Photonics Spectra

Photonics Spectra is a monthly publication aimed at professionals in the photonics field, including engineers, scientists, and consumers who create, market, and purchase photonic products. The magazine delivers valuable technical insights and application-focused content covering various sectors of the global photonics industry. It encompasses all areas of photonics, such as optics, lasers, imaging technologies, fiber optics, and electro-optics. Additionally, it explores advancements in photonic component manufacturing, solar cell technologies, LED lighting solutions for vehicles and workspaces, as well as imaging and testing equipment for THz, EHz, UV, IR, and visible light.

National, Trade/B2B

English

Magazine

Outlet metrics

Domain Authority

Ranking

Global

#334888

United States

#298326

Science and Education/Physics

#168

Traffic sources

Monthly visitors

Articles

Directed Energy Technologies Mount an Energetic Response to the Drone Threat

1 month ago | photonics.com | Michael Eisenstein

Amid abundant opportunity for directed energy systems, the viability of the technology’s deployment hinges on sustained investment. “Keep your eye on the sky” is a critical rule in modern warfare, due to the rapid proliferation of low-cost, speedy uncrewed aerial vehicles (UAVs). These aircraft can be fitted with surveillance equipment for tracking the enemy or loaded with weapons or explosives to take out targets.
Inspection throughout production

1 month ago | photonics.com | Douglas Farmer

During the tumultuous last few years in the machine vision market, companies that have thrived have benefited from reinforcing their places in the value chain of industry. Successful businesses have often provided solutions from one end of production to another.
LEDs Shine Brighter in Machine Vision Applications

1 month ago | photonics.com | Hank Hogan

Innovations in wavelength and pulse control allow LEDs to be more efficient in industrial settings, and developers say lighting should be considered at the start of system design. For potent implementation of light-emitting diodes (LEDs) and light sources in machine vision applications, illumination needs must be integrated into the initial system design.
Silicon Carbide Bridges the Gaps Between Electronics and Photonics

2 months ago | photonics.com | Barry Silverstein

Industrial manufacturing has long favored silicon carbide (SiC) for its utility as a cutting material, exhibiting exceptional hardness that resembles diamond at roughly half the cost. Other desirable qualities, including SiC’s mechanical strength, thermal conductivity, and low density, have steered the material into the field of optics to be used as a thin, lightweight, and stable coated optical mirror substrate for space applications.
Photonics’ “Semiconductorization” Stands Out Among Trends at Photonics West 2025

Feb 13, 2025 | photonics.com | Andreas Thoss

Once again, Photonics West was thriving, with the exhibit halls and floors of the conference center humming with intense conversations about the latest advances in all areas of photonics technology. I will discuss a few trends I found particularly noteworthy. It was surprising how far-removed Washington and political discussions appeared to be from this meeting of photonics experts from all around the world.
AI Assists Vision-Guided Robots in Food and Beverage Inspection

Jan 7, 2025 | photonics.com | Austin Harvey |Oxipital AI

As labor concerns grow, food and beverage producers are turning to robotic systems. Artificial intelligence enables a range of capabilities, especially for variable items such as proteins and produce. For decades, machine vision has helped robotic systems surpass limited, rote applications, enabling a wide range of pick-and-place applications across industries.
About Lasers and a Dinosaur

Jan 7, 2025 | photonics.com | Andreas Thoss

If you look at the photonics landscape, you will see some well-known hotspots: There is of course Jena (my hometown) in Germany; Rochester, N.Y., and Tucson, Ariz., in the U.S.; and Eindhoven in the Netherlands. Vilnius, the capital of the Baltic state Lithuania, might not be the first place that you think of, but it’s definitely up there, too. Lithuania is a small country, roughly twice the size of the state of Maryland, with a population of 2.9 million.
Microprocessing Is Ready for More

Jan 7, 2025 | photonics.com | Andreas Thoss

The EPIC Technology Meeting on Laser Microprocessing demonstrated the maturity of technological building blocks for microprocessing with ultrashort-pulse lasers. Courtesy of Amplitude Laser. Laser microprocessing has been on the rise for decades. While technological roadblocks have influenced this progression, a close look at these roadblocks reveals that each has advanced to maturity.
Thermal Industrial Inspection is Heating Up

Jan 7, 2025 | photonics.com | Hank Hogan

Longwave and midwave infrared imaging systems can perform thorough seal inspection for pharmaceutical bottles and packaging. Falling prices, rising resolutions, better analysis algorithms, and increased operational efficiency are expanding the use of thermal imaging in industrial inspections. These innovations are leading to use cases that were not feasible three to five years ago, such as spotting defects in aluminum seals on bottles and poor welds between plastic and metal.
Robotic vision and AI spur growth

Jan 7, 2025 | photonics.com | Michael Wheeler

The global machine vision market is set to reach $11.6 billion in 2024, nearly doubling to $22.6 billion by 2032. This translates to a compound annual growth rate of 8.7%, according to a report issued last month by Fortune Business Insights. This is good news for an industry that has seen its share of recent challenges during the last 12 to 18 months, especially in Europe.