The Hans Mueller Memorial Award and Lecture will be established at ICSE-10 to honor a senior community member for pioneering, lifetime achievements in the field of ellipsometry.
- Celebrates exceptional life-long achievements in ellipsometry.
- $1,000 prize
- Sponsored by AIP Publishing and J.A. Woollam Co., Inc.
ICSE-10 Hans Mueller Memorial Awardees
The ICSE-10 Award Committee proudly announces the winners of the Hans Mueller Memorial Award competition,
shared in equal halves by:
- John A. Woollam, sponsored by AIP Publishing.
- David E. Aspnes, sponsored by J.A. Woollam Co., Inc.
John A. Woollam
J.A. Woollam Co., Inc. &
University of Nebraska-Lincoln (USA)
For having made pioneering, life-long contributions to the development, application, dissemination, and education in the field of spectroscopic ellipsometry.
Professor John A. Woollam is President and Founder of the J.A. Woollam Co., Inc. and George Holmes Distinguished University Professor, Professor of Physics (joint appointment), and Professor of Electrical & Computer Engineering at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Prior to his tenure at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, John directed the Cryophysics Section at NASA Lewis Research Center, and he was Visiting Scientist at the MIT’s Francis Bitter National Magnet Laboratory. John obtained a M.S. in Electrical Engineering from Case Western Reserve University in 1978, a Ph.D. and M.Sc. in Solid State Physics from Michigan State University in 1967 and 1963, respectively, and a B.A. in Liberal Arts from Kenyon College. John is a Senior Member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE), a Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors (NAI), Fellow of the American Physical Society (APS), and a Fellow of the American Vacuum Society (AVS). He is the recipient of the 2012 Industrial Applications of Physics Award of the American Physical Society, the 2018 Dr. Prem. S. Paul Innovator of the Year Award of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, the 2017 R. F. Bunshah Award of the Internat. Conf. Met. Coatings and Thin Films, and he received two honorary Doctorates from Kenyon College, Gambier, OH in 2008, and Linkoping University, Sweden in 2004. John has published over 437 refereed articles, has given over 478 society meetings presentations, received over 8,300 citations, and his h-index is 45. John holds over 65 patents, and he is the Founder of the J.A. Woollam Foundation, which is active in support of land conservation and ICSE Conferences (including ICSE-10). His Foundation has endowed Scholarships at UNL Teachers College, UNL Engineering College, and Kenyon College.

North Carolina State University (USA)
For the development of fundamental theories of the linear and nonlinear optical properties of materials and thin films, and for pioneering the field of spectroscopic ellipsometry.
David Aspnes is Distinguished University Professor of Physics Emeritus at North Carolina State University. He received BSEE and MSEE degrees from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in 1960 and 1961, and a Ph.D. in Physics from the University of Illinois Urbana/Champaign in 1965. Following a year as a postdoctoral research associate at UIUC and another at Brown University, he joined Bell Laboratories, Murray Hill, NJ, as a Member of the Technical Staff in the Surface Physics Research Department, where his interests lay in the investigations of surfaces under ambient conditions. In 1984 he became Head of the Interface Physics Department of the newly created Bellcore. He joined NC State University 1992. He is best known for his experimental and theoretical work on the development and application of optical techniques for the analysis of surfaces, interfaces, thin films, structures, and materials. These include the theory and practice of spectroscopic ellipsometry, modulation spectroscopy, reflectance difference spectroscopy, and nonlinear optics. Professional recognitions include fellowships in various professional societies, the R. W. Wood Prize of the Optical Society of America, the Medard W. Welch Award of the American Vacuum Society, the Mentor Award of the Society of Vacuum Coaters, election to the US National Academy of Sciences, and being named a Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors. He has an h-index of 76, 23 patents, and over 500 publications in scientific journals. Although retired, he remains active on graduate committees, developing methods of eliminating noise and extracting information from spectra, and writing a textbook on classical electrodynamics.

Motivation
This award is a memorial to Hans Mueller, a Swiss physicist and professor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology who created the Mueller matrix calculus. His contributions to polarization optics continue to reverberate through numerous fields in optics, and are the basics for many advanced ellipsometry instrumentation operations as well as mathematical analysis methods. This memorial is established at ICSE-10 by the North American Ellipsometry Association in collaboration with the Ellipsometry Technical Group at the American Vacuum Society. ICSE-10 is seeking for support to permanency of this award for future ICSE organizations.

Purpose
To recognize outstanding individuals in the areas of interest to ICSE-10, with emphasis on the fields of ellipsometry and polarimetry, or other applications that use polarization properties of light.
Eligibility
The nominee shall have made pioneering, life-long contributions to the fields of ellipsometry and polarimetry, or to other applications that use polarization properties of light.
Nature of the Award
This award recognizes life time achievements in developments, applications, and/or dissemination/education in the fields ellipsometry and polarimetry, or other applications that use polarization properties of light. The award consists of a commemorative plaque stating the nature of the award, and an honorary lectureship at a regular session of the ICSE-10.
Application for the Hans Mueller Memorial Award
The award will be given to a member of our community who has made pioneering, life-long contributions to the developments, applications, and/or dissemination/education in the fields of ellipsometry and polarimetry, or other applications that use polarization properties of light.
The award consists of a certificate and a monetary prize of USD 1000.
The 2025 Hans Mueller Memorial award and lecture is sponsored by tbd.
The winner shall receive the award at the award ceremony and present an invited honorary lecture at ICSE-10. The lecture may reflect the winner’s life-time achievements and inspire future generations of scientists and educators in the fields of ellipsometry and polarimetry. The application should contain a cover letter, 2-page CV of the candidate, up to 2-page description of the contribution to the field for which the candidate shall be considered, one or more letters of support from colleagues in the field (optional), and a complete list of the candidate’s publications and/or other relevant achievements. Nominations for the award should be submitted to the Chair of the Award Committee (icse10@ellipsometry.us and cc vanya.darakchieva@ftf.lth.se) no later than January 1, 2025. Nominations and self-nominations can be made by anyone. The award winner will be informed by February 1, 2025.