Dr. Stephen T. Lee
CEO at Caledonian Photonics Ltd
SPIE Involvement:
Author | Editor | Instructor
Area of Expertise:
laser resonator design , ultrafast oscillators and amplification , Zemax optical modelling , defence optronics , Q-switched lasers , physics
Websites:
Profile Summary

I am a laser physicist with 22 years of experience of product and technology development in academia, commercial and defence industries in the field of solid-state lasers.

I founded Caledonian Photonics Limited in 2018 to commercialise novel new high-reliability, environmentally-insensitive lasers & optics. We are currently engaged in product development activities and consultancy to the photonics industry.

From 2008 to 2017 I performed a number of roles at Thales UK, including Engineering Manager, Thales Expert in laser technolgy for robust operation in difficult environments, and Design Authority for the Defence Lasers Product Line. The products required specialist understanding of the design and manufacture of rugged, compact, low cost lasers for the defence market. My role covered technology R&D from original concept, through new product design and introduction, to product support in manufacturing and with the customer. I was also responsible for the production and maintenance of the Thales UK Lasers Technology Roadmap.

Prior to my time with Thales I worked for Coherent Inc from 2002-08 as a senior laser design engineer, in the field of ultrafast, diode-pumped all-solid-state laser design for commercial and scientific markets. In 2001 I worked for Sigtronics, a small start-up company in the field of PCB manufacturing. I led a small team researching next-generation technologies for fast prototyping of high-density PCBs, including the construction of a laser machining station to perform drilling and patterning operations.

From 1996-2000 I completed a PhD and a one year post-doctoral researcher contract at the University of Strathclyde Physics department. The subject of this research was mode-locking of diode-pumped, all-solid-state lasers, with an emphasis on semiconductor saturable absorber mirror mode-locking.
Publications (8)

Proceedings Article | 7 March 2019 Paper
D. Bremner, S. Lee, W. Dorward, S. Robertson, L. Caspani, S. Sørensen, L. McKnight
Proceedings Volume 10896, 108961J (2019) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2513290
KEYWORDS: Quantum key distribution, Crystals, Packaging, Phase matching, Polarization, Satellites, Photon polarization, Single photon, Optical filters, Computer programming

Proceedings Article | 4 March 2019 Paper
W. Dorward, S. Lee, D. Bremner, S. Robertson, B. Jones, C. Carson, L. McKnight
Proceedings Volume 10899, 1089908 (2019) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2513183
KEYWORDS: Laser applications, Packaging, Semiconductor lasers, Laser stabilization, Rubidium, Prototyping, Laser sources, Clocks, Sensors, Fiber coupled lasers

Proceedings Article | 25 October 2016 Paper
Calum Hill, Stephen Lee, Derryck Reid, Ghaya Baili, John Davies
Proceedings Volume 9992, 99920D (2016) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2242173
KEYWORDS: Fiber lasers, Modulators, Laser stabilization, Laser development, Optical isolators, Temperature metrology, Laser resonators, Mode locking, Pulsed laser operation, Fiber Bragg gratings

Proceedings Article | 17 May 2016 Paper
Adam Sroka, Susan Chan, Ryan Warburton, Genevieve Gariepy, Robert Henderson, Jonathan Leach, Daniele Faccio, Stephen Lee
Proceedings Volume 9822, 98220L (2016) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2223589
KEYWORDS: 3D modeling, Picosecond phenomena, Modeling, Pulsed laser operation, Target detection, Sensors, Laser scattering, Photons, Scattering, Data modeling

Proceedings Article | 13 May 2016 Paper
S. Lee, M. Silver, A. Barron, A. Borthwick, G. Morton, I. McRae, M. Coghill, C. Smith, C. Scouler, G. Gardiner, N. Imlach, C. McNeill, D. McSporran, D. Rodgers, D. Kerr, W. Alexander
Proceedings Volume 9834, 98340Q (2016) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2222989
KEYWORDS: Laser resonators, Mirrors, Target designation, Laser development, Temperature metrology, Resonators, Semiconductor lasers, Absorption, Pulsed laser operation, Laser applications

Showing 5 of 8 publications
Proceedings Volume Editor (1)

Conference Committee Involvement (9)
Advanced Optics for Imaging Applications: UV through LWIR IV
14 April 2019 | Baltimore, MD, United States
Advanced Optics for Defense Applications: UV through LWIR III
15 April 2018 | Orlando, FL, United States
Electro-Optical and Infrared Systems: Technology and Applications
13 September 2017 | Warsaw, Poland
Advanced Optics for Defense Applications: UV through LWIR II
9 April 2017 | Anaheim, CA, United States
Electro-Optical and Infrared Systems: Technology and Applications
28 September 2016 | Edinburgh, United Kingdom
Showing 5 of 9 Conference Committees
Course Instructor
SC1255: Solid-State Laser Design for Environmental Stability
Laser misalignment is a familiar phenomenon. Anyone who has endeavoured to build a laser resonator soon discovers the alignment precision required and that there can be a need for regular realignment to combat degrading performance. Lasers are sensitive to their environment through thermal, mechanical and atmospheric interactions and it is these interactions that cause laser performance to degrade if they are not given due consideration. This becomes ever more important as laser system sizes are reduced and they are taken from the laboratory and out into the field. This course will describe the mechanisms by which temperature, vibration, shock, humidity, contamination and vacuum interact with a solid-state laser and will present design approaches that mitigate these effects. If your laser is to be incorporated into a portable device, attached to a moving vehicle, used in defense applications, sent into space, or if your laser must survive being shipped to a customer and work reliably once it arrives, then you will benefit from this course.
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