01-15-09

Watt's Up

College of Optical Sciences News for January 15, 2009

Welcome Back Students!

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Kaleidoscopes for Everyone

Check out this great photo of our own Eustace Dereniak introducing a group of Michigan first graders to the joys of kaleidoscope-making. On the same trip, he also took over a third-grade class and introduced the students to a variety of science experiments. The students attend Sterling Elementary School in the Standish-Sterling Michigan area where Eustace grew up. For a larger image and to read the text accompanying the photo, please click on the thumbnail.

New Fellows

Both Charles Falco and Stanley Pau have been elected SPIE Fellows. Fellows are Members of distinction who have made significant scientific and technical contributions in the multidisciplinary fields of optics, photonics, and imaging. They are honored for their technical achievement, for their service to the general optics community, and to SPIE in particular.

Lars Furenlid has been elected into the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering's College of Fellows for his contributions to medical and biological engineering. The College of Fellows represents the top two percent of medical and biological engineers in the field.

Congratulations Charlie, Stanley, and Lars.

We're Number 3 on UA's List of Great News Stories for 2008

We're in pretty good company: along with news about our three-dimensional, dynamic holograms, other top UA news topics included the Phoenix Mars Mission, compression-only CPR, the HiRise photos and a few others. Read it all at http://uanews.org/node/23201

Special Program to Support Graduate Student Research in Imaging

Program: The University of Arizona announces a special program to support graduate students doing research in imaging. In response to the current research funding environment and loss of opportunities for graduate student support on teaching assistantships, emergency funds are being made available from the TRIF Optics/Imaging Initiative to help support research assistantships for graduate students working in the field of imaging. Graduate students in the physical sciences, mathematics, engineering, biological sciences, or social sciences are encouraged to apply. The funding is available to cover support during the 2009 spring semester. The program is not intended to support students who are currently working and supported on funded research projects, but rather to support students who have no funding or only partial funding available to support their work.

Support and Eligibility: Students must be in a Ph.D. degree program at the University of Arizona and working under the direction of a member of the University of Arizona faculty. A central focus of the applicant’s research work should be related to the development and/or novel utilization of imaging. Students can apply for partial or full RA support for the spring semester, but must provide a justification for the level of funding requested.

Application: Students applying to this program should send a CV with current GPA, and a one-page write-up describing: 1) their research project, 2) what funding, if any, is available to support the research; and 3) their status as far as completion of degree requirements and expected date of graduation. A letter from the faculty advisor is also required and should state the advisor’s assessment of the student’s ability and provide justification for the need for the requested support. Interested students or faculty can contact Ms. Maggie Gomez (gomez@radiology.arizona.edu) to inquire about the program. There is no deadline for the receipt of applications. However, support will begin on the approval date for those requests received and approved after the start of the spring semester.

Applications should be sent (or faxed) to: Special RA Support Program in Imaging, Attn: Maggie Gomez, University of Arizona, Building 211, Room 172, PO Box 245067, Tucson, AZ 85724-5067. Fax: (520) 626-3893.

Scholarship Opportunities: Deadlines are Coming Up

From Gail Varin. Please remember to check the scholarships Web page for new graduate scholarships/fellowships. Some scholarships have deadlines rapidly approaching. You can find more information about each scholarship by following the links. The scholarship Website is http://www.optics.arizona.edu/academics/ScholarshipsAvailableNow.htm

Scholarships with approaching deadlines are:

SPIE Scholarships: As a student, you represent the future of optics, photonics and imaging, as well as the future of the Society. SPIE has distributed over $2.5 million in awards through its scholarship program and will be awarding $292,000 in scholarships to students in 2009. Scholarships are available to high school, undergraduate and graduate students. Deadline: Today, January 15, 2009

NASA Aeronautics Scholarship Program: Fostering new generations of highly skilled scientists and engineers is critically important to the aeronautics community. ARMD, as part of its commitment to mastering the core competencies of aeronautics in all flight regimes, is restructuring its education program, including focusing investments in undergraduate and graduate education. ARMD is undertaking a new scholarship program focused on aeronautical research and related degree programs at both the undergraduate and graduate levels. Deadline: Tomorrow, January 16, 2009

Semiconductor Research Corporation - Global Research Collaboration (GRC) Graduate Fellowship Program: The Graduate Fellowship Program is open to students who: have US citizenship or permanent resident status, are pursuing an MS or PhD study and will be performing research under an approved sponsored research program. Full tuition and fees for up to five years of doctoral study, competitive stipend, annual gift of $2,000 to the department in which the student is enrolled. Includes Internship opportunities. Deadline: February 13, 2009

DEPS Scholarships 2009-2010: The Directed Energy Professional Society (DEPS) is the premier organization for the exchange of information on the development and application of directed energy, which includes both high energy lasers (HEL) and high power microwaves (HPM). DEPS fosters research and development of DE technology for national defense and civil applications through professional communication and education. The traditional academic disciplines involved in DE research include, but are not limited to, physics, electrical engineering, chemistry, chemical engineering, materials sciences, optical sciences, optical engineering, and aerospace engineering. This program offered partial scholarships of $10,000 for the 2008-2009 year. DEPS is seeking qualified scholarship candidates for 2009-2010. Deadline: April 1, 2009

