Analogous to the rising and falling incidences, many offices have been filling and emptying at regular intervals since last year. Some remain completely empty. Covid-19 has been making the world more digital. Ideas that have been in the drawer for a long time have now been and are being implemented in many places. Inhibitions about new technologies and working methods are being overcome. On the other hand, we are tired of the many web conferences and would like to have some exchange of ideas in the office kitchenette. Will we fall back into the old patterns after Corona?

Der ökonomische Schaden durch marines Biofouling wird auf einen Wert von ca. 200 Milliarden $ jährlich geschätzt, während sich der ökologische Schaden auf eine zusätzliche Emission an Kohlenstoffdioxid von 250 Millionen Tonnen jährlich beläuft. Biofouling ist die unerwünschte Ablagerung von organischem und anorganischem Material auf fest-flüssig Grenzflächen und betrifft viele verschiedene industrielle Zweige, wie z.B. die Medizin, die Lebensmittelindustrie und die marine Industrie. Mikrofluidik kann helfen, Beschichtungen so zu optimieren, dass Biofouling erschwert oder verhindert wird.

The pandemic is increasingly becoming a race: a neck-and-neck race between research, development and production of drugs and vaccines on the one hand and mutations on the other. Microfluidics can make all the difference in this race, because microfluidic components accelerate the speed of development and Lab-on-a-chip and chemical microreactors make mobile rapid tests possible and accelerate vaccine development.

Dr. Albert Hasper is CEO of PHIX B.V., a Dutch-based company, leading in assembling Photonic Integrated Circuits (PICs) and electronics into a single package, both for prototyping and customized full-scale production runs. On the occasion of the kick-off of the IVAM Focus Group Photonics, we talked to Albert Hasper, who will act as the future chairperson of the group, about the current challenges of the European photonics industry.

We are at the eve of major changes in society and economy: Quantum Technologies will have a leapfrog impact on almost all industries, healthcare, life-sciences, banking, logistics, communications, pharmaceuticals, aerospace, military, and public safety. This listing is far from being complete. The issue is not if but by when commercially meaningful applications, products and new services will become available.

Around 1.7 million people in Germany currently suffer from dementia. To provide them and their relatives with sustainable support and relieve caregivers in the long term, we are working with high-tech companies in the ZIM-network ‘KMU4DEMENTIA’ on innovative products such as technical assistance systems and software-based concepts. One example is the correct interpretation of patients' state of mind with the help of artificial intelligence.

Medical technology is a key growth sector in Japan and Germany. It is of great strategic importance in a health-conscious society. Also, the health systems in Japan and Germany face similar challenges, for example, steadily increasing demands due to demographic change.

In the medical market, the photonics industry is seeing new product launches that have specific requirements for health applications. Europe is a source of both application markets and innovative technologies. The session on laser and photonic applications, organized and carried out in cooperation with EPIC, shows examples from developers of photonic medical devices and their supply chains.

In Deutschland sind aktuell etwa 1,7 Millionen Menschen an Demenz erkrankt. Um sie und ihre Angehörigen nachhaltig zu unterstützen und Pflegende dauerhaft zu entlasten, arbeiten wir mit Hightech-Firmen im ZIM-Netzwerk KMU4DEMENTIA an innovativen Produkten, wie technischen Assistenzsystemen und softwarebasierten Konzepten. Ein Beispiel ist die korrekte Interpretation des Gemütszustandes bei Patienten mithilfe künstlicher Intelligenz.

Smart products are becoming a reality in more and more markets - including medical technology and health. The key technological pioneers in this development are intelligent sensors that not only collect data, but can also interpret and communicate. The market for medical technology is developing rapidly. Medical products are increasingly focusing on the patient and are becoming more and more functional and intelligent.