The Division of Optics
at the University of Warsaw

The University of Warsaw (UW) is the largest university in Poland. It consists of 21 faculties and a community of over 53,000 students and 3,600 lecturers. It ranks in the top 3% of the Shanghai ranking of universities worldwide and has six Nobel Prize winners among its graduates.

The Faculty of Physics has contributed greatly to the unquestionable success of the UW. Together with the Faculty of Mathematics and Mechanics, as the only two faculties of higher education in Poland, it is ranked in the top 100 of the world ranking. The “Ochota” Campus, which consists of the Faculty of Physics, the Faculty of Chemistry, the Centre for New Technologies and other natural science faculties, creates an excellent environment for conducting scientific research at the highest level, often in cooperation with leading scientific groups from around the world. UW also belongs to the 4EU+ Alliance, which brings together the best universities in Europe.

The Division of Optics in numbers

1960

Year of establishment

442

Publications

42

People

33

Completed research projects

6

Research groups

Optics at the University of Warsaw

Optics and photonics are well-established but still rapidly evolving fields of research and technology. Many discoveries that have dramatically transformed our civilization stem from those two branches of physics.

Lasers, fiber optics used for telecommunication, cameras in our phones, LED lighting in our homes, computer screens and TVs are just a few examples of how optics and photonics have impacted our daily lives.

Optics and photonics are among the most rapidly developing fields of scientific research at the University of Warsaw. Optics, traditionally associated with glasses, is in fact a rapidly developing field of science which includes, among others, atomic physics and optics, biomedical optics, nanophotonics, quantum optics, nonlinear optics, computational imaging, plasmonics and a whole range of optical spectroscopies.

Courses and research projects on all of these and many other applications of optics and photonics are available to students from the very first years of studying at the UW. Thanks to such an early involvement of students in real scientific work, first degree UW graduates have real scientific achievements, experience in working in state-of-the-art laboratories, and an ability to independently handle advanced technologies.

The Department of Optics at the Institute of Experimental Physics is actively involved in the development of these areas of research, the education of students, and the development of a network of modern and well-equipped laboratories.

Meet Faculty of Physics UW

KNOF UE - The Student Association of Optics and Photonics

The Student Association of Optics and Photonics UW was founded in 2011 and since then it has become the only student organisation in Poland which is affiliated by Optica (formerly The Optical Society), SPIE, European Physical Society and IEEE Photonics Society at the same time.

The Association’s main focus is to support people interested in Optics and Photonics at the University of Warsaw by building a local community of like-minded individuals who enjoy helping each other grow. What’s more, it is also a great platform to exchange scientific experience and ideas. These goals are achieved by a number of separate projects, many of which can be found at knof.uw.edu.pl.

KNOF website
KNOF UE - The Student Association of Optics and Photonics KNOF UE - The Student Association of Optics and Photonics
KNOF UE - The Student Association of Optics and Photonics KNOF UE - The Student Association of Optics and Photonics

Are you a research scientist
or a prospective student?
Join us!

Join the Division of Optics UW

Contact us!

In the "People" section you will can contact information to all the staff of the Department of Optics. We are open for cooperation on various projects and will be happy to help you with your research idea. If you are a student, we can help you with your bachelor's thesis, master's thesis or doctoral dissertation. We incorporate students in our research projects from the very first years of their studies, so they quickly acquire practical skills.

You can also come to the meetings of the Student Assocciation of Optics and Photonics at University of Warsaw (KNOF-UW), where you will be able to talk with students and PhD students of the Devision, who participate in these meetings. They will be happy to answer all your questions.

Check the list of job offers at the Faculty of Physics UW.

We regularly recruit new people to our team. We are looking for technical and administrative staff, post-docs, PhD students and students for positions in grants. We invite you to contact our secretariat and check the current job board on the Faculty of Physics website.

Start studying at the UW

Up-to-date information about undergraduate and graduate studies organised by the Faculty of Physics of the University of Warsaw is available at fuw.edu.pl/informator.html. The majority of students in the Department of Optics pursue a programme in physics or nanostructures engineering, but we are also open to people from other fields of study.

Education at the doctoral level at the University of Warsaw is organised by the Doctoral School of Exact and Natural Sciences and the Interdisciplinary Doctoral School. Detailed information about the process and rules of recruitment as well as the curriculum are available on the schools' website - https://szkolydoktorskie.uw.edu.pl/en/.