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Optics and Photonics
Essential Technologies for Our Nation
Committee on Harnessing Light: Capitalizing on Optical
Science Trends and Challenges for Future Research
National Materials and Manufacturing Board
Division on Engineering and Physical Sciences
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THE NATIONAL ACADEMIES PRESS 500 Fifth Street, NW Washington, DC 20001
NOTICE: The project that is the subject of this report was approved by the Governing Board of the
National Research Council, whose members are drawn from the councils of the National Academy
of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering, and the Institute of Medicine. The members of
the committee responsible for the report were chosen for their special competences and with regard
for appropriate balance.
This study was supported by Contract No. ECCS-1041156 between the National Academy of Sciences
and the National Science Foundation, and by the following awards: #N66001-10-1-4052 from DARPA-
DSO; #N66001-11-1-4091 from DARPA-MTO; #60NANB10D266 from NIST; #W911NF-10-1-0488
from ARO; #DE-DT0002194,TO#16 from DOE-EERE; and #DE-SC0005899 from DOE-BES, as well
as support from SPIE, OSA, and the NRC. Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations
expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the
organizations or agencies that provided support for the project.
International Standard Book Number-13: 978-0-309-26377-1
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This report is available in limited quantities from:
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Copyright 2013 by the National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
Printed in the United States of America
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The National Academy of Sciences is a private, nonprofit, self-perpetuating society of distinguished
scholars engaged in scientific and engineering research, dedicated to the furtherance of science and
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www.national-academies.org
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COMMITTEE ON HARNESSING LIGHT: CAPITALIZING ON OPTICAL
SCIENCE TRENDS AND CHALLENGES FOR FUTURE RESEARCH
PAUL McMANAMON, Exciting Technology, LLC, Co-Chair
ALAN E. WILLNER, University of Southern California, Co-Chair
ROD C. ALFERNESS, NAE,1 Alcatel-Lucent (retired), University of California,
Santa Barbara
THOMAS M. BAER, Stanford University
JOSEPH BUCK, Boulder Nonlinear Systems, Inc.
MILTON M.T. CHANG, Incubic Management, LLC
CONSTANCE CHANG-HASNAIN, University of California, Berkeley
CHARLES M. FALCO, University of Arizona
ERICA R.H. FUCHS, Carnegie Mellon University
WAGUIH S. ISHAK, Corning Incorporated
PREM KUMAR, Northwestern University
DAVID A.B. MILLER, NAS,2 NAE, Stanford University
DUNCAN T. MOORE, NAE, University of Rochester
DAVID C. MOWERY, University of California, Berkeley
N. DARIUS SANKEY, Intellectual Ventures
EDWARD WHITE, Edward White Consulting
Staff
DENNIS CHAMOT, Acting Director, National Materials and Manufacturing
Board
ERIK B. SVEDBERG, Study Director
HEATHER LOZOWSKI, Financial Associate
RICKY D. WASHINGTON, Administrative Coordinator (until August 2012)
MARIA L. DAHLBERG, Program Associate (until August 2012)
ANN F. LARROW, Program Associate (effective August 2012)
LAURA TOTH, Senior Program Assistant (until February 2012)
PAUL BEATON, Program Officer, STEP3 (October through December 2011)
CAREY CHEN, Christine Mirzayan Science and Technology Policy Fellow, STEP
(October through December 2011)
