Please note, preferably register only one person per company for best possible networking.
The EPIC Technology Meeting on Photonics for Quantum Applications takes place to explore together the transformative potential of quantum photonics across key industries. Taking place right after the famous ECOC 2025 Expo, this event will also discuss the overlap of quantum and communication technologies, with a particular focus on quantum communications. Hosted by NKT Photonics, a leading supplier of high-performance fiber lasers and photonic crystal fibers, the meeting will foster in-depth discussions on the latest technological advancements, bridging the gap between technology providers and end users. Attendees, including current and future stakeholders, will explore cutting-edge developments, practical implementations, and future trends, providing a comprehensive understanding of quantum photonics’ impact on various sectors. Additionally, invited end-users and investors will gain insights into emerging opportunities within this rapidly evolving field. The event will feature a lot of executive-level networking, offering unparalleled opportunities for high-level collaborations and EPIC connections.
Participants’ biographies, photos and company descriptions are available HERE
Basil Garabet (President & CEO) has successfully grown the company since 2015. Basil is a serial entrepreneur with a 40-year tenure in Photonics where he has started, led and turned round a number of International Photonics companies. Basil’s career has spanned leading positions in JK Lasers, EM4, Altitun, Melles Griot and Lasertron. Basil is closely involved in promoting Photonics globally, especially research in new applications such as Quantum, and performs numerous honorary duties including Board seats on EPIC, Bifrost Communication, and the Danish Quantum Community. Basil holds an MSc in Lasers and Their Applications. Basil Garabet is President of the EPIC Board of Directors.
Felix Passmann (Engineering Team Leader) leads the Koheras Quantum Solutions division, driving project-based R&D in optical fiber technology for quantum sensing and computing. Since joining NKT Photonics in 2021, he has contributed to advancing narrow linewidth, low-noise laser systems tailored for the quantum and nanotechnology markets. Prior to his industry career, Felix worked as a Postdoctoral Researcher at the Niels Bohr Institute, University of Copenhagen, where he focused on prototyping topological quantum bits and developing advanced nano-scale electronic circuits. He also held research positions at TU Dortmund University, the Ioffe Institute, West Virginia University, and Stockholm University, gaining extensive international experience at the intersection of quantum physics and photonics. Felix holds a PhD in Physics (summa cum laude), a Master of Science in Physics, and a Bachelor of Science in Physics, all from TU Dortmund University.
Jerome Prieur (President & CEO) has over 20 years of experience leading companies in photonics, lasers, and optical fiber communication systems. He co-founded AUREA Technology in 2010 and has been instrumental in driving its growth and innovation. Previously, Jerome served as Vice President of Sales at VPIsystems and as Director of Sales North America at Photonis and SmartQuantum. He has also played a key role in launching five high-tech start-ups in Europe and the United States. He holds an M.Sc. in Laser and Opto-Electronics from Heriot-Watt / St Andrews University and Sorbonne University Pierre et Marie Curie, a degree from Toulouse Business School, and executive training from EM Lyon Business School.
Axel Schönbeck (CEO & Co-Founder) studied physics in Hannover and spent two semesters at the University of Queensland in 2011. Afterwards, he worked on nonlinear optics and the generation of optical quantum states in his master and PhD thesis. He then started working on the development of commercial sources for squeezed states of light with his team and Co-founded Noisy Labs in 2023.
Stephan Ritter (Senior Director Quantum Technology Solutions) obtained his PhD degree in physics from ETH Zurich, introducing the capability to detect single atoms to the study of Bose-Einstein condensates and working on phase transitions and cavity optomechanics. He then joined the Max-Planck-Institute of Quantum Optics in Garching, Germany, to develop single atoms in high-finesse optical resonators into universal nodes of an elementary quantum network. In 2017, Stephan joined TOPTICA as the expert for quantum technology (QT) applications with several roles in the Business Unit Quantum Technologies. In 2020, he co-founded the Quantum Technology Solutions team at TOPTICA and currently serves as its Senior Director. His team performs research on, develops and produces an optical single-ion clock and prototypical photonics solutions for quantum technologies. He is a member of the Executive Team of the European Quantum Internet Alliance (QIA) and of the Advisory Board of the German joint quantum-repeater-link project QR.N.
Eric Mounier (Chief Analyst) is Fellow Analyst at Yole Group (Yole), with more than 25+ years of experience within the semiconductor industry. He provides daily in-depth insights into current and future semiconductor trends, markets and innovative technologies (such as Quantum computing, Si photonics, new sensing technologies, new type of sensors ...). Based on relevant methodological expertise and a strong technological background, he works closely with all the teams at Yole to point out disruptive technologies and analyze and present business opportunities through technology & market reports and custom consulting projects. With numerous internal workshops on technologies, methodologies, best practices and more, Yole’s Fellow Analyst ensures the training of Yole’s Technology & Market Analysts. In this position, he has spoken in numerous international conferences, presenting his vision of the semiconductor industry and latest technical innovations. He has also authored or co-authored more than 100 papers as well as more than 120 Yole’s technology & market reports. Previously, Eric held R&D and Marketing positions at CEA Leti (France). Eric has a PhD. in Semiconductor Engineering and a degree in Optoelectronics from the National Polytechnic Institute of Grenoble (France).
