image: The award recognises Prof Qiu's pioneering work in nano-optics and photonics.
Credit: College of Design and Engineering, NUS
Professor Cheng-Wei Qiu (Provost’s Chair, Electrical and Computer Engineering) has been named the 2026 recipient of the Joseph Fraunhofer Award/Robert M. Burley Prize, one of the highest honours in optical science and engineering, by Optica.
First presented in 1982, the Fraunhofer Award recognises significant research accomplishments in optical engineering and honours the contributions of German scientist Joseph Fraunhofer to the field. Prof Qiu is the first scientist from Singapore to receive this award.
The award citation notes Prof Qiu’s “pioneering works in interfacial optics of low-dimensional and van der Waals materials with photonic nanostructures, fusing multiscale symmetry, topology, and geometry from within natural crystals and meta-optics.”
Prof Qiu is Director of the Optical Science & Engineering Center (OSEC). His work has achieved worldwide recognition for advancing the understanding of multiscale symmetry, topology and geometry in natural crystals and meta-optics. His pioneering research and leadership in optical metasurfaces and photonics have earned him several honours, including a Visiting Miller Professorship at UC Berkeley, the President’s Science Award in Singapore, recognition among Physics World’s Top 10 Breakthroughs (UK), and the Robert T. Poe Prize from OCPA (US). He is a Fellow of the American Physical Society, Academy of Engineering of Singapore, Optica, International Society for Optics and Photonics, The Electromagnetics Academy (US), and a Foreign Fellow of the Chinese Optical Society.
Commenting on the award announcement, Prof Qiu said: "I'm deeply honoured by this recognition, and an honour like this is never an individual achievement."
"Singapore has witnessed a great transformation in science, particularly in nano-optics and photonics because of their widespread and profound application value. Both my team and I are grateful for the sustained support from the NUS community and national agencies, which has positioned Singapore at the forefront of optical science and applications."
Optica, formerly known as Optical Society of America, was founded in 1916 and is dedicated to promoting the generation, application, archiving and dissemination of knowledge in optics and photonics.