Photonics | Interview with Prof. Dr. Boris Malomed—Event Chair of the 2nd International Online Conference on Photonics (IOCP 2026)

1. To begin, could you please introduce yourself, including your name, current position, and institutional affiliation?
I am a professor at the Dept. of Physical Electronics, School of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Tel Aviv University, Israel. I assume the most essential characteristic of my research work is provided by my h-index, which is 97 (Web of Science), 100 (Scopus), and 114 (Google Scholar). My research work started in 1977. Since then, I have published ca. 1,300 papers, with the total number of citations exceeding 63,000. I am a recipient of the Nonlinear Science and Complexity 2025 Lagrange Award for lifetime achievement in Nonlinear Physical Science and a senior member of Optica (a.k.a. Optical Society of America). My research interests include, in particular, nonlinear optics, quantum matter (in particular, Bose–Einstein condensates), lattice dynamics, and the general theory of nonlinear waves, solitons, and dissipative nonlinear patterns.

2. What first sparked your interest in this field, and who or what has been most influential in shaping your research journey?
My interest in theoretical studies of diverse aspects of “nonlinear science” was initiated long ago in the course of my work on my PhD project, in which my adviser was a famous physicist, Yakov B. Zeldovich.

3. Could you describe your current research focus and share any recent developments or key findings with us?
The current research is focused, in particular, on multidimensional solitons in optics and quantum matter, found states of optical solitons in fiber lasers, bound states in quantum mechanics with singular potentials, etc.

4. What major challenges have you encountered in your research, and how have you addressed them?
Probably, the highest challenge, which I was able to resolve only in part, is the realization of many theoretical predictions in real experiments (in particular, in optics and Bose–Einstein condensates).

5. Are there any key publications or resources you would recommend for attendees who wish to prepare for this conference?
I do not think this is possible, in view of the great variety of topics comprised by the conference.

6. In your view, what distinguishes IOCP 2026 from other conferences in the field? What are the main benefits of participating in this conference?
An essential aspect is that the conference is intended to cover many diverse subjects in optics, photonics, and related fields of research. Both the theory and experiment will be covered.

7. As the event Chair, what do you hope this conference will offer to scholars and researchers worldwide?
A possibility to learn what is going on not only in narrow topics in which the participants are specialized, but also in the broad area of modern optics and photonics.

8. What are your views on recent trends and developments in open-access publishing, particularly in the field of optics and photonics research?
In my opinion, this publishing model features both advantages and problems. The advantage is that publications are free to be read by anyone who is interested. On the other hand, it may bring financial pressure to some researchers. I recommend that publishers offer more preferential policies to support the smooth publication of more high-quality work.

9. What do you see as the most important emerging or “hot” topics in Photonics over the next few years, and why?
This strongly depends on personal specialization and may be quite different for different theorists and experimentalists. In particular, studies of various topological structures in optics and photonics, both linear and nonlinear, will remain a general topic of great interest.

Introduction of IOCP 2026

Conference date: 14–16 December 2026;
Deadline for abstract submission: 17 August 2026;
Deadline for registration: 9 December 2026.

Conference Chairs:

• Prof. Dr. Boris Malomed, Department of Interdisciplinary Studies, the Iby and Aladar Fleischman Faculty of Engineering, Tel Aviv University, Israel;
• Prof. Dr. Pasquale Pagliusi, Department of Physics, University of Calabria, Rende, Italy.

For more details, please visit https://sciforum.net/event/IOCP2026.

For any inquiries regarding the event, please contact iocp2026@mdpi.com.