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Keynote & Invited Speakers

From Monday, June 9, through Friday, June 13, 2025, Oral and Poster Sessions will take place in the Glenn Miller Ballroom, including an excellent lineup of Keynote & Invited Speakers.

Keynote Speakers

University of Colorado Boulder (USA)

Keynote Title Coming Soon

Prof. Steven M. George is Professor in the Dept. of Chemistry and Biochemistry and Dept. of Mechanical Engineering at the University of Colorado at Boulder. Dr. George received his B.S. in Chemistry from Yale University (1977) and his Ph.D. in Chemistry from the University of California at Berkeley (1983). Dr. George has more than 400 publications in the areas of thin film growth and etching, surface science, and physical chemistry. In addition, he currently has 16 issued U.S. or PCT patents and 12 U.S. or PCT patent applications undergoing review. Dr. George’s research interests are in the areas of surface chemistry, thin film growth and etching and nanostructure engineering. He is directing a research effort focusing on atomic layer deposition (ALD), atomic layer etching (ALE) and molecular layer deposition (MLD). This research is examining new surface chemistry, measuring thin film growth and etching rates, characterizing the properties of films and developing new reactors for ALD, ALE and MLD. Dr. George chaired the first Topical Conference on Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD2001) in May 2001. He has been on the Conference Committees of all subsequent ALD meetings. Dr. George teaches a one-day short course on ALD for the American Vacuum Society (AVS). He also was President of AVS (2014). Dr. George has received a number of awards including the ALD Innovation Award from the AVS International Conference on Atomic Layer Deposition (2013) and an R&D 100 Award for Particle-ALD™ (2004). Dr. George is a Fellow of the AVS (2000) and the APS (1997). He is also a co-founder of ALD NanoSolutions, Inc., a company that is working to commercialize ALD technology.

University at Albany, SUNY (USA)

Mueller-Matrix Spectroscopic Ellipsometry based Scatterometry: Optical Dimensional and Shape Analysis

Alain Diebold is Professor Emeritus and Empire Innovation Professor of Nanoscale Science in the College of Nanotechnology, Science and Engineering at the University at Albany, SUNY. Professor Diebold maintains an active, funded research program in the materials science of 2D materials and in the characterization and metrology of new semiconductor materials and structures. He is an AVS Fellow and a SPIE Fellow. Significant publications include a Fall 2021 book from Springer Nature entitled the Optical and Electrical Properties of Nanoscale Materials (co-author) and the Handbook of Silicon Semiconductor Metrology (editor and chapter author). Through collaboration with the industrial partners students and post-doctoral fellows have advanced the characterization and metrology of advanced materials and structures through Mueller Matix spectroscopic ellipsometry based scatterometry, microscopy, and both laboratory and synchrotron-based X-Ray methods.

Fudan University (China)

Half a Century of Spectroscopic Ellipsometry in China

Coming soon

Huazhong University of Science and Technology (China)

Advanced Mueller-Matrix Ellipsometry: Instrumentation and Emerging Applications

Prof. Shiyuan Liu received his PhD in mechanical engineering from Huazhong University of Science and Technology (HUST), Wuhan, China in 1998, and worked as a visiting scholar at University of Manchester, Manchester, UK from 2000 to 2001. He is currently a professor of mechanical engineering and a professor of optical engineering at HUST. His research interests include computational imaging and computational lithography, micro/nano measurement technology and instrumentation, optical metrology and defect inspection for semiconductor manufacturing, etc. Prof. Liu has led the development of a series of advanced and novel Mueller matrix ellipsometers, including a broadband Mueller matrix ellipsometer covering the ultraviolet-visible-infrared (UV-VIS-IR) region, a submicron-lateral-resolved imaging Mueller matrix ellipsometer, and a microsecond time-resolved high-speed Mueller matrix ellipsometer. He holds more than 100 patents and has authored or co-authored more than 200 peer-reviewed journal papers. He was elected a Council Member of International Committee of Measurements and Instrumentation (ICMI) in 2015, and was awarded the National Science Funds for Distinguished Young Scholars by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC). He is also a founder of Wuhan Eoptics Inc., a company that is working to commercialize spectroscopic ellipsometers.

Lund University (Sweden) 

THz Spectroscopic Ellipsometry and Its Future

Vanya Darakchieva is Professor in Materials Science at Lund University. She holds a PhD from Linköping University (2004). Her background is in semiconductor physics with focus on developing (ultra)wide bandgap semiconductors for high-frequency and power electronics. She is also developing spectroscopic ellipsometry techniques for studying electronic transport in materials from bulk to the nanoscale. Her research interests include Terahertz Ellipsometry and optical Hall effect and she is currently developing Terahertz-Electron-Paramagnetic-Resonance-Ellipsometry. She has established and she is leading two interdisciplinary centers: i) VINNOVA Competence center for III-Nitride technology – C3NiT-Janzén and ii) Terahertz Materials Analysis Center.  Her research project portfolio (PI~30 MEuro) includes awards from EU Commission, Vinnova, VR, SSF, ERC, KAW etc. She authored/co-authored 190+ peer reviewed journal papers.

