The IFN headquarter in Milan, hosted by the Physics Department of the Politecnico di Milano, has been established in 2010 by the merging of the Milan section of the IFN, the former Center for Quantum Electronics and Electronic Instrumentation (CEQSE) founded by CNR in 1975, and the National Laboratory for Ultrafast and Ultraintense Optical Science (ULTRAS) of the Istituto Nazionale di Fisica della Materia (INFM). A detached unit of the same IFN section is located in Como and hosted on one hand by the Department of Science and High Technology at University of Insubria and on the other hand by the Laboratory for Nanostructures Epitaxy and Spintronic on Silicon (L-Ness). 

The personnel is composed by 30 staff researchers, 4 employees in administration and technical services, 36 associated researchers, and a variable number of undergraduate, PhD students and post-doctoral fellows (about 40).

The main research activities are focused on: photonics devices for integrated systems; photonics for health, food and cultural heritage; ultrafast photonics for the study of ultrafast phenomena in matter; quantum optics and quantum information; solid state lasers and amplifiers for metrology and spectroscopy; semiconductor nanostructure and devices. The innovative lift of the proposed research subjects favor cross-disciplinarily among photonics, material science, and technologies.

The research activity of the IFN unit is validated by a large number of scientific publications and communications and by active participation in projects of local, national, and international strategic interest. The IFN headquarters are strategically located favouring a strong collaboration with universities and local companies. The numerous collaborations activated at national and international level reflect the ability of IFN researchers in promoting projects of strategic interest, including European projects