Optica formerly known as The Optical Society of America (OSA) is a professional society of individuals and companies with an interest in optics and photonics. It publishes journals and organizes conferences and exhibitions. It currently has about 488,000 customers in 183 countries, including nearly 300 companies.

Optica was established in 1916 as the "Optical Society of America", under the leadership of Perley G. Nutting, with 30 optical scientists and instrument makers based in Rochester, New York. It soon published its first journal of research results and established an annual meeting. The first local section was established in Rochester, New York, in 1916 and the Journal of the Optical Society of America was created in 1918. The first series of joint meetings with the American Physical Society was in 1918.In September 2021, the organization's name changed to Optica, which references the organization's journal and is geographically neutral in order to reflect the global membership of the society optica student chapters are located at top universities around the world. They conduct a variety of activities each year to help members network, gain technical knowledge and establish contacts with leaders in the field. optica supports its chapters through activity and travel grants, guest lectures, and much more.

The St. Joseph's College of Engineering -Optica Student Chapter was inaugurated on 14th September, 2011. The inaugural function was presided by Dr. B. Babu Manoharan, M.A., M.B.A, Ph.D., Managing Director of St. Joseph's Group of Institutions, Chennai.The Chief Guest Dr. Balaji Srinivasan, B.E., M.S., Ph.D., Associate Professor, Department of Electrical Engineering, Indian IT, Madras delivered the inaugural address and released the OSA banner.

After 11 successful years, under the guidance of Dr.B Vasudevan M.E., Ph.D., Associate Professor, Department of ECE we have conducted many successful events and secured grants for our chapter. We currently have 140+ registered members under our chapter and still growing, aspiring many students to join and grow with us.