This NSF Workshop, being held on Oct. 21-22, 2002, will serve the dual purpose of: (a) reviewing the research accomplishments of the first year of the NSF 01-65 Program, and (b) identifying future research needs and opportunities that may serve as the basis for a follow-on Initiative on this topic in FY 2003. A portion of the invited presentations will specifically draw in new communities to the Workshop that may be represented in a subsequent new Program Initiative.
The first day of the Workshop will consist of: (1) a plenary presentation that will set the tone of the developing research area, (2) 19 grantee presentations (15 min. each) that will review the research results of the first year of the program and will discuss broad issues that may not relate to their own research interests, (3) approximately 5 invited presentations (30 min. each) that come from NSF Directorates other than ECS and that will deal with new challenges and opportunities in this important area, and (4) a dinner speaker on industrial technology roadmaps. The second day will be dedicated to approximately four breakout discussion sessions, details of writing the final report, and issues related to a subsequent NSF Program Initiative that will be a follow-on to NSF 01-65. The Workshop will allow time to address important new research challenges and breakthrough technologies, especially those not fully addressed in the first program announcement.
The location for the workshop will be the Hyatt Regency Crystal City in Arlington, VA. We expect to have approximately 80 participants, with 65 coming from academia and industry and the remainder coming from government. Specifically, this proposal addresses: (1) a description and rationale for the workshop, (2) a list of potential speakers to be considered, (3) a list of the NSF 01-65 grantees, (4) a tentative agenda, (5) a proposed Workshop budget, (6) website material from the 2000 Workshop, and (6) the actual NSF 01-65 Program Solicitation.
The Workshop will explore research opportunities in critical enabling technologies, with the goal of assuring continued bandwidth and capacity growth in optical communication systems and networks throughout the next 10 years. The Workshop will address forward-looking and high-impact research. Moreover, the workshop will explore how the NSF can play a strategic role in alleviating the workforce issues in a troubled optical communications industry. The final report prepared by the Workshop participants will detail important challenges, both fundamental and technological, that are likely to be at the forefront of this field for many years to come.
