our research

Photonics laser

Research opportunities

Setting up a laser rig

Our staff

Setting up a micro LED array

About us

Diamond laser

Working with industry

ICP etch tool in TIC cleanroom

Semiconductor microfabrication facilities

News and announcements

Professor Martin Dawson FRS presented the 45th Edwards Lecture at City University on 15 February 2023

Professor Martin Dawson FRS presented the 45th Edwards Lecture at City University on 15th Feb. Professor Sir Anthony Finkelstein, President of City, said “The [Edwards] lecture has a distinguished history, having been given over the years by five Nobel Laureates, as well as many Fellows of the Royal Society and Fellows of the [Royal] Academy of Engineering”. Prof. Dawson’s lecture was on laser research and innovation at the Fraunhofer Centre for Applied Photonics and this year’s event marked the 50th anniversary of the lecture given by Nobel Laureate and inventor of holography Professor Dennis Gabor.
IoP Student wins first-ever Falling Walls Foundation Scotland Competition

Matěj Hedja, PhD student at Institute of Photonics, won the Scottish Falling Walls Lab competition, which was arranged by Glasgow Innovation District and INSPIRE and was held in the Technology and Innovation Centre. Matěj then travelled to Berlin to deliver his pitch "Breaking the Wall of Efficient AI Computing Using Light" at the Falling Walls Science Summit along with other 80 other National winners. Unfortunately he was not among the 3 Global winners but it was a fantastic experience and he done himself and his colleagues extremely proud.
A programmable optical device for high-speed beam steering has been developed in research involving the University of Strathclyde.

The paper is a collaboration led at MIT and also involving Flexcompute Inc, the State University of New York Polytechnic Institute, Applied Nanotools Inc, the Rochester Institute of Technology and the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory. It has been published in the journal Nature Photonics.
Best Paper Award from IEEE Photonics Technology Letters

A paper based on the research produced by Strathclyde's Institute of Photonics and LiFi R&D Centre has received the 2022 Best Paper Award from IEEE Photonics Technology Letters
Institute has paper published in Nature Communications

Institute of Photonics has a paper published in Nature Communications with research group from Stanford University.
Professor Martin Dawson, Director of Research, has been elected a Fellow of the Royal Society

This highly prestigious honour is in recognition of Martin’s research career and international leadership in the fields of optoelectronics and laser technology. https://royalsociety.org/news/2022/05/new-fellows-2022/
Institute's Professor Martin Dawson wins second International Award in one year

Professor Martin Dawson, Director of Research has been named as the 2021 winner of the Global SSL Award of Outstanding Achievement by the International SSL (solid state lighting) Alliance (ISA). The award is presented to individuals or organisations “who stay at the forefront of SSL development, whose outstanding contributions have changed our lives, and who lead the field with innovative applications impacting human society.”
News Archive

Meet our Director & Research Director

Meet some of our experts

New technology — New technology to detect sight-threatening disease

Scientists at the University of Strathclyde are involved in research – boosted by new funding – into technology to detect early visual loss in people with long-term conditions.

We've 12 photonics laboratories and a clean room microfabrication facility, totalling over 1000m²

We're part of the Technology & Innovation Centre, working together on photonic solutions