8th South African Conference on Photonic Materials 2019
The 8th biennial South African Conference on Photonic Materials (SACPM 2019) took place from 6 - 10 May 2019 at Kariega Game Reserve in the Eastern Cape of South Africa. The conference was organized by the Physics departments of the Nelson Mandela University, University of the Free State and the University of Pretoria, and was hosted by the Division for Physics of Condensed Matter and the Applied Physics Forum of the South African Institute of Physics.
"The purpose of the conference is to bring together scientists from Africa and abroad, researching various aspects of photonic materials (materials able to detect and emit photons). The continued search for better and more efficient methods of generating and harnessing light and other forms of radiation, will unquestionably continue to stimulate the development of novel optoelectronic technologies needed to facilitate industrial evolution. A primary goal of this special meeting has always been to provide our post-graduate stduents and emerging researchers with an opportunity to present their work to, and meet with, scientists whom they otherwise would not "know" through literature studies. This year was no exception, with nearly half of the 84 participants constituting post-graduate students, most of whom from previously disadvantaged groupds. This year's outstanding academic programme allowed for active debate around significant research questions in photonics", the chair of the meeting Prof André Venter said.
We were particularly privileged to have hosted nine esteemed invited speakers who travelled across the globe to share their research highlights at SACPM 2019.