Welcome Sara

From Bobbie Doss. Academic Programs has a new employee for their main office. Sara Soto, Curriculum & Events Coordinator, will be training 8:00 to 12:00 Monday through Friday 01-12-2009 – 01-23-2009; then will begin full time on January 26, 2009. Sara comes to us from UA's Mel and Enid Zuckerman College of Public Health. Sara will be working with the course curriculum, course scheduling RCS “Greenbars” and will also be responsible for event coordination including the Industrial Affiliates Workshop. Sara can be reached at 621-4111.

We welcome Sara to The College of Optical Sciences.

UA Service Awards

From Stella Hostetler. Each year UA has the opportunity to recognize employees who have served the University for 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40 or more years. They are honored at the Annual Service Awards Luncheon and presented with a gift. This will be held Wednesday, April 08, 2009. In addition to the luncheon, new retirees are honored at the private Retiree Dinner Reception, a private ceremony that Dr. Shelton will host on Thursday, April 16, 2009. If you have not already been contacted by Stella, and you feel you meet the criteria and are eligible to participate in either the Annual Service Awards Luncheon or the Retiree Dinner Reception, please contact her at hostetls@u.arizona.edu

Watts Happening

Happy Belated Birthday

Happy Birthday and Best Wishes for a Wonderful Year

January 15

Anael Guilmo (aguilmo@optics.arizona.edu)
Peter Hofmann (phofmann@optics.arizona.edu)
Roland Shack (roland.shack@optics.arizona.edu)
Vincent Wasson (vwasson@email.arizona.edu)

January 16

Fred Hickernell (f.hickernell@ieee.org)
Catherine Klaus

January 17

Guillaume Butel (gbutel@optics.arizona.edu)
Jason Lane (opticman@iwvisp.com)

January 19

Blake Crowther (blake.crowther@sdl.usu.edu)
Lucas Woodard (lwoodard@email.arizona.edu)

January 20

Chang Oh (cjoh@optics.arizona.edu)

January 21

Nick Bielat (nbielat@email.arizona.edu)
Wiley Black (wblack@optics.arizona.edu)
Roxanne Pizano (rpizano@optics.arizona.edu)

January 22

Bob Parks (reparks@optiper.com)
Babak Saif (saif@sTsci.edu)
Yasuyuki Unno
Bryan Watmore (bwatmore@optics.arizona.edu)

January 23

Shisen Du (sdu@optics.arizona.edu)
Allison Huff (allison@optics.arizona.edu)

January 24

Zachary Dowson (zrdowson@email.arizona.edu)
Steven Hubbard (shubbard@email.arizona.edu)
Andrew Rasmussen (arasmussen@optics.arizona.edu)

January 25

Peter Bartels (peter@catalina.opt-sci.arizona.edu
Masud Mansuripur (masud@optics.arizona.edu)

January 26

Leonard Brown

January 27

Stella Hostetler (hostetls@u.arizona.edu)

January 28

Fatih Ilhan (filhan@optics.arizona.edu)
Marty Valente (marty@optics.arizona.edu)

January 29

Brett Spencer (bspencer@optics.arizona.edu)

January 30

Goldie Gibbons (ggibbons@optics.arizona.edu)
Joseph Ortiz (jortiz@optics.arizona.edu)

January 31

Rob Kingston (rob.kingston@optics.arizona.edu)
Suhas Sridhar (svs1@email.arizona.edu)

February 1

Christopher Guido (guido@email.arizona.edu)

OSC Calendar

January 16

Sports Friday Soccer. 5:00 p.m. Location is either the UA Mall next to OSC or the field by the tennis courts.

January 26 - 29

Photonics West.

January 27

OSC Alumni Reunion.

January 28

Last day to sign up for spring 2009 prelims on January 17 and 18.

January 29

First OSC Colloquium.

January 29

Next issue of Watt's Up.

On Campus

January 16

Physics Colloquium. 2:15 p.m. Graduate student presentation. 4:00 p.m. Professor Peter M. Levy, New York University, will present The Origins of the Spintronics Revolution: an Idiosyncratic Survey of Spintronics from 1935 to the Present. PAS 224.

January 21

Mathematical Physics Seminar. 1:00 p.m. Math 402. Robert Sims, Department of Mathematics, University of Arizona, will present Locality Estimates for Classical Oscillator Systems.

Employment

Ball Aerospace is an OSC Industrial Affiliate at the Leadership Partners level.

Ball Aerospace. Technical Intern III, Optical. Job #58844. Boulder/Broomfield, Colorado. This particular Internship requires a Bachelor’s degree. However, please review Ball Aerospace’s website (address below) for other internship opportunities. This is a temporary full-time position during summer 2009.