New Mexico State University (USA)

Accurate Measurements of Optical Constants using Temperature-Dependent Ellipsometry and Comparison with k.p Theory

Stefan Zollner received his BS in Physics from Universität Regensburg (Germany) in 1983 and his MS in physics (1987) and Ph.D. in physics (1991) from Universität Stuttgart (Germany) and the Max-Planck-Institute for Solid State Research. After a postdoctoral year at the IBM Research Division in Yorktown Heights, NY, and a five-year appointment at Iowa State University and the Ames Laboratory (US-DOE), he worked as a semiconductor engineer (Motorola, Freescale, IBM) for 15 years in metrology and process integration. Since 2010, he has been the Head of the Department of Physics at New Mexico State University in Las Cruces, NM. His research interests include precision measurements of temperature-dependent optical constants using spectroscopic ellipsometry and their interpretation to determine basic properties of solids, ultrafast processes in semiconductors using femtosecond pump-probe laser spectroscopy, and the development of novel materials for applications in microelectronics and optoelectronics. Dr. Zollner is a Fellow of the American Physical Society and the American Vacuum Society and an IEEE Senior Member. He is an author of about 200 peer-reviewed journal articles.


Invited Speakers

David Aspnes

North Carolina State University (USA)

Removing Noise from Spectra: The Next 100 Years.

Shirly Espinoza

ELI Beamlines (Czech Republic)

Approaching Ultrafast Phenomena in Materials by Time-Resolved Ellipsometry

Kurt Hingerl

Johannes Kepler University Linz (Austria)

Can Imaging Ellipsometry Beat the Diffraction Limit?

Ufuk Kilic

University of Nebraska-Lincoln (USA)

Metamaterial Platforms: Harnessing Spectrally Controllable Strong Chiroptical Activity and Beyond

Taeyong Jo

Samsung (South Korea)

New Spectroscopic Ellipsometry Instrumentation for Application to the Semiconductor Industry

Peter Petrik

University of Debrecen (Hungary)

Low-Dimensional, Combinatorial and Periodic Structures for Sensing Catalysis – Characterization of Interface Process by In-Situ Spectroscopic Ellipsometry

Angelo Pierangelo

Institut Polytechnique De Paris (France)

Fast, High-Resolution Integrated Multispectral Mueller Ellipsometry for In-Vivo Biomedical Diagnostics

Viktor Rindert

Lund University (Sweden)

Exploring Paramagnetic Resonance through Mueller-Matrix Ellipsometry

Chris Sturm

Universität Leipzig (Germany)

Electromagnetic Waves in Optically Anisotropic Media: Presence and Propagation of Singular States


Refreshments will be served during session breaks and during poster sessions. Lunch will be served Sunday through Thursday.

Logo of the Platinum Sponsor: University of Nebraska-Lincoln, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
  • Fifth Announcement

    The international community of ellipsometry enthusiasts is set to meet at the 10th International Conference on Spectroscopic Ellipsometry (ICSE-10), scheduled for June 8-13, 2025, in Boulder, Colorado. This premier event serves as a platform for the

    • exchange of scientific and technological knowledge and recent advancements.
    • collaboration among professionals from academia, government, and industry.
    • development of an inclusive workforce for the future.

    ICSE-10 brings together a diverse group of experienced scientists and leaders, early career professionals, postdocs, plus graduate and undergraduate students—all in a breathtaking surrounding at the foothills of the Rocky Mountains.

    As Conference Registration is fast approaching, registration fees are currently anticipated at a rate of $900 for regular and $500 for student attendees, including all activities at no extra costs to participants. Please start preparing your arrangements for travel and accommodation. A block of reduced rates in Hotels is currently being negotiated. A budget of low-cost beds in Campus Lodging may subsidize selected early-career and student attendees.

    The comprehensive Technical Program will include a broad range of aspects in the field of ellipsometry and polarimetry, as well as related applications utilizing the polarization properties of light. Topics cover theory, instrumentation, and applications across physics, chemistry, material science, and life sciences, as well as engineering and metrology.

