U.S. Congress establishes optics and photonics core group to increase investment in optics

To boost U.S. manufacturing capacity and promote innovation, on Wednesday, the U.S. Congress announced the establishment of an optics and photonics caucus.
The group aims to develop optical based technology in the United States by increasing public or private investment and increasing the number of skilled optical technicians.
"The purpose of [the group] is to ensure that our country remains ahead of the rest of the world in fundamental optical technology innovation," said US congressman Joe morelle, founder of the core group on optics and photonics. It's no exaggeration to say that [optics and photonics] light up our future
It is reported that Joe morelle's constituency includes Rochester, an important optical town in the United States, where the world-famous optical companies Kodak and Bausch & Lomb are located.
At present, the US Department of defense and the national photonics program are optimistic about the establishment of the optics and photonics core group.
Ed white, chairman of the national photonics program of the United States, pointed out that the field of Optics and photonics is closely related to semiconductors, and the manufacturing and packaging processes of photonic integrated circuits are consistent with those of semiconductor integrated circuits. Therefore, the society of Optics and photonics benefits from the rapid development of current semiconductor technology.
Ed white predicts that all-optical processors may be available in the next 20 to 30 years, based on the current progress in the design and performance of CPUs.
In addition, the U.S. Department of defense also supports photonics technology innovation and expanding the manufacturing scale of the optical industry. In November 2020, the Pentagon released the national imperative for industrial skills program, which includes the establishment of a precision optics alliance to promote the technology, This may be because the United States currently has a variety of weapons and equipment relying on precision optical technology for production.
Adele Ratcliffe, director of industrial infrastructure analysis and maintenance at the Defense Department's office of industrial policy, said the United States needs to maintain a sufficient number of skilled workers in this field.
He believes that the US government needs to increase the scale of investment in the optical field, build a bridge between scientific research and application, and speed up the development of technology in this field.
At present, the United States is committed to improving its technical strength in semiconductor, AI, quantum computing and other fields. Its congress is considering subsidizing the cost of setting up factories in fields such as semiconductors, and the bipartisan panel led by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer also plans to propose funding bills for key technologies such as semiconductors. However, it is not clear whether these bills can share the costs of R & D and personnel training in optical technology.
U.S. multi field layout to accelerate the development of emerging technologies
Photonic integrated circuit is widely used in industry, military, economy and other fields, and it is also the basis of optical network communication and photonic computing.
The United States recently accelerated the layout of many emerging technology fields through legislation and executive orders, hoping to promote technological development and increase manufacturing jobs. The establishment of the optics and Photonics Group of Congress is one of its layouts in the field of Optics and photonics.