PIONEAR partner Łukasiewicz – Institute of Microelectronics and Photonics presented the project’s latest progress at SPIE Photonics West 2026, the world’s largest optics and photonics technologies event.
PIONEAR was represented at SPIE Photonics West 2026 by Wioleta Słaba from Łukasiewicz – Institute of Microelectronics and Photonics (L-IMIF), who presented the project’s advances in electrically pumped vertical external cavity surface emitting lasers (VECSELs) for optical microphone applications.
SPIE Photonics West 2026 took place from 17 to 22 January 2026 at the Moscone Center in San Francisco, USA. The event is recognised as the largest annual conference and exhibition in optics and photonics, bringing together researchers, engineers, innovators and industry representatives from across the global photonics community. The programme covered key fields such as biomedical optics, biophotonics, industrial lasers, optoelectronics, microfabrication, quantum technologies, sensing, displays and emerging vision technologies.
Within the OPTO conference, which focuses on optoelectronic devices, components, materials and their integration for commercial applications, L-IMIF contributed to scientific discussions on semiconductor lasers, optical sensing technologies and emerging photonic materials. The PIONEAR-related contributions included two presentations:
Technology of Electrically Pumped Vertical External Cavity Surface Emitting Lasers for Optical Microphone Applications
Development of electrically pumped vertical external cavity surface emitting lasers for optical microphone applications
The presentations highlighted PIONEAR’s work on a new photonic microphone concept, where acoustic signals are encoded into shifts in laser frequency. This approach aims to enable ultra-low noise detection and a wide dynamic range compared with conventional microphone technologies. The work presented by L-IMIF covered the development of electrically pumped VECSELs, including a simplified fabrication flow for rapid evaluation of epitaxial material quality and experimental preparation of devices for micro-transfer printing.
A key focus was the integration of laser processing with micro-transfer-printing-compatible design. This enables functional VECSEL chips to be transferred into an acoustic chamber, supporting the development of the PIONEAR optical microphone platform. The presentation also addressed the optimisation of chip designs for successful transfer, including several design iterations that contributed to a more robust process using PDMS stamps.
Reflecting on the event, Wioleta Słaba noted that SPIE Photonics West 2026 offered an excellent opportunity to follow the latest advances in optics and photonics and to exchange ideas with researchers from both academia and industry. She highlighted the relevance of the OPTO conference for PIONEAR, particularly through presentations on semiconductor lasers, photonic integrated circuits, optical sensing technologies and emerging photonic materials.
For the PIONEAR team, the event provided valuable scientific feedback and new perspectives for the further development of electrically pumped VECSELs for optical microphone applications. Discussions with experts in laser technologies, together with exchanges during the presentation and poster sessions, supported the project’s ongoing work towards a complete workflow from VECSEL fabrication to successful integration into the optical microphone platform.
By presenting at SPIE Photonics West 2026, L-IMIF contributed to increasing the visibility of PIONEAR within the international optics and photonics community and demonstrated the project’s progress towards innovative photonic sensing solutions.
