19 March 2015

The Optical Society Bestows Fifteen Prestigious Awards for 2015

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The Optical Society Bestows Fifteen Prestigious Awards for 2015

 
The Optical Society (OSA) is pleased to name the 2015 recipients of its prestigious awards and medals. The winners include: James G. Fujimoto, Frederic Ives Medal/Jarus Quinn Prize;  Govind P. Agrawal, Esther Hoffman Beller Medal; John D. Joannopoulos, Max Born Award; Bruce J. Tromberg, Michael S. Feld Biophotonics Award; Russell A. Chapman, Joseph Fraunhofer Award/Robert M. Burley Prize; Qing Hu, Nick Holonyak, Jr. Award; John Dudley, Robert E. Hopkins Leadership Award; Yeshaiahu Fainman, Emmett N. Leith Medal; Dana D. Dlott, Ellis R. Lippincott Award; Jeremy Nathan Munday, Adolph Lomb Medal; Warren S. Warren, C.E.K. Mees Medal; Paul S. Julienne, William F. Meggers Award; Daniel R. Neal, David Richardson Medal;  Ursula Keller, Charles H. Townes Award; Naomi Halas and Peter Nordlander, R.W. Wood Prize. These award winners join an esteemed group of past recipients recognized by OSA for their perseverance, novelty and foresight in the field of optics.

“OSA is greatly honored to recognize these leaders in the field of optics,” said Elizabeth Rogan, CEO, The Optical Society. “The recipients have demonstrated an expertise and leadership in their chosen field and have made significant contributions to the understanding of optics and photonics. OSA congratulates them on their outstanding achievements.” 

Philip Russell, president, The Optical Society, added: “This year’s awardees have contributed to optics and photonics in a wide variety of different ways, from outstanding accomplishments in research and development, to leading the International Year of Light. They represent the very best and brightest leaders in our field and the OSA Board is proud to recognize them for their unwavering commitment, creativity and leadership.”
 
The OSA awards committee reviews nominations for each award, including curriculum vitae, four letters of recommendations and a statement of career accomplishment related to the award criteria, and presents recommendations to the OSA Board of Director. The board has approved the following winners for 2015:
 
Frederic Ives Medal/Jarus Quinn Prize
Recipient: James G. Fujimoto, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA
The Frederic Ives Medal is the highest award conferred by OSA for overall distinction in optics. This award is being presented to James G. Fujimoto for pioneering the field of optical coherence tomography (OCT) and for leading the field to widespread medical application and major commercial impact.
 
Esther Hoffman Beller Medal
Recipient: Govind P. Agrawal, University of Rochester, USA
The Esther Hoffman Beller Medal recognizes outstanding contributions to optical science and engineering education. This year Govind P. Agrawal is being recognized for inspiring and educating a generation of scientists and engineers involved with fiber-optic communications and other photonics technologies through his seminal textbooks and high-impact scientific articles.
 
Max Born Award
Recipient: John D. Joannopoulos, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA
The Max Born Award recognizes contributions to physical optics. John D. Joannopoulos is being recognized for numerous contributions to nanophotonics, including pioneering the “numerical experiments” approach for nanophotonics.
 
Michael S. Feld Biophotonics Award
Recipient: Bruce J. Tromberg, Beckman Laser Institute, University of California, Irvine, USA
The Michael S. Feld Biophotonics Award recognizes individuals for their innovative and influential contributions to the field of biophotonics, regardless of their career stage. Bruce J. Tromberg is being recognized for serving as an advocate for and a leader of the biophotonics community as well as for pioneering the development and clinical application of spatially and temporally modulated light imaging.
 
Joseph Fraunhofer Award/Robert M. Burley Prize
Recipient: Russell A. Chipman, University of Arizona, USA
The Joseph Fraunhofer Award/Robert M. Burley Prize recognizes significant research accomplishments in the field of optical engineering. The award is presented to Russell A. Chipman for outstanding contributions in the development of metrology facilities for imaging polarimetry and spectro-polarimetry.
 