1 NAE, National Academy of Engineering.
2 NAS, National Academy of Sciences.
3 STEP, Board on Science, Technology, and Economic Policy.
v
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NATIONAL MATERIALS AND MANUFACTURING BOARD
ROBERT H. LATIFF, R. Latiff Associates, Alexandria, Virginia, Chair
DENISE F. SWINK, Independent Consultant, Germantown, Maryland,
Vice Chair
PETER R. BRIDENBAUGH, NAE,1 ALCOA (retired), Boca Raton, Florida
VALERIE M. BROWNING, ValTech Solutions, LLC, Port Tobacco, Maryland
YET-MING CHIANG, NAE, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge
PAUL CITRON, NAE, Medtronic, Inc. (retired), Minnetonka, Minnestota
GEORGE T. (RUSTY) GRAY II, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Los Alamos,
New Mexico
CAROL A. HANDWERKER, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana
THOMAS S. HARTWICK, Independent Consultant, Snohomish, Washington
SUNDARESAN JAYARAMAN, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta
DAVID W. JOHNSON, JR., NAE, Stevens Institute of Technology, Bedminster,
New Jersey
THOMAS KING, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge, Tennessee
MICHAEL F. McGRATH, Analytic Services, Inc., Arlington, Virginia
NABIL NASR, Golisano Institute for Sustainability, Rochester, New York
PAUL S. PEERCY, NAE, University of Wisconsin-Madison
ROBERT C. PFAHL, JR., International Electronics Manufacturing Initiative,
Herndon, Virginia
VINCENT J. RUSSO, Aerospace Technologies Associates, LLC, Dayton, Ohio
KENNETH H. SANDHAGE, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta
ROBERT E. SCHAFRIK, GE Aviation, Cincinnati, Ohio
HAYDN WADLEY, University of Virginia, Charlottesville
STEVEN WAX, Independent Consultant, Reston, Virginia
Staff
DENNIS CHAMOT, Acting Director
ERIK B. SVEDBERG, Senior Program Officer
RICKY D. WASHINGTON, Administrative Coordinator (until August 2012)
HEATHER LOZOWSKI, Financial Associate
MARIA L. DAHLBERG, Program Associate (until August 2012)
ANN F. LARROW, Program Associate (effective August 2012)
LAURA TOTH, Senior Program Assistant (until February 2012)
1 NAE, National Academy of Engineering.
vi
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Preface
The National Research Council (NRC) undertook the writing of a study on op-
tics and photonics in 1988 (Photonics: Maintaining Competitiveness in the Informa-
tion Era)1 and then again in 1998 (Harnessing Light: Optical Science and Engineering
for the 21st Century).2 Now, after 14 years of dramatic technical advances and eco-
nomic impact, another study is needed to help guide the nation’s strategic thinking
in this area. Since 1998 many other countries have developed their own strategic
documents and organizations in the area of optics and photonics, and many have
cited the U.S. NRC’s 1998 Harnessing Light study as instrumental in influencing
their thinking. The present study, Optics and Photonics: Essential Technologies for
Our Nation, discusses impacts of the broad field of optics and photonics and makes
recommendations for actions and research of strategic benefit to the United States.
To conduct the study, the NRC established the Committee on Harnessing Light:
Capitalizing on Optical Science Trends and Challenges for Future Research, a di-
verse group of academic and corporate experts from across many disciplines critical
to optical science and engineering, including materials science, communications,
quantum optics, linear and nonlinear optical elements, semiconductor physics,
device fabrication, biology, manufacturing, economic policy, and venture capital.
The statement of task for this study (given in full in Appendix A) is as follows:
1 National Research Council. 1988. Photonics: Maintaining Competitiveness in the Information Era.
Washington, D.C.: National Academy Press.
2 National Research Council. 1998. Harnessing Light: Optical Science and Engineering for the 21st
Century. Washington, D.C.: National Academy Press.
vii
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viii Preface
1. eview updates in the state of the science that have taken place since pub-
R
lication of the National Research Council report Harnessing Light;
2. dentify the technological opportunities that have arisen from recent ad-
I
vances in and potential applications of optical science and engineering;
3. ssess the current state of optical science and engineering in the United
A
States and abroad, including trends in private and public research, market
needs, examples of translating progress in photonics innovation into com-
petitiveness advantage (including activities by small businesses), workforce
needs, manufacturing infrastructure, and the impact of photonics on the
national economy;
4. rioritize a set of research grand-challenge questions to fill identified tech-
P
nological gaps in pursuit of national needs and national competitiveness;
5. ecommend actions for the development and maintenance of global lead-
R
ership in the photonics-driven industry—including both near-term and
long-range goals, likely participants, and responsible agents of change.
It became apparent from the outset that various funding agencies and profes-
sional societies that deal with optics and photonics felt a keen need for the NRC
to provide an authoritative vision of the field’s future. If the field is indeed a key
enabling technology that will help drive significant economic growth, then such a
study should attempt to make recommendations that can be used to help policy
makers and decision makers capitalize on optics and photonics. It was in this spirit
that the committee conducted this study.
