QEOD – European Physical Society

Quantum Electronics and Optics Division Prizes

To highlight scientific excellence, QEOD awards internationally recognized prizes to senior and younger scientists, as well as prizes for the best European PhD theses in Quantum Electronics and Optics

The EPS Quantum Electronics and Optics Prize

To reward one or more persons who made outstanding contributions to Quantum Electronics in the experimental or theoretical area.

Overview

The prizes winners are each to receive a medal and 5,000€.
The awards are presented in a special Plenary Ceremony generally held on Tuesday morning, during the Conference on Lasers and Electro-Optics Europe (CLEO®/Europe) and the European Quantum Electronics Conference (EQEC), held in Munich, Germany taking place in odd years.

Eligibility

The prize will be awarded to one or more people who made outstanding contributions to Quantum Electronics in the experimental or theoretical area. The award may be given for pure and applied research.
The prize will be awarded without restrictions on nationality, race, or religion.
Only works which have been published can be considered in the proposals for candidates to the prize.
Persons who have died since the work was performed cannot be nominated for the prize.

Nomination Process

The selection committee consists of 7 persons: 4 physicists, chosen by the QEO Board, the President of the European Physical Society, the Chairman and the secretary of the QEO Board of the European Physical Society.
The committee considers each of the eligible nominations for the award and makes final recommendations to the QEO Board.
Requested material:
- A CV of the nominee, a brief description of the nominee’s achievements, a list of key publications, patents, etc., and least two additional letters of endorsement of the nomination, all prepared in pdf-format, as a single pdf, or zip file.
- A proposed citation (200 characters including spaces) will be required.

Key Dates

Nominations are to be received on line by March 31, 2025.
Nominations may be submitted on the 2025 EPS-QEOD Prizes website.

The EPS Fresnel Prize

For outstanding contributions to quantum electronics and optics made by young scientists.

Overview

There is one prize for fundamental aspects and one prize for applied aspects.
The prize winners are each to receive a medal and 2,000€.

Eligibility

The prize will be awarded to one or more people who have made a noteworthy contribution to the physics of optics, quantum electronics or quantum optics in the fundamental and/or applied area.
The prize may only be awarded for works which have been published or accepted for publishing before the proposed candidate(s) has (have) reached the age of 35.
The prize may only be awarded to candidate(s) who has (have) not reached the age of 37 on January 1 of the year in which it is awarded.
The prize cannot be awarded posthumously.

Nomination Process

The QEOD will request nominations for the prize from all members of the EPS and other physicists in the field of quantum electronics and optics and related technologies.
Personal applications for the award are permitted.
The prize committee is appointed by the QEOD Board and is normally comprised of up to five regular EPS members, one of whom shall be appointed chair. It is recommended that one of the committee members be the chair of the preceding award committee.
Requested material:
- A CV of the nominee, a brief description of the nominee’s achievements, a list of key publications, patents, etc., and at least two additional letters of endorsement of the nomination, all prepared in a single pdf or zip file.
- A proposed citation (200 characters including spaces) will also be required.

Key Dates

Nominations are to be received on line by March 31, 2025.
Nominations may be submitted on the 2025 EPS-QEOD Prizes website.

The EPS QEOD Thesis Prizes

To reward excellence in PhD research and scientific communication in quantum electronics and optics.

Overview

Four EPS/QEOD prizes will be awarded to reward excellence in PhD research and scientific communication in quantum electronics and optics related to a PhD thesis defended in the period 1st January 2023 – March 2025.
Two prizes will be awarded for fundamental and two for applied aspects.
The prize winners are each to receive a diploma and 1,000€.

Eligibility

A PhD thesis work defended in the two years prior to the conference from June to June.

Nomination Process

Nomination must be made by one of the thesis external examiners or by a senior researcher from an external institution familiar with the student’s work (not a supervisor or co-supervisor).
The recommendation letter(s) and the summary by the nominee should clearly identify the original contributions of the candidate, in particular if the thesis is part of a larger group effort.
Requested Material:
- A letter of recommendation provided by the nominator.
- A one page summary of the thesis work prepared by the nominee, clearly identifying the original technical contributions of the nominee to the research presented.
- A one page summary of the thesis work prepared by the nominee, which summarizes background, main results and impact of the work on a level accessible to a broad audience in physics. This second summary should be prepared in the style of a short commentary piece.
- A short CV, list of achievements and associated publications.
- Support letters from thesis examiners other than the nominator can be received.
- All material must be prepared in English and combined into either a single consolidated PDF file or a ZIP archive.

Key Dates

Nominations are to be received on line by March 31, 2025.
Nominations may be submitted on the 2025 EPS-QEOD Prizes website.

The EPS Prize for Research in Laser Science and Applications

For scientific excellence in laser science and applications in its broadest sense.

Overview

The prize is awarded every 2 years in recognition of recent work by one or more individuals (no more than three) for scientific excellence in the area of laser science and applications in its broadest sense.
The award will include an engraved glass medal, a certificate, and a monetary sum of 2,000€.

Eligibility

The work for which the individual(s) is/are nominated must be such that a significant component of it was performed during the period 5 years prior to the award.
Relevant topics include laser source development, power-scaling concepts, pump source development, nonlinear optics, ultrafast sources, material science, spectroscopic and characterization techniques, and applications both in optics and photonics as well as in other fields.
In addition, the award will recognize research for which a significant portion of the work was carried out in Europe or in cooperation with European researchers and may be given for either pure or applied research.

Nomination Process

Open nomination will be announced on the EPS-QEOD Website

Key Dates

The prize is awarded every 2 years in recognition of recent work by one or more individuals (no more than three).
The previous prize was presented on August 27, 2024 during the 11th EPS-QEOD EUROPHOTON conference in Vilnius, Lithuania.

The EPS Prize for Research into the Science of Light

For scientific excellence in the area of electromagnetic science in its broadest sense, across the entire spectrum of electromagnetic waves.

Overview

The prize is awarded every 2 years in recognition of recent work by one or more individuals (no more than three).
The award will be accompanied by an engraved glass medal, certificate, and a monetary sum of 2,000€.

Eligibility

The work for which the individual(s) is/are nominated must be such that a significant component of it was performed during the period 5 years prior to the award.
In addition, the award will recognize research for which a significant portion of the work was carried out in Europe or in cooperation with European researchers and may be given for either pure or applied research.

Nomination Process

Open nomination will be announced on the EPS-QEOD Website

Key Dates

The 2024 prizes have been awarded. See the list of previous prize winners here.

Quantum Electronics and Optics Division Prizes

To reward one or more persons who made outstanding contributions to Quantum Electronics in the experimental or theoretical area.

For outstanding contributions to quantum electronics and optics made by young scientists.

To reward excellence in PhD research and scientific communication in quantum electronics and optics.

For scientific excellence in laser science and applications in its broadest sense.

For scientific excellence in the area of electromagnetic science in its broadest sense, across the entire spectrum of electromagnetic waves.

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