Current Position-Manager, R&D Measurement & Inspection Equipment at Alcon Laboratories, Inc.

The role of the Measurement & Inspection Equipment Manager is to lead a team of engineers and technicians in the development, validation, and transfer of measurement and inspection equipment and processes in support of new intraocular lens and delivery systems products, as well as process improvements in support of intraocular lens and delivery system production.

Job Title: Research Scientist

Company: Oculus Research, Facebook

Job Description: Develop future virtual reality headset

Current Position: Director of Engineering at Lumentum (formerly JDSU)

Mike manages the company's development of kilowatt class lasers for the global $2B laser cutting and welding market. Builds the R&D team and insures the success of major product development programs. Works closely with product line managers and product marketing managers to drive the technology and product roadmaps for the kilowatt laser business segment. Manages and tracks the execution of milestones through the formal product development process (PDP), including product variants (PV) and new product introduction (NPI). Manages OpEx and CapEx budgets. He manages a team of 16 employees.

Other recent positions he has held include Program Manager, Micro Processing at TRUMPF, Inc. and Chief Scientist at Raydiance.

Professional Society Involvement:

• Senior Member of OSA
• Senior Member of SPIE
• Member of IEEE Photonics Society
• Program Chair, CLEO Applications & Technology Committee
• Mentor, The Innovation School, Washington, DC
• Member of CLEO Joint Council on Applications
• Member of CLEO Steering Committee
• Chair of the Optical Society of America (OSA) Public Policy Committee
• Associate Editor, IEEE Journal of Quantum Electronics
• David Richardson Medal Committee
• Judge-OSA Enabled by Optics contest
• Member of OSA Industry Development Associates Committee
• Industrial Advisory Board, College of Optics & Photonics, UCF
• Judge-Start-Up Challenge, SPIE Photonics West
• SPIE Photonics West Program Committee on Frontiers in Ultrafast Optics: Biomedical, Scientific, and Industrial Applications
• Laser Microprocessing Committee, International Congress on Applications of Lasers and Electro-Optics (ICALEO)
• Committee on Non-Linear and Ultrafast Optics (NLUO), IEEE Photonics Society
• Guest Entrepreneur at University of California Entrepreneurship Academy, Sacramento, CA

Current Position: Experimental Plasma Physicist at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory

I am conducting experiments using high-intensity lasers. My areas of interest include the generation of novel sources of electrons, x rays, and gamma rays through laser-plasma interaction, Compton scattering, and laser-wakefield acceleration. I am currently leading an effort to develop these sources for applications in high-energy density sciences at LLNL and the Linac Coherent Light source, in addition to doing experiments for the National Ignition Facility.

Frank J. Effenberger is considered a world expert in the field of fiber access networks and passive optical networks. In 2008, he became the chairman of International Telecommunication Union, the United Nations’ specialized agency for information and communication technologies. In 2011, he was named as Huawei Fellow, and, in 2015, he was named as a fellow of both the OSA and the IEEE. He holds 60 U.S. patents. Before joining his current company in 2006, Frank was a systems engineer at Motorola. Prior to that, he served at Quantum Bridge Communications, where he managed the system engineering group. He also held other positions in the fiber optics industry, with Science Application International Corporation, Bell Communications and Discovery Semiconductors. He earned his undergraduate in engineering and engineering physics in 1988 at the Stevens Institute of Technology in Hoboken, N.J., and a master’s degree in optics from the University of Rochester in 1989, ranking first in his class.

Job Title: Research Scientist

Company: Oculus Research, Facebook

Job Description: Develop future virtual reality headset

Current Position: Product Engineer III at Research Electro-Optics, Inc. (REO) –

I am the primary technical interface for any of our customers, who has an idea that exceeds the standard of what we do here at REO.  In my short time here at REO I have worked development opportunities for the defense, semiconductor, and entertainment industries.  Before working at REO, I spent seven years with Lockheed Martin Missiles and Fire Control in Orlando, FL, as a Optical Engineer for the Apache Fire Control Sensor (M-TADS/PNVS).  While at Lockheed, I was able to develop my skills as an optical designer and EO system integrator.  During my tenure at Lockheed, I was able to complete my master’s degree at CREOL, graduating in 2012.  My introduction to the optical world started at Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, graduating in 2007 with my bachelor’s degree in 2007. 

Jason Eichenholz (MS, ‘95, PhD, ‘98) received the 2012 Professional Achievement Award for the College of Optics and Photonics at UCF's Alumni Association’s annual Black & Gold Gala on on November 1, 2012. He also received the College’s Distinguished Alumni Award and was honored at the Banquet of the CREOL@25 Symposium on March 15, 2012. Eichenholz, who now holds a Courtesy Faculty appointment in the College of Optics and Photonics, is being recognized for his photonics research, his successful product development and commercialization of photonics technology, and his commitment to promoting innovation programs in the area of optical sensing and spectroscopy. Upon graduating from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute with a BS degree in Physics, Eichenholz came to UCF where he received graduate degrees in optics. He went on to industry and served a dual role as the CTO of Ocean Optics and as the Divisional Technology Director for Halma’s Health Optics and Photonics Divisions. He developed miniature spectrometers that revolutionized the way data and measurements were obtained. Eichenholz is now CEO and a founder of Open Photonics, a crowd sourcing and Open Innovation company designed to accelerate the adoption of optics and photonics technology.

Current Position: Assistant Professor of Electrical Engineering at the University of Kansas

Alessandro conducts research in Optics and Photonics, teaches, and mentors students. He has 3 PhD students.

Prior to this position, Alessandro was a Post-Doc at the University of California Berkeley.

He is a member of OSA, SPIE, and IEEE.

I work as product engineer in Coherent | Nufern. Primarily working on pulsed fiber lasers & single frequency fiber amplifiers. I have to integrate with manufacturing, planning, R & D etc. departments and work towards making my team and company a success.

While in CREOL, you get all the technical know how one needs to work in any industry, but i also got lot of exposure to leadership roles and opportunities to serve which helps me grow as an individual.

My advice to grad students would be enjoy your time in CREOL; interact with as many proffesors and students you can, make connections with your peers. You will not get what you wish, if you don't ask for it.