Who We Are: Ball Aerospace is a leader in design, development and manufacture of innovative aerospace systems. We produce spacecraft, instruments and sensors, RF and microwave technologies, data exploitation solutions and a variety of advanced aerospace technologies and products that enable exciting missions. Ball Aerospace is known for its contributions in support of space and Earth science, exploration, national security and intelligence programs. We were also a pioneer in the development of the commercial remote sensing market, producing imaging systems and spacecraft that helped spawn a new market-driven demand for imagery. Our projects offer some of the most difficult and exciting challenges in aerospace. We employ approximately 3,000 talented engineers, scientists, technicians and support staff. And one of the keys to our success is our people. Our employees take great pride in their contributions to better understanding our planet and protecting the nation.

Summer Intern Program: The Ball Aerospace Internship Program is a ten week summer program that provides candidates with: Practical experience on relevant aerospace and telecommunication projects while working with designated mentors. A competitive salary. Access to state-of-the-art equipment. Possible future employment. Housing assistance. Relocation reimbursement. In-house training.

Group activities: There are many recreational opportunities along the Colorado Front Range. Our state is famous for its skiing, hiking, biking, mountain climbing and beautiful scenery. We are also just 30 minutes from Denver, with access to all of the amenities that the mile high city has to offer. Over the course of a summer session, students are encouraged to participate in social and recreational activities, many of which are organized by the college relations department. Mentors and department co-workers enjoy spending time with students at many of the activities.

What You´ll Do as an Intern: Will be involved in the Airborne Sensors Initiative (ASI) and Electro-Optical Sensors Initiative. Will participate in laboratory characterization and airborne field testing of electro-optical instruments and reduction of collected data.

What You´ll Need: Completion of Bachelor´s degree and enrollment in a Masters or PhD in Physics, Engineering, or Atmospheric Sciences. Enrollment in a degree program for the fall 2009 semester. An interest in remote sensing instrumentation and science applications of remote sensing data. Familiarity with at least one of the following software packages: IDL, LabView, or MatLab. Radiometric knowledge, basic mechanical and electronic skills desired. Good interpersonal skills and ability to work effectively in a team environment.

You are welcome to apply for more than one type of internship (for example, Software Engineering and Electrical Engineering), however, we recommend only applying to one of these levels when submitting your resume: Intern I = Between Sophomore and Junior year of Bachelor´s Degree, Intern II = Between Junior and earning Bachelor´s Degree, or Intern III = After Bachelor's Degree has been obtained, starting or continuing working towards Masters degree or PHD.

Equal Opportunity Employer M/F/D/V. U.S. Citizenship or Permanent Residency is required. To apply for this position, and to view all open positions at Ball Aerospace, please go to www.ballaerospace.com/careers. All internship postings are located under the Job Function "Internship".

Information Session -- Night Vision and Electronic Sensors Directorate. NVESD will be conducting an information session on February 19 from 4:00 to 8:00 p.m. and will hond on-campus interviews on February 20. Please stop by the Academic Programs office to sign up if you plan to attend the information session.

NVESD is currently hiring electrical, optical, and computer engineers and physicists with bachelor’s or master’s degrees to work at its Fort Belvoir, Virginia laboratory facility. NVESD offers excellent career advancement to its entry-level engineers and scientists, hands-on technical assignments and advanced degree training opportunities.

About Night Vision: The Night Vision and Electronic Sensors Directorate (NVESD) provides the United States Army and Department of Defense with technology solutions for night vision and electronic sensors and sensor suites for target acquisition, engagement and defeat of enemy forces, day or night, and under all battlefield and weather conditions. NVESD’s primary research and development activities are in the areas of thermal imaging, low energy lasers, short wave infrared, image intensification, aided target recognition technology, sensor fusion, force protection, mine detection and neutralization and humanitarian demining.

Business areas at Night Vision: Ground combat sensors -- Develop combat vehicle, soldier and Unmanned Ground Vehicle (UGV) sensor systems to acquire and target enemy forces and for night fighting and driving. Air sensors -- Develop rotocraft and Unmanned Air Vehicle (UAV) sensor systems to acquire and target enemy forces and for pilotage. Countermine: Develop systems to detect and neutralize mines, minefields and unexploded ordnance for military and humanitarian demining operations. Science and Technology: Conduct research and foster maturation of Electro-Optics/Infrared (EO/IR) and countermine sensor components and of Aided Target Recognition (ATR) signal processing schemes. modeling and Simulation: Develop models and simulations and perform sensor component and systems performances analyses. Special products and prototyping: Develop unique systems to protect forward troops, fixed installations and rear echelons from enemy intrusion.

Current U.S. citizenship is required.

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Students: When you graduate and leave OSC, your subscription to Watt's Up automatically expires. If you would like to continue your subscription, you may add (and later remove if you wish) your name to our Watt's Up listserv by visiting http://www.optics.arizona.edu/helpdesk/listserv.htm

Cathy Alexander

Information Specialist Coordinator

College of Optical Sciences, University of Arizona

cathy.alexander@optics.arizona

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