There are few things as rewarding as doing something to the highest level you possibly can.”
What’s it like to step from the university benches directly into the intense, multi-disciplinary world of optical engineering? What challenges and benefits define a typical day-to-day routine at a leading optical engineering hub? Sam O’Connor, a fresh graduate of the prestigious Institute of Optics from the University of Rochester, sheds light on what his journey has been in the past 365 days at Optikos in the interview below.
Q: Sam, thank you for having this conversation. Have you always been passionate about optics?
Sam O’Connor: I’m honored to be here. And no, interestingly enough. Optics has come into my life the moment I went to a student stay at the University of Rochester, where I came across a pitch for the Institute of Optics. Until then, I was pretty set on engineering and was weighing my options between biomedical and mechanical engineering. Needless to say, that pitch was a success, at least for myself.
The first thing that won me over was the amazing career infrastructure they had in place for students. But I can say that I wasn’t disappointed by the curriculum either. I had the chance to learn from many prominent figures within the industry. For example, my courses with industry titan Julie Bentley mark some of the best moments in my development as an optical engineer. She had this seminar-style approach to assignments where we’d do design reviews together as a class. She would go through each design thoroughly and give really honest, direct feedback, highlighting both what worked well and what needed improvement. It was incredibly valuable because you knew exactly where you stood and what to focus on. That’s where I formed my outlook around how to think about optical design and the different skills you need for each design phase. I’m truly grateful for that learning opportunity.
Q: And how did you hear about Optikos?
Sam O’Connor: During my time at university, I had the chance to get to know Optikos better, especially after talking with Dan Guzi who’s also an optical engineer on our team. He started here as an intern and told me it was a great place to begin a career. What really drew me in was that teams here get involved in many different projects, and you have the opportunity to take on responsibility and leadership quite early.
My focus is on lens design, looking at all sorts of applications from microscope systems to aerial imaging lenses, telescopes, and more. To be a good designer, you need a strong sense of how things will actually be manufactured and tested, ideally from the start of the design phase. Throughout, it’s crucial to communicate effectively with metrology and optomechanical engineers. A design is highly interdisciplinary, and I enjoy that the optical designer gets to drive the early stages of the process. I’m grateful to say that I have had these opportunities already in my first year at Optikos.
It’s also been invaluable to understand how the company is structured from this point of view. For example, we have the IQ Lab team, who evaluate many aspects of system performance for a variety of customers.
Engineering Services is where clients come with problems they don’t know how to solve. If you want to develop a new imaging system and need someone to do the lens design, source all the parts, and build it, we have tremendous experience doing that kind of work. In Engineering Services, you could see any range of optical challenges that a company might face.
And in Manufacturing, everything comes together—from design to testing—making sure what leaves the factory meets the highest standards.
I’m an optical engineer within the Engineering Services group, but being able to see the whole puzzle of the business and understand where I can contribute most makes my work much more effective. I can anticipate questions and processes across the entire engineering pipeline, not just from a design perspective. And that’s incredibly useful.
Q: What are some projects you’ve had on your bucket list since joining Optikos?
Sam O’Connor: There are many exciting projects here, and I’m happy to say I’ve already started checking some off my list. Dan and I both worked on significant stray light analysis for a multimillion-dollar program. That was something I’d really wanted to experience, and within five months—with great supportive supervision—I was contributing to that kind of high-stakes project. I don’t think that’s common for most engineers just starting out, so I’m very grateful to have had this chance to grow.
I’ve also led my own lens design development for a compact AR/VR application. We haven’t built it yet, but I took the design work all the way through the Preliminary Design Review (PDR) and Critical Design Review (CDR) stages, with the support of a principal engineer who helped me think through different challenges along the way.
It’s been a fascinating project because it raised some really interesting questions, like how do we set up the model correctly? How do we optimize appropriately? The customer’s technology also imposed some unique constraints on the optical design, which made the problem even more challenging and rewarding to solve. But that’s why I love engineering. You get hard problems to solve, and you actually see the solution in action.
Q: What aspect of the company culture or work environment has been the most unexpected?
Sam O’Connor: More than unexpected, I’m genuinely impressed by everyone I’ve worked with here. What stands out most is how passionate people are about their work. Our colleagues care deeply about the quality of what they produce. They want to get things right and take time to invest in continuous learning.
The senior engineers who’ve been here much longer than I have are tremendously generous with their time. Even when they’re incredibly busy, they’ll take the time to explain a concept or guide you toward the answers you need.
That’s been the most striking thing to me. Not only are these people exceptionally skilled at what they do—at every level, from entry-level to principal engineers to management—but they’re also incredibly generous with their knowledge and time.
I hope I can live up to both the technical excellence I see around me and that same spirit of generosity and commitment to learning. For myself, Optikos has become an amazing launch pad in the world of optical engineering.
