The Optical Society

Honorary Members

An individual who has made unique, seminal contributions to the field of optics is eligible for election to Honorary Membership. The stature of this designation is evident when reviewing OSA's living Honorary Members: Arthur Ashkin, Nicolaas Bloembergen, Steven Chu, Claude Cohen-Tannoudji, Roy J. Glauber, James P. Gordon, Theodor W. Haensch, John L. Hall, Herwig Kogelnik, William D. Phillips, Jarus W. Quinn, Charles H. Townes and Emil Wolf.

The number of Honorary Members cannot exceed two-thousandths (2/1000) of the total membership. Normally, no more than one (1) Honorary Member can be elected in a calendar year. Under extraordinary circumstances, the Board of Directors may exceed the normal yearly limitation. Election requires the unanimous vote of the Board of Directors, based on the recommendations of the OSA Presidential Advisory Committee and Awards Committee.

An OSA member may nominate someone to the status of Honorary Membership by sending a brief (no longer than one page) advocacy statement discussing the candidate to: OSA Executive Office, 2010 Massachusetts Ave., NW, Washington, DC, USA 20036, ATTN: Presidential Advisory Committee. The deadline for nominations is 1 March.