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Institut d'optique Graduate School facts for kids

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Institut d'optique Graduate School
Logo IOGS UPS.svg
Other name
SupOptique
Type Grande école
Established 1917
Parent institution
Paris-Saclay University
President Elisabeth Giacobino
Director Rémi Carminati [fr]
Academic staff
50
Administrative staff
200
Students 600 (400 in MScEng, 50 in MSc, 150 in PhD)
Postgraduates 450
150
Address
2 avenue Augustin Fresnel, Palaiseau
,
Paris-Saclay (Palaiseau & Orsay), Saint-Etienne, Bordeaux
,
France
Campus Campus Paris-Saclay
Affiliations ParisTech

The Institut d'optique Graduate School, often called SupOptique or IOGS, is a special engineering school in France. It is part of Paris-Saclay University and ParisTech. This school is famous for teaching students all about optics, which is the science of light. It trains future engineers and researchers in fields like telecommunications, biology, and space technology.

History of SupOptique

The idea for the Institut d'Optique came from Armand de Gramont, a wealthy industrialist. In 1916, Gramont and Henri Chrétien, a French astronomer, were working together. They decided to create a school focused on teaching optics.

Armand de Gramont
Armand de Gramont

Gramont also met Charles Fabry, a scientist famous for showing that the ozone layer exists. On October 21, 1916, Gramont discussed his idea with government ministers. This led to a committee being formed to plan the new institute.

Opening the School

In November 1917, the first board meeting was held. The school officially opened in 1920 as the École supérieure d'optique (ESO). It was part of the Institut d'optique théorique et appliquée. The goal was to train engineers for France's optics industry. It is the oldest and largest school for optics education and research in the world.

Modern Name and Focus

The Institut d'optique Graduate School provides a high-level science education. It is especially for students from France's Classe préparatoire aux grandes écoles. The school trains engineers to work in many areas of optics. These include telecommunications, biology, energy, and aerospace engineering. It also trains researchers and teachers in optics and physics. Since 2006, the school has been known as the Institut d'optique Graduate School.

Academics at SupOptique

Many famous French optical scientists have been connected with SupOptique. These include Henri Chrétien, Charles Fabry, André Maréchal, and Alain Aspect.

As of 2006, the school had 50 full-time teachers and researchers. It also had 241 students in its engineering program. Additionally, there were 15 students in a national research master's program. About 40 students were working on their doctoral degrees.

Research and Discoveries

Most research groups at SupOptique are part of the Charles Fabry Laboratory. This lab works with the CNRS and Université Paris-Sud. Patrick Georges is the director of the laboratory. In 2022, the lab had 64 permanent staff and 67 PhD students.

Key Research Areas

The laboratory has several exciting research groups:

  • Quantum Gases: This group studies very cold atoms. They look at how these atoms behave and can even create Bose-Einstein condensates. These are special states of matter.
Strontium 88 MOT at IOGS
A cloud of strontium atoms cooled to very low temperatures in a magneto-optical trap.
  • Quantum Optics: This group explores the basic rules of quantum mechanics. They work on quantum communication and creating special light states. They also study how light interacts with atoms.
  • Imaging and Information: This group focuses on digital image processing. They also work on adaptive optics, which helps improve image quality.
  • Nanophotonics & Electromagnetism: This group designs tiny optical devices and new materials. They explore how light behaves at very small scales.
  • Laser Group: This group develops new types of lasers. They create very short light pulses and work with different laser systems.
  • Biophotonics Group: This group uses light to study living things. They work on imaging inside the body and studying tiny biological molecules.
  • XUV Optics Group: This group designs and builds special mirrors for telescopes and microscopes. They made mirrors for the STEREO mission for NASA. They also made parts for the Solar Orbiter's EUI instrument.
StereoNASA
The STEREO satellite uses mirrors made at Institut d'Optique.
  • Non-linear Photonics Group: This group studies how light interacts with materials in unusual ways.

See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Escuela de Graduados del Instituto de Óptica para niños

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