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OSA News Releases

Welcome to the OSA News Releases page. This page contains news from the Optical Society, including research highlights from OSA's journals, conference news, award announcements and more. Sort releases by category below to see all the news releases in a particular area.

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News Releases

OSA, DPG Name H. Jeff Kimble Winner of Herbert Walther Award
05 December 2012
The Optical Society (OSA) and the Deutsche Physikalische Gesellschaft (DPG) are proud to announce the Herbert Walther Award will be presented to H. Jeff Kimble of the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) for his pioneering experimental contributions to quantum optics, cavity quantum electrodynamics, and quantum information science.
Seventy-two OSA Members Elevated to Rank of Fellow
04 December 2012
The Optical Society (OSA) Board of Directors is pleased to announce that 72 OSA Members have been elected as the newest class of OSA Fellow Members.
World’s Smallest Wrench Puts a New Twist on Microscopic Manipulation
03 December 2012
Harnessing laser light’s ability to gently push and pull microscopic particles, researchers have created the fiber-optic equivalent of the world’s smallest wrench. This virtual tool can precisely twist and turn the tiniest of particles, from living cells and DNA to microscopic motors and dynamos used in biological and physical research.
First-ever Hyperspectral Images of Earth’s Auroras
29 November 2012
Hoping to expand our understanding of auroras and other fleeting atmospheric events, a team of space-weather researchers designed and built NORUSCA II, a new camera with unprecedented capabilities that can simultaneously image multiple spectral bands, in essence different wavelengths or colors, of light.
James Coleman Wins 2013 John Tyndall Award
28 November 2012
The Optical Society (OSA) and the IEEE Photonics Society are pleased to announce that James Coleman, Intel Alumni Endowed Chair in Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Illinois, is the recipient of the 2013 John Tyndall Award.
OSA Student Members Gather for Australia’s IONS-KOALA Conference on Optics
28 November 2012
The International OSA Network of Students (IONSTM) will host the fourth Conference on Optics, Atoms and Laser Applications (KOALA) in Brisbane, Australia Dec. 2-7.
The Optical Society and the Optical Society of Korea Name New Award in Honor of South Korea’s Optics Trailblazer
27 November 2012
The Optical Society (OSA) and The Optical Society of Korea (OSK) announced today the establishment of a new award in honor of Sang Soo Lee for his pioneering role as the “Father of Optics” in South Korea.
Student Organizes 5K Run to Benefit Paul Bonenfant Scholarship Campaign
26 November 2012
Thanks to the efforts of a 15-year-old high school student, the OSA Foundation’s Paul A. Bonenfant Memorial Scholarship fundraising campaign is even closer to its goal of $190,000 with just less than $10,000 left to fully endow the scholarship.
Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology Student Receives Travel Grant to OSA Renewable Energy and the Environment Congress
20 November 2012
The OSA Foundation (OSAF) is pleased to announce Dmitry S. Bodunov of the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology in Russia was this year’s recipient of a travel grant to the Optical Society’s (OSA) Renewable Energy and the Environment Congress that took place Nov. 11-14 in Eindhoven, The Netherlands.
A 3-D Light Switch for the Brain
19 November 2012
A new tool for neuroscientists delivers a thousand pinpricks of light to a chunk of gray matter smaller than a sugar cube. The new fiber-optic device, created by biologists and engineers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Cambridge, is the first tool that can deliver precise points of light to a 3-D section of living brain tissue.