Joint Symposium Topics

JSI – PHOTONICS FOR AI

Antonio Hurtado, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, UK (Co-Chair)
Bruno Romeira, INL Institute, Braga, Portugal (Co-Chair)


Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies have become integral to modern society, helping humans interpret the vast amounts of data generated today. However, the rapidly increasing energy consumption of AI systems poses significant global challenges, threatening industries and societal sustainability. AI platforms, particularly those based on large-scale, data-driven deep learning neural networks, are energy-intensive due to their reliance on conventional computing systems. As a result, there is a growing demand for novel computing paradigms capable of operating AI technologies with extremely low energy per bit. Neuromorphic systems, which mimic the brain’s information processing, are among the most promising solutions. Photonics offers the potential to design energy-efficient computing approaches, such as neuromorphic photonic computing and photonic accelerators, enabling power-efficient architectures for parallel processing and new AI applications in the cloud and at the Edge, essential for the Industrial 5.0 era. 

This symposium will explore the status, prospects, and challenges of photonic technologies, focusing on new materials, devices, architectures, software, algorithms, and simulation tools for light-enabled computing paradigms and AI platforms. Special attention will be also given to Artificial Intelligence in Classical and Quantum Photonics in the context of the 100th anniversary of Quantum Mechanics in 2025. 

Topics:  

Devices, circuits and architectures for photonic-enabled computing and AI; Neuromorphic photonic computing systems; Emerging materials for photonic computing; Photonic integrated systems for optical computing; Hardware photonic accelerators for machine/deep learning; Photonic reservoir computing; Photonic Extreme Learning Machines; Photonic Spiking Neurons and Spiking Neural Networks; Algorithms for photonic computing systems; Hybrid quantum-classical photonic neural networks; Artificial Intelligence in classical and quantum photonics; Emerging technologies for brain-inspired photonic computing and communications; Photonic-Electronic technologies for optical computing and AI; Free-space photonic technologies for computing and AI; Event-based photonic technologies; Photonic Edge AI computing. 


JSII – FREE ELECTRON LASERS : TECHNOLOGY AND APPLICATIONS

Luca Gioannessi, ELETTRA, Trieste, Italy (Co-Chair)
Giuseppe Sansone, University of Freiburg, Freiburg, Germany (Co-Chair)

 

Free-electron lasers (FELs) offer a unique opportunity to study light-matter interactions in the extreme ultraviolet and X-ray spectral regions. The symposium aims to bring together the expertise of FEL developers and the community of users and potential users interested in taking advantage of the unprecedented combination of extreme time resolution (down to the attosecond range), photon flux and high peak intensities available at FELs for their research. Presentations will focus on the latest developments in FEL operation and selected highlights from user experiments. For the symposium, we are accepting submissions on the following topics 

Topics: 

1) Novel seeding concepts 
2) Polarisation control of XUV and X-ray pulses 
3) Multi-colour and multi-harmonic operation 
4) Light-matter interactions under extreme conditions 
5) Pulse characterisation 
6) Time-resolved coherent diffraction imaging 
7) Target development for coherent imaging 
8) High repetition rate XUV and X-ray sources 
9) Novel schemes for attosecond pulse generation 
10) Crystallography  
11) Biological imaging
12) FEL optimisation using machine learning approaches 
13) Theoretical modelling of laser-matter interactions 
14) Multiphoton processes in the XUV and X-ray region 
15) Imaging of ultrafast electronic and nuclear dynamics 


JSIII – SYSTEMS FOR FIELD-DEPLOYABLE QUANTUM TECHNOLOGIES

Kevin Gallacher, University of Glasgow, Glasgow, UK (Co-Chair)
James McGillan,
University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, UK (Co-Chair)


This symposium showcases the transformative shift from laboratory-based quantum technology to robust, field-deployable systems, emphasising the critical role of reducing the size, weight, power, and cost (SWaP-C) to realise practical systems. It covers systems/devices for quantum enabled computing, sensing, and communication through the application of superposition and entanglement. A primary focus is on addressing the substantial challenges of transitioning these technologies from lab to field, particularly in maintaining the operational integrity across both integrated and modular systems. 
 

Topics:  

Modular systems; Chip-scale solutions, photonic integrated circuits, MEMS, and Heterogeneous integration; Emerging systems, components and novel materials for quantum enhanced sensors, atomic clocks, gravimeters, magnetometers, rotation, inertial, trapped ion, and atom interferometry; Structured light for trapping and precision sensing, metamaterials, optical frequency combs, coupled cavities, resonators, and photonic crystals; Quantum communication based novel devices for entanglement, nitrogen-vacancy diamond centres, quantum repeaters, superconductors, single-photon emitters and photodetectors; Enhanced detection through optical squeezing, and hybrid systems.