Where Biophotonics Meets the Future
Welcome to #ICOB2026 at the University at Albany, NY.
Get ready for four days of inspiration, innovation, and collaboration at the 8th International Congress on Biophotonics (ICOB 2026) in Albany, New York. Hosted at the University at Albany — a dynamic research hub in the heart of the U.S. Northeast. This congress brings together pioneers from science, technology development, medical engineering, AI, and clinical research — all united by the goal of transforming diagnostics through biophotonics.
At ICOB 2026, we’re not just discussing science — we’re shaping what’s next. From game-changing diagnostic breakthroughs to the integration of AI in biophotonics, this is where research moves beyond the lab and into real-world solutions. You’ll meet leading researchers, industry innovators, clinicians, and decision-makers who are driving change in healthcare and life sciences.
Whether you’re deep into translational research, building medical technologies, or exploring new clinical frontiers, ICOB 2026 is your chance to be part of a community that turns vision into impact. Join us in Albany and help define the future of biophotonics — together.
Keynote Speaker
STEFAN HELL, Director at the Max Planck Institute for Multidisciplinary Natural Sciences in Göttingen and Nobel Laureate in Chemistry, will deliver the Keynote Lecture at ICOB 2024.
Impressions of ICOB 2024
Confirmed Speakers
Jena University Hospital | Jena | Germany
Bettina Löffler
Leibniz Institute of Photonic Technology | Jena | Germany
Juergen Popp
Jena University Hospital | Jena | Germany
Michael Bauer
Imperial College London | UK
Daniel Elson
Innsbruck Medical University | Innsbruck | Austria
Johannes Pallua
University of Freiburg | Germany
Leonardo Sacconi
Jagiellonian University | Kraków | Poland
Małgorzata Barańska
Norwegian University of Life Sciences | Ås | Norway
Achim Kohler
“Nello Carrara” Institute of Applied Physics | Sesto Fiorentino | Italy
Andrea Barucci
Ruhr University | Bochum | Germany
Axel Mosig
TU Wien | Austria
Bernhard Lendl
Silicon Austria Labs & TU Wien | Austria
Borislav Hinkov
National Research Council of Italy | Rome | Italy
Chiarello Fabio
University of Innsbruck | Austria
Christian Huck
Vrije Universiteit Brussel | Belgium
Heidi Ottevaere
University at Albany - State University of New York | Albany | USA
Igor Lednev
University of Innsbruck | Austria
Justyna Grabska
University Hospital | Jena | Germany
Orlando Guntinas-Lichius
National Research Council of Italy | Pisa | Italy
Sara Colantonio
Leibniz Institute of Photonic Technology | Jena / Germany
Thomas Bocklitz
Leibniz Institute of Photonic Technology | Jena | Germany
Thomas Mayerhöfer
PolitoBIOMed Lab | Torino | Italy
Kristen M. Meiburger
University of Edinburgh | UK
Ahsan Akram
Cyprus Research & Innovation Center Ltd - CyRIC | Nicosia | Cyprus
Alessandro Giusti
Leibniz Institute Of Photonic Technology | Jena | Germany
Anja Silge
University Ulm | Germany
Boris Mizaikoff
Texas A&M Uniersity | College StationUSA
Dimitry Kurouski
University of California | Davis | USA
Andrew Birkeland
InfectoGnostics | Jena | Germany
Anni Mathes
Monash University, School of Chemistry | Melbourne | Australia
Bayden Wood
Evangelische Elisabeth Klinik | Berlin | Germany
Carsten Philipp
Rajiv Gandhi Centre for Biotechnology | Thiruvananthapuram | India
Chandrabash Narayana
University Medical Center Hamburg-Eppendorf | Germany
Christian Betz
Leibniz Institute Of Photonic Technology | Jena | Germany
Dana Cialla-May
Helmholtz Zentrum Munich | Germany
Dimitris Gorpas
Université Laval | Québec | Canada
Flavie Lavoie-Cardinal
University of Florence | Italy
Francesco Pavone
imec-OnePlanet Research Center | Nijmegen | Netherlands
Gabriela Vollet Marson
Università degli Studi di Firenze| Sesto Fiorentino | Italy
Giacomo Mazzamuto
Max Planck Institute for Multidisciplinary Sciences | Göttingen | Germany
Stefan Hell
Universität Duisburg-Essen | Germany
Heinz Siesler
DUKE University | Durham | UK
Junjie Yao
Imperial College London | UK
Paul French
University of Cambridge | UK
Pietro Liò
Politecnico Milano | Italy
Rebecca Re
University of Illinois | Urbana | United States
Rohit Bhargava
Indian Institute of Science | Bangalore | India
Siva Umapathy
Leibniz Institute Of Photonic Technology | Jena | Germany
Ute Neugebeuer
Universität Bayreuth | Germany
Lena Käster
Institute of Science and Technology Austria | Vienna
Johann Danzl
InfectoGnostics | Jena | Germany
Anni Mathes
Helmholtz Zentrum Munich | Germany
Dimitris Gorpas
University of Florence – UNIFI | Italy
Giulietta Smulevich
Aston University | Birmingham | UK
Igor Meglinski
Czech Academy of Sciences | Prague | Czech Republic
Jakub Dostalek
VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd | Espoo
Jussi Hiltunen
Application laboratory for in-situ spectroscopy - ISAS | Berlin | Germany
Karsten Hinrichs
bm-t beteiligungsmanagement thuringia gmbh | Erfurt | Germany
Kevin Reeder
University of St. Andrews | US
Kishan Dholokia
University of Latvia | Riga | Latvia
Inga Saknīte
University College London | UK
Mervyn Singer
InfectoGnostics | Jena | Germany
Robby Markwart
Univeristy Delft | Netherlands
Sjoerd Stallinga
Lund University | Sweden
Sune Svanberg
DWI – Leibniz Institute for Interactive Materials | Aachen | Germany
Sven Stegemann
DiaMonTech AG | Berlin | Germany
Werner Mäntele
University Ulm | Germany
Boris Mizaikoff
National Research Council of Italy | Rome | Italy
Chiarello Fabio
University of Innsbruck | Austria
Christian Huck
Lund University | Sweden
Katarina Svanberg
University of California | Davis | US
Laura Marcu
Lightnovo | Birkerød | Denmark
Oleksii Ilchenko
Technical University of Denmark | Ørsteds Plads
Peter Andersen
Analytik Jena GmbH+Co. KG | Jena | Germany
Robert Möller
University Hospital of Munich | Germany
Ronald Sroka
Thanks to our Sponsors & Partners
Thanks to our Funding Partners
ICOB 2026 is organized by
in cooperation with
ICOB 2026 is presented by
