Features of the IMP

Institute open day

IMP members will be invited to the Open Day at which presentations will be given by Institute staff, in tutorial format for background topics, as well as recent/current research topics. IMP members will also be invited to give brief details about their organisation and their interest in photonics.

Networking

Networking events are a vital part of the IMP membership benefits and will be held on a regular basis. Some of these will be themed, for example concentrating on applications like biophotonics, others may concentrate on a specific class of device, for example VECSELs. Some events will be very informal. Contact between IMP members will be encouraged as opportunities often arise from the linkages between skills and requirements in diverse market sectors.

Support for research

Companies may wish to support specific research at the Institute, either alone or together with other IMP members. Some of these partnerships may leverage additional government funding and/or tax relief. IMP membership provides an excellent way of establishing contact with funding schemes to determine the most cost effective way of undertaking commercially relevant R&D.

Licensing technology

The Institute currently undertakes commercially oriented research totalling over £2 million each year. IMP members will get an advance alert to the possibility of licensing opportunities as they arise.

Recruiting talent

While Institute staff have no undergraduate teaching responsibilities, in a typical year about 10 PhD students undertake research at the Institute, supervised by senior Institute staff. These students can work on company sponsored research, for example via a CASE award or Engineering Doctorate Scheme. Additionally, once they have completed their PhDs, some students will be seeking careers in industry. through IMP events, IMP members will have contact with these students and can decide whether to approach the student directly with a view to future employment with the company.

Access to Institute research base and staff & students' expertise

IMP members will have access to the Institute's research base, giving the membership a unique view of current research and activities in the Institute.

At the various network events, Institute staff and students will be available to discuss topics of shared interest with IMP members. These provide a first class opportunity to meet with experts in photonics, to exchange information and to canvas opinion on a variety of research topics.

Continuing Professional Development (CPD)

As part of existing PhD training at the Institute and in the Department of Physics at Strathclyde, specialised modules exist to inform students about some of the latest developments in photonic devices and applications. The Institute, in conjunction with the Physics Department, intends to modify the modules so that they'll also form the basis of a CPD programme which can be accessed by IMP members as part of their membership. While the primary target audience of the modules will remain the PhD students, the modules will be a valuable source professional development across a wide range of industry sectors.