Several factors, including the following, made the committee’s task a challeng-
ing one:
1. The field of optics and photonics is extremely broad in terms of the technical
science and engineering topics that it encompasses.
2. The field impacts many different market segments, such as energy, medicine,
defense, and communications, but as an enabling technology it is not always
highlighted in available data about these areas.
3. he field has expanded greatly beyond the United States, such that many
T
other countries have invested heavily in research and development and
manufacturing.
Additionally, the area of optics and photonics is typically subsumed as an
enabling technology under the heading of other disciplines (e.g., electrical engi-
neering, physics). Therefore, it was challenging to gather data specific to optics
and photonics in terms of workforce and economic impact. For example, optics
enables common DVD players, but is the economic impact to be gauged by the
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Preface ix
value of the whole DVD player or just the inexpensive yet high-performance laser
that makes the whole system work properly? Similarly, how do we place a value on
the fact that the society-transforming Internet could not have grown at such a fast
pace, or achieved even close to its current level of performance, without low-loss
optical fiber, which by itself is not particularly expensive? The committee grappled
with many such questions.
In the course of the study, the committee observed that exciting progress has
been made in the field and believes that the future holds much promise. A small
anecdotal indication in the popular press of the breadth and depth of the field is
that roughly 12 of the 50 best inventions of 2011 listed by Time magazine had optics
as a key technological part of the invention.3
Our entire community owes its sincerest gratitude to the generous sponsors of
the study, which include the Army Research Office, the Defense Advanced Research
Projects Agency, the Department of Energy, the National Institute of Standards and
Technology, the National Research Council, the National Science Foundation, the
Optical Society of America, and the International Society for Optics and Photon-
ics (SPIE). Each sponsor was critical to enabling the study to proceed with the
necessary resources, and key champion(s) in each of these organizations stepped
forward at a crucial time to help out. We also wish to thank the many individuals
who helped the committee accomplish its task, including the workshop speakers
and study reviewers, and we are extremely grateful to have worked with outstand-
ing committee members.
It was with a deep sense of appreciation that the committee was able to rely on
the dedication, professionalism, insight, and good cheer of the NRC staff, primar-
ily Dennis Chamot, Maria Dahlberg, Erik Svedberg, Laura Toth, and Ricky Wash-
ington. As the manager of the study, Erik has been a superb and tireless partner,
whose keen perspective was invaluable. The committee also extends its thanks to
Stephen Merrill, executive director of the National Academies’ Board on Science,
Technology, and Economic Policy, for engaging his staff during the latter part of
this study, especially Paul Beaton, program officer, and Carey Chen, Christine
Mirzayan Science and Technology Policy Fellow. In addition, the committee would
like to thank Kathie Bailey-Mathae, director of the Board on International Scientific
Organizations, for critically helping with the preliminary groundwork leading up
to the start of the study.
We sincerely hope that readers of this study find some perspectives that will
3 Grossman, L., M. Thompson, J. Kluger, A. Park, B. Walsh, C. Suddath, E. Dodds, K. Webley, N.
Rawlings, F. Sun, C. Brock-Abraham, and N. Carbone. 2011. Top 50 Inventions. Time. Available at
http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,2099708,00.html. Accessed October 16, 2012.
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x Preface
help guide future actions, whether such readers are congressional staffers, funding
agencies, corporate chief technology officers, or high school students.
Paul McManamon and Alan E. Willner, Co-Chairs
Committee on Harnessing Light: Capitalizing on
Optical Science Trends and Challenges for Future Research
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Acknowledgments
This report has been reviewed in draft form by individuals chosen for their
diverse perspectives and technical expertise, in accordance with procedures ap-
proved by the National Research Council’s (NRC’s) Report Review Committee. The
purpose of this independent review is to provide candid and critical comments that
will assist the institution in making its published report as sound as possible and to
ensure that the report meets institutional standards for objectivity, evidence, and
responsiveness to the study charge. The review comments and draft manuscript
remain confidential to protect the integrity of the deliberative process. We wish to
thank the following individuals for their review of this report:
William B. Bridges (NAS/NAE), California Institute of Technology,
Elsa Garmire (NAE), California Institute of Technology,
James S. Harris (NAE), Stanford University,
Thomas S. Hartwick, Hughes Aircraft Company,
Eric G. Johnson, Clemson University,
Stephen M. Lane, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory,
E. Phillip Muntz (NAE), University of Southern California, and
Thomas E. Romesser (NAE), Northrop Grumman Aerospace Systems.