Martin Schell (Executive Director) studied physics at the RWTH Aachen University and took his PhD in 1993 at the Technical University of Berlin. Following a one-year research post at the University of Tokyo, Martin worked from 1995 to 2000 as a management consultant for high tech and energy at the Boston Consulting Group. Before he joined Fraunhofer HHI as head of the Photonic Components department in 2005, he was head of production at Infineon Fiber Optic Technologies. Since 2012, he is professor for optical and optoelectronic Integration at Technical University Berlin. Since 2014, Martin leads Fraunhofer HHI together with Thomas Wiegand. From 2015 to 2021, Martin was member of the EPIC Board of Directors, and from 2019 to 2021 member of the Jenoptik Science Advisory Board. He is head of the board of OpTecBB, a network of 100 photonic companies and institutions in Berlin and Brandenburg.
Catherine White (Senior Researcher) focuses on optical and quantum technologies, contributing to cutting-edge research in quantum simulation and nanoscale device transport. She has extensive experience in data acquisition, technical support, and systems engineering, spanning both academic and industry settings. Prior to joining BT Group, Catherine held research positions at Imperial College London, supporting postgraduate projects in data acquisition and consultancy, and worked at Adept Scientific designing test and measurement solutions. Earlier roles include Data Systems Engineer at Capscan Ltd and Observatory Technician at University College London, where she developed instrumentation and supported observatory operations. Catherine earned her PhD in Quantum Simulation of Transport in Coherent Nanoscale Devices from Imperial College London, a 1st Class Honours degree in Physics from Birkbeck, University of London, and an HNC in Electronic Engineering from South Thames Technical College.
Alex Borodkin (RnD engineer) has been with Innolume since March 2023, serving as a Research and Development Engineer. Prior to this, he was a PhD Researcher at the Institut de Physique de Nice (INPHYNI) from December 2020 to June 2023. Alex also spent over six years at ITMO University, initially as a Scientific Researcher and later as a PhD Student. He was a Teaching Assistant between 2020 and 2023.
Trevor Demille (Head of Quantum Components and Laboratories) completed his Doctor of Philosophy (PhD) in Material Physics from the University of Notre Dame in 2021. Prior to this, he earned his Master of Science (MS) in Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering from the same institution in 2020. Trevor is currently the Head of Quantum Hardware R&D at QuiX Quantum, where he leads experimental research for photonic quantum computer components. Previously, he was a Senior Photonics Development Engineer at Intel Corporation, focusing on integrated photonics processes.
Sander Dorenbos (CEO & Co-founder) received his PhD from Delft University of Technology on the development of Superconducting Nanowire Single Photon Detectors. He then co-founded Single Quantum to commercialize these type of detectors and has served as the CEO since 2014.
Harriet van der Vliet (Head of Strategic R&D Markets) has been the Head of Strategic R&D Markets at Oxford Instruments since January 2025, having previously held such roles as Product Segment Manager for Quantum Technologies and a Quantum Engineer. Prior to this she received her PhD in quantum physics, specializing in current sensing noise thermometry and ultralow temperature engineering, from Royal Holloway, University of London’s Quantum Fluids and Solids group, The London Low Temperature Laboratory in 2017.
Cesare Alfieri (Technical Sales Manager & Business Developer Quantum) After having worked at CERN on the LHCb Scintillating Fibre Tracker for his Master Thesis, Dr. Cesare Alfieri obtained a Ph.D. in Physics at ETH with a thesis on ultrafast semiconductor disk lasers. He moved to industry and joined Diamond SA as Sales Responsible for Optics and Photonics markets. At FEMTOPRINT SA, Dr Alfieri has managed the engineers of the Prototyping team and covers now the roles of Technical Sales Manager and Responsible for the technical and business development of the Quantum activities.
Richard Zeltner (R&D Group Leader) holds a PhD on photonic crystal fibers and their applications from the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg. In spring 2019 he joined Menlo Systems, a leading supplier and developer of laser systems for quantum technologies and precision metrology, for a project management and business development position, with a particular focus on establishing new R&D collaborations and technology partnerships. Since spring 2023 Richard is a R&D group leader in charge of the company´s activities on optical clocks, photonic systems for quantum technology and photonic integrated circuitry.
Niels Quack (Managing Director) received a Master of Science degree from the Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL) in 2005, and a PhD from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich (ETH) in 2010. From 2011 to 2015, he was postdoctoral and visiting researcher at the Integrated Photonics Laboratory and Berkeley Sensor and Actuator Center (BSAC), University of California Berkeley. From 2014 to 2015, he was Senior MEMS Engineer at Sercalo Microtechnology, Neuchâtel. From 2015 to 2021 he held a Swiss National Science Foundation professorship at EPFL, and from 2022 he was Associate Professor of Micro and Nano Systems at the University of Sydney in Australia. Since 2024, he had been Academic Director of the Research and Prototype Foundry at the University of Sydney. Since April 2025 he is Honorary Professor at the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Sydney. Prof. Quack was recognized as a Top 100 Innovators in Photonics by ElectroOptics in 2024, awarded the Sydney University Postgraduate Representative Association (SUPRA) Supervisor of the Year Award in 2023, and the Sydney Research Accelerator Prize in 2022. Prof. Quack is a SPIE Fellow, IEEE Senior Member, Optica Senior Member and Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors (GAICD).
Noel Farrugia (CTO) is the current CTO of Merqury Cybersecurity, a quantum focused start-up aimed at providing quantum safe solutions for all. He is a computer engineer by training and obtained his PhD from the University of Malta. His PhD focused on multi-objective optimisation applied on computer networks using the SDN architecture. Apart from this academic background, Noel spent several years in the industry both as a developer and team leader.
