Chris Palmer is the Senior Director & General Manager of Optical Components Business at MKS Instruments. An expert in diffraction grating technology, he has 35+ years of experience with Richardson Gratings, which is now part of MKS Instruments. Chris holds a BS in Physics from St John Fisher College in Rochester, NY, USA and a MA and PhD in Physics from Bryn Mawr College in Bryn Mawr, PA, USA.

Kathrin Callaghan is the Product Line Manager for polarization optics, gratings, Fresnel lenses, and liquid lenses at Edmund Optics® UK. She has eight years of postdoctoral and professional experience in life sciences and optical technologies, particularly microscopy and spectroscopy. Kathrin holds a BSc in Biochemical Sciences from the University of Salford, UK and a Ph.D. in Drug Design and Biophysics from the University of Salford, UK.