July/August 2017 Issue
Feature Articles
The Optics Workforce: Looking to the Future
Do concerns about job-killing robots and the uncertainties of the “gig economy” extend to optics and photonics?
by Patricia DaukantasFreeform Optics: Notes from the Revolution
Driven by advances in theory, computational speed, and design and fabrication ingenuity, freeform surfaces continue to make inroads in a range of applications.
by Stewart WillsOpening a Path to Commercialization
To smooth the academic-to-industry transition, one institution is experimenting with offering biomedical researchers pre-commercial open access to new optical imaging systems still under development. The approach, the authors of this case study suggest, can be a win on both sides.
by Teng-Leong Chew, Reed George, Alex Soell and Eric BetzigDepartments and Columns
A Journey to Equity and Diversity
A look at a New Zealand university’s efforts to make its physics department welcoming and fair to all.
The Paradoxical Passive-Optics Market
Thanks to a wide application space, innovation in passive optics is flourishing despite a complicated market.
Also in this Issue
Mazur visits student chapters; OSA at OFS; Congressional Visits Day in the U.S.; thanks to editors and volunteers.

![Manual probe system with needles for test of semiconductor on silicon wafer. [A. Morozov / Getty]](https://opnmedia.blob.core.windows.net/$web/opn/media/images/articles/2025/1125/departments/202511-cover-web.jpg?ext=.jpg)
![Researcher Clara Saraceno in the lab. [Image by Carsten Behler Photography]](https://opnmedia.blob.core.windows.net/$web/opn/media/images/articles/2025/1025/departments/202510-cover-web.jpg?ext=.jpg)