Ir. A. Davidson Award 2018 for Lennino Cacace

Complex optics
This year, the panel of judges for the Ir. A. Davidson Award received a large number of nominations of excellent candidates, from which they unanimously selected Lennino Cacace as the winner. He studied Mechanical Engineering at Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e) and graduated cum laude. In 2009, he obtained his Ph.D. degree from Maarten Steinbuch, a TU/e professor of control engineering, for the design of a measuring head for the advanced measuring machine Nanomefos, developed by TNO for freeform metrology. In 2006, he had already established his own company, AC Optomechanix, an engineering firm specialising in optomechanics and precision engineering. He has developed various complex sensors and has worked for, among others, the lithography machine builders ASML and Liteq. At the latter company, now part of Kulicke & Soffa, he fulfilled the role of optical-mechatronic system engineer for Liteq’s waferstepper for packaging chips. He also was responsible for a large part of the optical design, including the mechatronic design of the optical column of the machine.

Education in optomechatronics
As of the last year and a half, Cacace has been involved in the new Master of Optomechatronics that was set up at TU Delft. In his own lecture on optomechatronics, he gives a good overview of the system aspects and the constructive, optical and even electronic aspects of designing an optical system. In future, this course will also be given in Eindhoven, in a form that is tailored to the industry.
“There are few mechanical engineers who have already studied optics so well during their studies. At the same time, Lennino is a good designer. What is also special is that he has a clear vision of the profession and has succeeded in incorporating this into the optomechatronics master and lecture.” So said the panel of judges, who characterise Lennino Cacace as an inquisitive, helpful and very honest natural designer and a perfectionist. “He is highly skilled in theory and in practice and experimentation and is keen to pass on his knowledge.”

More information about the ir A. Davidson Award