Although the reviewers listed above have provided many constructive com-
ments and suggestions, they were not asked to endorse the conclusions or rec-
ommendations, nor did they see the final draft of the report before its release.
The review of this report was overseen by Peter Banks (NAE), Red Planet Capital
xi
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xii Acknowledgments
Partners. Appointed by the NRC, he was responsible for making certain that an
independent examination of this report was carried out in accordance with in-
stitutional procedures and that all review comments were carefully considered.
Responsibility for the final content of this report rests entirely with the authoring
committee and the institution.
The committee also thanks those who were guest speakers at its meetings and
who added to the committee members’ understanding of optics and photonics
and related issues:
John Ambroseo, Coherent Inc.,
Eugene Arthurs, SPIE,
John Dexheimer, LightWave Advisors, Inc.,
Ed Dowski, Ascentia Imaging,
Julie Eng, Finisar,
Michael Gerhold, U.S. Army Research Office,
Larry Goldberg, National Science Foundation,
Matthew Goodman, Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency,
Linda Horton, Department of Energy,
Kristina Johnson, Consultant,
Christian Jörgens, German Embassy,
Bikash Koley, Google,
Prem Kumar, CLEO,
Minh Le, Department of Energy,
Donn Lee, Facebook,
Robert Leheny, Institute for Defense Analyses,
Frederick J. Leonberger, Eovation Advisors, LLC,
Tingye Li, AT&T Consultant,
Aydogan Ozcan, University of California, Los Angeles,
Mario Paniccia, INTEL,
Kent Rochford, National Institute of Standards and Technology,
Joseph Schmitt, Cardiovascular Division, St. Jude Medical,
Jag Shah, Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency,
Bruce J. Tromberg, University of California, Irvine,
Usha Varshney, National Science Foundation, and
Paul Wehrenberg, Consultant.
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Contents
SUMMARY 1
1 INTRODUCTION 13
Motivation for This Study, 15
Enabling Technology, 16
Economic Issues, 17
Global Perspective, 18
Importance of Education, 18
Progress for the Future, 19
2 IMPACT OF PHOTONICS ON THE NATIONAL ECONOMY 20
Introduction, 20
The Economics of Photonics: A Case Study of Lasers, 21
The Economic Impact of the Laser, 22
Funding of Early Laser Development, 23
The Early Laser Market, 24
International Comparison, 25
Conclusions from the Laser Case Study, 27
Estimating the Economic Impact of Photonics—Industry Revenues,
Employment, and R&D Investment in the United States, 28
Government and Industrial Sources of R&D Funding in Photonics and
Federal Funding of Optics, 32
xiii
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xiv Contents
Changes in Photonics-based Innovations in the United States
Since 1980, 37
Venture Capital in Optics, 43
Markets for Technology, Intellectual Property, and U.S. University
Technology Licensing, 50
Models of Collaborative R&D and Implications for Photonics
Innovation, 52
Semiconductor Manufacturing Technology (SEMATECH), 54
Optoelectronics Industry Development Association (OIDA), 56
National Nanotechnology Initiative, 59
Summary Comments, 60
Proposed National Photonics Initiative, 61
Findings, 62
Recommendations, 63
3 COMMUNICATIONS, INFORMATION PROCESSING, AND
DATA STORAGE 64
Introduction, 64
Communications, 65
Information Processing, 69
Data Storage, 72
Impact Example: The Internet, 73
Technical Advances, 75
Communications, 75
Networking, 85
R&D Example Areas, 87
Information Processing, 88
Data Storage, 91
Manufacturing, 92
Communications, 92
Information Processing, 93
Data Storage, 94
Economic Impact, 94
Comparison Between the United States and the Rest of
the World, 96
Findings and Conclusions, 97
Recommendations and Grand Challenge Questions, 99
4 DEFENSE AND NATIONAL SECURITY 102
Introduction, 102
Optics and Photonics: Impact on Defense Systems, 104
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Contents xv
Technology Overview, 104
