The National Academy of Sciences (NAS) announced Wednesday that it will present Dr. Shanhui Fan, assistant professor of electrical engineering, with the annual Award for Initiatives in Research — and with it, a $15,000 prize.

Fan expressed astonishment and a sense of fulfillment at receiving the award, which has been presented each year since 1981.

“I must say I was very surprised when I got it,” he said. “It is certainly a recognition of the work my group and I have completed at Stanford, and I am very proud. I am thrilled, just really quite amazed. I see the award as encouragement and recognition for a young scientist and researcher.”

Tony Ziselberger, senior membership associate at NAS, explained why Fan was selected as this year’s recipient.

“Fan is being honored for innovative research on the theory and applications of photonic crystal devices,” he said. Ziselberger added that the theme for this year is optical science, which happens to be Fan’s specialty.

Fan said that his work is gaining importance in today’s ultra-technological world.

“The work that we do here generally has to do with very small optical devices, down to the nano level,” Fan said. “I feel this kind of device is a new very active field of research with potential applications in many different areas, including communication and computing.”

This year, the Academy will honor the achievements of 18 individuals in a variety of scientific fields, including astronomy and oceanography. The honorees will receive their awards on April 29 at a ceremony during the annual meeting of the Academy in Washington, D.C.

Last year, two Stanford professors received awards. Dr. David Goldhaber-Gordon received the Award for Initiatives in Research for his work in condensed matter and materials science, and Dr. Peter Vitousek received the Academy’s award for Scientific Reviewing.