Photonics is the science and technology of light. This includes lasers, optical systems and components, as well as fibre optics. Photonics is a £13.5bn industry in the UK. Photonics technology is used across various UK industries and in society, from optical communications and data storage to laser sensors for autonomous vehicles.
The KTN Enabling Technologies team supports 1,500+ photonics and photonics-enabled companies, and the vibrant UK photonics research base in the UK.
Our people create connections between photonics professionals and end-users in various sectors, from healthcare to AgriFood. This helps them fast-track the innovative technologies they’re working on.
The KTN supports the growth of UK photonics and is determined to promote the sector widely. We do this by working with photonics and related stakeholder groups and associations across the UK.
Our team has a deep expertise including photonics, laser, fibre, optical, optics, photovoltaic and imaging.
KTN is a partner in the European project which supports the Photonics21 platform. Photonics21 aims to establish Europe as a leader in the development of photonics technologies within applications fields such as ICT, lighting, industrial manufacturing, life science, safety, education and training.
We are proud to have contributed to the ground breaking horizon scanning report “Future horizons for photonics research 2030 and beyond”, released in September 2020 by the Photonics Leadership Group and the All-Party Parliamentary Group in Photonics and Quantum. We used our experience of online collaboration to support PLG in bringing together online 26 of the UK’s leading photonics researchers from 20 different institutions to ask “what will be the focus of photonics research a decade and more from now?”.