Changes Since the Harnessing Light Study, 105
Identification of Technological Opportunities from Recent
Advances, 108
Manufacturing, 121
U.S. Global Position, 122
Findings and Conclusions, 124
Recommendation and Grand Challenge Questions, 126
5 ENERGY 127
Introduction, 127
Solar Power, 130
Photovoltaic Systems, 133
Concentrated Solar Power Systems, 142
Hybrid Systems, 147
LCOE Outlook for Solar Power Compared to Other Current and
Possible Future Fuel Sources, 148
Solid-State Lighting, 150
Findings, 159
Recommendations and Grand Challenge Question, 160
6 HEALTH AND MEDICINE 163
Introduction, 163
Historical Overview of the Impact of Technology on Medicine, 164
Optics and Photonics in Medical Practice Today, 166
Advances in Technology Providing the Opportunity for New
Applications of Photonics, 168
Advances in Technology Providing the Opportunity for Future
Applications of Photonics, 169
Nucleic Acid Sequence Detection and Mutation Detection, 169
Proteomic Analysis Through Protein and Tissue Arrays, 171
High-Throughput Screening, 171
Flow Cytometry Mass Spectrometry, 174
Ophthalmology, 174
Image-Guided Surgery, 176
Dual Energy CT and Quantitative Image Analysis, 178
Biomedical Optics in Regenerative Medicine, 180
Biomedical Optics in Research, 180
Findings, 181
Recommendations, 183
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xvi Contents
7 ADVANCED MANUFACTURING 185
Introduction, 185
Production and Innovation in Photonics Technologies:
Three Case Studies, 186
Displays, 186
Solar Cells, 189
Optoelectronic Components for Communications Systems, 194
Similarities and Differences Among the Three Cases, 200
Advanced Manufacturing in Optics, 202
Optical Surfaces, 203
Aspherical Lenses, 204
Fabrication Processes and Equipment, 204
Applications of Photonics in Manufacturing, 205
Photolithography, 206
Lasers in Manufacturing, 211
Additive Manufacturing, 212
Stereolithography, 214
Selective Laser Sintering, 215
Laser Engineered Net Shaping, 217
Photonics and the Future of U.S. Manufacturing, 219
High-Volume Products, 220
Low-Volume Products, 221
The U.S. Manufacturing Workforce, 221
Findings, 223
Recommendations and Grand Challenge Question, 224
8 ADVANCED PHOTONIC MEASUREMENTS AND APPLICATIONS 226
Introduction, 226
Impact of Optics and Photonics on Sensing, Imaging, and Metrology, 227
Technology Overview, 230
Changes Since Harnessing Light, 232
Changes in SI Definitions, 232
Development of Attosecond Pulse Trains by Means of the
Generation of High Harmonics, 233
Table-top Availability of Extreme Intensities by Means of
Chirped-Pulse Amplification, 234
Nano-optics and Plasmonics, Negative-Index Materials, and
Transformation Optics, 235
Advances in Controlled Generation of Quantum Light States
and Their Manipulation and Detection, 236
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Contents xvii
High-Resolution Remote Sensing with Optical Synthetic
Aperture Radar, 239
Advances in Adaptive Optical Techniques, 239
Identification of Technological Opportunities from
Recent Advances, 239
Manufacturing, 244
U.S. Global Position, 244
Findings, 245
Recommendations and Grand Challenge Question, 246
9 STRATEGIC MATERIALS FOR OPTICS 248
Introduction, 248
Energy Applications, 249
Novel Structures: Sub-Wavelength Optics, Metamaterials, and
Photonic Crystals, 250
Technology Challenges of Nanostructured Materials, 254
Optical Materials in the Life Sciences and Synthetic Biology, 257
Findings, 258
Recommendations, 259
10 DISPLAYS 260
Introduction, 260
The Near Future, 262
Overview of Displays, 263
Liquid-Crystal Displays, 263
Touch Displays, 264
OLED Displays, 267
Flexible Displays, 268
Projection Displays, 269
Three-Dimensional Holographic Displays, 269
Display Product Manufacturing, 272
Findings, 272
Recommendations, 272
APPENDIXES
A Statement of Task, with Introductory Information 277
B Acronyms and Abbreviations 280
C Additional Technology Examples 288
D Biographies of Committee Members 331
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