Nick Holonyak, Jr. Award
Recipient: Qing Hu, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA
The Nick Holonyak, Jr. Award is given for contributions to optics based on semiconductor-based devices and optical materials, including basic science and technological applications. This year, Qing Hu is being recognized for his pioneering contribution to high-performance THz quantum-cascade lasers and their applications in imaging and sensing. 

Robert E. Hopkins Leadership Award
Recipient: John Dudley, Université de Franche-Comté, France
The Robert E. Hopkins Leadership Award recognizes an individual or group of optics professionals who has made a significant impact on the field of optics and/or made a significant contribution to society. John Dudley is receiving this award for his tireless support over many years of international collaboration in science, in particular his remarkable leadership in creating the 2015 UNESCO International Year of Light.
 
Emmett N. Leith Medal
Recipient: Yeshaiahu Fainman, University of California, San Diego, USA
The Emmett N. Leith Medal recognizes seminal contributions to the field of optical information processing. Yeshaiahu Fainman is being recognized for extension of Fourier optics methods to the femtosecond and nanometer regimes.
 
Ellis R. Lippincott Award
Recipient: Dana D. Dlott, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, USA
The Ellis R. Lippincott Award is given for contributions to vibrational spectroscopy and is co-sponsored with the Coblentz Society and the Society for Applied Spectroscopy. Dana D. Dlott is receiving the award for the development of methods to measure vibrational energy flow in molecules with ultrafast time and atomic length scale resolution.
 
Adolph Lomb Medal
Recipient: Jeremy Nathan Munday, University of Maryland, USA
The Adolph Lomb Medal recognizes noteworthy contributions made to optics before reaching the age of 35. Jeremy Nathan Munday is being honored for pioneering contributions to plasmonic and photonic light-trapping in solar cells.

C.E.K. Mees Medal
Recipient: Warren S. Warren, Duke University, USA
This award was established in 1961 in memory of C. E. K. Mees, who contributed preeminently to the development of scientific photography. It is presented biennially to a recipient who exemplifies the thought that "optics transcends all boundaries," interdisciplinary and international alike. This award is being presented to Warren S. Warren for the development of controlled laser pulses and nonlinear imaging techniques to enable applications ranging from clinical diagnosis to scientific analysis of Renaissance artwork.
 
William F. Meggers Award
Recipient: Paul S. Julienne, National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), USA
The William F. Meggers Award recognizes outstanding work in spectroscopy. Paul S. Julienne is being recognized for outstanding achievements in high resolution atomic spectroscopy and metrology of fundamental constants, leading to far-reaching tests of quantum electrodynamics.
 
David Richardson Medal
Recipient: Daniel R. Neal, Abbott Medical Optics (AMO), Inc., USA
The David Richardson Medal is given for significant contributions to optical engineering, primarily in the commercial and industrial sector. Daniel R. Neal is being recognized for innovative technical leadership in the design, fabrication, and commercialization of wavefront sensing devices.
 
Charles H. Townes Award
Recipient: Ursula Keller, ETH Zürich, Switzerland
The Charles Hard Townes Award is given for contributions to quantum electronics. Ursula Keller is receiving the award for her seminal contributions in the fields of octave-spanning lasers, frequency comb technology, and high repetition-rate ultrafast semiconductor disc lasers.
 
R.W. Wood Prize
Recipient: Naomi Halas and Peter Nordlander, Rice University, USA
The R. W. Wood Prize is given for an outstanding discovery, scientific or technological achievement or invention. Naomi Halas and Peter Nordlander have received this recognition for introducing nanoparticles with tunable optical resonances and the concept of Plasmon hybridization to explain their properties and revolutionizing the understanding of optical properties of metallic nanostructures.   About The Optical Society

Founded in 1916, The Optical Society (OSA) is the leading professional organization for scientists, engineers, students and entrepreneurs who fuel discoveries, shape real-life applications and accelerate achievements in the science of light. Through world-renowned publications, meetings and membership initiatives, OSA provides quality research, inspired interactions and dedicated resources for its extensive global network of optics and photonics experts. OSA is a founding partner of the National Photonics Initiative and the 2015 International Year of Light. For more information, visit www.osa.org.