Students Selected for Awards at SPIE Defense + Commercial Sensing 2024 Conference

June 3, 2024

Two students advised by Prof. Ron Driggers were selected for Awards at the SPIE Defense + Commercial Sensing 2024 Conference in April 2024. 

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Jordan Rubis

Jordan Rubis, PhD Student, was selected for the SPIE Infrared Imaging Systems 2024 Young Researcher Innovation Award. It recognizes Jordan's work and paper titled, "Techniques for measuring comparable lab and field MTFs" that she presented April 25, 2024 at the SPIE conference.

Jordan's paper discusses how Modulation Transfer Functions (MTFs) help evaluate how well an imaging system captures details, and are typically measured in a controlled lab setting. Real-world factors like atmospheric conditions and platform motion can blur images, so measuring MTFs in the field can help designers understand and compensate for these effects to ensure reliable sensor performance. Read Jordan's full abstract.

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Luke Somerville

Additionally, Luke Somerville, PhD Student, was selected for the SPIE 2024 Infrared Imaging Systems Best Presentation. This award recognizes Luke's paper presentation titled, "A comparison of reflected and emitted radiometric signal levels in SWIR, eSWIR, MWIR, and superband (SWIR through MWIR) optical systems" that he presented on April 24, 2024. 

Luke's paper covers how advancements in infrared detector technology now allow cameras to capture a wide range of wavelengths, combining both reflected and emitted light in one system. This innovation, known as superband cameras, enables more versatile and effective imaging, especially in fields that benefit from analyzing different light properties across various conditions like daylight, clouds, dusk, and night. Luke's paper compares the wavebands under a variety of solar illumination conditions. Read Luke's full abstract.

Congratulations to both Jordan and Luke on receiving these honors!