Speed of light special theory of relativity, in which the speed of light in vacuum "c" featured as a fundamental constant, also appearing in contexts unrelated to light. This made the concept of the stationary aether (to which Lorentz and Poincaré still adhered) useless and revolutionized the concepts of space and time. In the second half of the 20th century much progress was made in increasing the accuracy of measurements of the speed of light, first by cavity resonance techniques and later by laser interferometer techniques. These were aided by new, more precise, definitions of the metre and second. In 1950, Louis Essen
Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light Planck Society. In June 2008, after an evaluation, the senate of the Max Planck Society decided to convert this group to a Max Planck institute and thereupon founded the "Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light" (German "Max-Planck-Institut für die Physik des Lichts"). with effect from January 1, 2009. In 2016, the new building was opened. The project was made by the Munich architecture bureau "Fritsch + Tschaidse Architekten GmbH". Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light The Max Planck Institute for the Science of Light (MPL) performs basic research in optical metrology, optical communication, new optical materials,