The Optical Society of America in Washington has honored 20 individuals with its annual awards, which recognize exceptional achievement in optics and photonics. It determined that the work done by each recipient in his or her area of expertise has had a significant impact in the field of optics.

Among the winners is Erich P. Ippen, who received the Frederic Ives Medal/Jarus W. Quinn Endowment, the highest award bestowed by the society for overall distinction in optics. A professor of electrical engineering and physics at MIT in Cambridge, Mass., Ippen is recognized for laying the foundations of ultrafast science and engineering and for providing vision and leadership in the optics community.

In other news, the society has established a new award in honor of the late optical physicist Emmett N. Leith, who contributed significant research in the fields of holography and optical information processing. Leith died in December 2005 after a 52-year career at the University of Michigan.

Honoring outstanding work in the area of optical information processing, the Emmett N. Leith Medal will be given annually and will include a cash prize.