    Sunday, complimentary Tutorials will kick-off ICSE-10 with outstanding scientists teaching introductory and advanced aspects in emerging areas:

    Tatiana Novikova (Tutorial):
    Imaging Mueller Polarimetry: From Metrology to Biomedicine

    Mathias Schubert (Tutorial):
    The Eigenpolarization Model: A Physics Approach to Render the Susceptibility Tensors of Anisotropic Materials

    Nikolas Podraza (Tutorial):
    Data Analysis: Turning Bad Models into Good Results

    Erwin Kessels (Tutorial):
    In-Situ Spectroscopic Ellipsometry during Atomic Layer Deposition and Related Processes

    Frank Urban (Tutorial):
    Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning in Ellipsometry

    An Evening Reception will welcome our community from around the world in the warm atmosphere of the historic Chautauqua Dining Hall at the base of Boulder’s iconic Flatirons.

    Monday through Friday, Oral and Poster Sessions will take place in the Glenn Miller Ballroom, including an excellent lineup of Keynote & Invited Speakers:

    Steven M. George (Keynote):
    In-Situ Spectroscopic Ellipsometry Studies of Selective Atomic Layer Deposition and Etch Processes

    Alain Diebold (Keynote):
    Mueller-Matrix Spectroscopic Ellipsometry based Scatterometry: Optical Dimensional and Shape Analysis

    Yu-Xiang Zheng (Keynote):
    Half a Century of Spectroscopic Ellipsometry in China

    Shiyuan Liu (Keynote):
    Advanced Mueller-Matrix Ellipsometry: Instrumentation and Emerging Applications

    Vanya Darakchieva (Keynote):
    THz Spectroscopic Ellipsometry and Its Future

    Stefan Zollner (Keynote):
    Accurate Measurements of Optical Constants using Temperature-Dependent Ellipsometry and Comparison with k.p Theory

    David Aspnes (Invited):
    Removing Noise from Spectra: The Next 100 Years.

    Shirly Espinoza (Invited):
    Approaching Ultrafast Phenomena in Materials by Time-Resolved Ellipsometry

    Kurt Hingerl (Invited):
    Can Imaging Ellipsometry Beat the Diffraction Limit?

    Ufuk Kilic (Invited):
    Metamaterial Platforms: Harnessing Spectrally Controllable Strong Chiroptical Activity and Beyond

    Taeyong Jo (Invited):
    New Spectroscopic Ellipsometry Instrumentation for Application to the Semiconductor Industry

    Peter Petrik (Invited):
    Low-Dimensional, Combinatorial and Periodic Structures for Sensing Catalysis – Characterization of Interface Process by In-Situ Spectroscopic Ellipsometry

    Angelo Pierangelo (Invited):
    Fast, High-Resolution Integrated Multispectral Mueller Ellipsometry for In-Vivo Biomedical Diagnostics

    Viktor Rindert (Invited):
    Exploring Paramagnetic Resonance through Mueller-Matrix Ellipsometry

    Chris Sturm (Invited):
    Electromagnetic Waves in Optically Anisotropic Media: Presence and Propagation of Singular States

    A special session will be dedicated to aspects of Workforce Development for early-career professionals and students alike:

    Andy Antonelli (Keynote):
    Have Polarizer – Will Travel: The Need for Ellipsometry Expertise in Industry

    Shari Liss (Keynote):
    Workforce Development for Semiconductor Industry

    Refreshments will be served during session breaks and during poster sessions. Lunch will be served Sunday through Thursday.

    Wednesday, an Excursion to the Georgetown Loop Railroad will bring all attendees aboard an original 19th-century train steaming along old gold miners tracks and leaving fond memories for a lifetime. Afterwards, the Conference Dinner will offer an authentic American experience in the Byron R. White Club with spectacular views over Folsom Field, the home stadium of the Colorado Buffaloes football team.

    On Friday, the Awards ceremony will honor

    • a young scientist for exceptional contributions with the Paul Drude Award.
    • a senior community member for pioneering, lifetime achievements with the Hans Mueller Memorial Award and Lecture.
    • an individual, research group, company, or institution for outstanding innovation and creativity with the Innovation and Creativity Award.
    • students for the best oral presentation and the best poster with respective Student Awards.

    ICSE-10 will also feature a simultaneous, week-long Industry Exhibition in the Aspen Rooms next to the main venue. The organizers and attendees are grateful for a growing List of Sponsors that make this event possible.

    The organizing Committees look forward to seeing you in Boulder, Colorado, soon!

  • Fourth Announcement

    Dear colleagues,

    The ICSE-10 official website is now online.

    Stay tuned for important updates about the abstract submission timeline, conference schedule, award nominations, and speaker invitations.

    At this time we anticipate ICSE-10 to be a fully in-person meeting.

    Please encourage your colleagues and collaborators interested in participating to subscribe to our website icse10.ellipsometry.us

    Please direct questions and inquiries to icse10@ellipsometry.us

    We look forward to welcoming you to Boulder, Colorado June 8-13 2025.

    The ICSE-10 organizers

Logo of the Arbeitskreis Ellipsometrie (AKE) - Paul Drude e.V.