Institute for the Sciences of Light (ISL)
The Institute for the Sciences of Light (ISL) promotes synergies between all relevant actors within the University Paris-Saclay. ISL supports cross-cutting research and PhD projects throughout six Graduate Schools, fosters research results transfer to industry, develops effective international relations and organizes international doctoral summer schools and colloquia.
The University Paris-Saclay inherits a tradition of fundamental research and training in Optics that began over a century ago. At the heart of the University Paris-Saclay, about 700 researchers and academics in 30 laboratories and six Graduate Schools use Light to push the frontiers of scientific knowledge and tackle major contemporary societally relevant challenges. These professionals contribute daily to a broad range of topics, from quantum technologies to the observation of gravitational waves, from the exploration of matter and living organisms to the study of the Sun, planets and of climate, from the microscopic and attosecond understanding of energy transfer to energy management.
The University awards every year 200 engineer diplomas and 60 Ph.D. degrees in the area of the Sciences of Light, making Paris-Saclay one of the world's leading centers in this field. The University Paris-Saclay campus also takes pride of a very large number of world-class research infrastructures (Synchrotron SOLEIL, IR free-electron laser, X-UV attosecond laser facility, C2N nanotechnology center, etc.).
Contact the Institute for the Sciences of Light
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Current Calls for Projects
« Équipement Recherche » 2027 – opens October 15, 2026
Letter of intent (required) must be submitted no later than December 3, 2026, at 1:00 p.m.
Applications must be submitted via the platform available here : https://www.universite-paris-saclay.fr/form/appel-a-projet-isl-equipement-re
Winners of the call for projects "Équipement Recherche" 2026
- Project BATT-H2O, led by Wutharath CHIN (LuMIn) in collaboration with Alan WONG et Rodolphe POLLET (NIMBE, CEA)
- Project DeepDCS, led by Frédéric PAIN (LCF) in collaboration with Laurent MENARD (IJCLab)
- Project NanoVisCO, led by Jérémie MATHURIN (ICP) in collaboration with Mathieu THOURY (IPANEMA)
- Project PEROPRESS, led by Cédric MAYER et Emmanuelle DELEPORTE (LuMIn) in collaboration with Olivier PLANTEVIN and Victor BALEDENT (LPS)
- Project PlasChiVerSOVie, led by Joao SANTOS SOUSA (LPGP) in collaboration with Caroline AYMES-CHODUR (ICMMO) et Antoine PALLANDRE (ICP)
Congratulations!
Find out more here: Calls for projects and support of events
ISL welcomed the second cohort of LIGHTinPARIS PhD fellows
Thirteen new doctoral students from the LIGHTinPARIS programme are joining ISL laboratories to work on dissertation projects in: photochemistry and photocatalysis, materials for optoelectronics and photovoltaics, quantum optics, plasma physics, ultrashort laser sources, imaging, and neuroscience. This diversity reflects the interdisciplinary nature of the ISL community.
Discover the winners and their thesis topics on the dedicated page of the programme website or in the News rubric.