Recognizing excellence. Supporting access.

The ICU Early Career Award will be presented to an individual who is relatively early in his/her professional career (about 10–15 years of active career), has been active in the field of ultrasound through his/her national society, other national society(ies), and/or regional or international organizations, and has contributed substantially, through published papers, to the advancement of theoretical or applied ultrasound or both.

Nominations for the award may be submitted by ICU Board members and members of national or international scientific ultrasonic or acoustic societies. These nominations must include:

• One nominating letter
• Two supporting letters
• Professional facts document
• Curriculum vitae

These nominations are due to the Secretary General of the ICU (currently Sigrun Hirsekorn – sigrun.hirsekorn@gmail.com) at least 3 months prior to the congress. The documents must be submitted as PDF files via e-mail. The ICU Board will select the award recipient(s) by voting on the suggested candidates at the board meeting prior to the congress.

The award consists of an honorarium, an award certificate, and a Silver Whistle. The whistle is a silver-colored tri-tone Samba whistle with a strong overtone spectrum in the ultrasonic frequency range. The whistle symbolizes leadership in ultrasound.

The award will be presented at the banquet or the closing ceremony of the congress by the ICU Chairman. The award recipient will be introduced by an individual from the nominating institution and given the opportunity to make remarks in acceptance of the award.

Elsevier, the publisher of the journal Ultrasonics, will again sponsor the RWB Stephens prizes at the 2027 ICU Los Angeles. This competition honors the memory of Professor R.W.B. Stephens (1902–1990), who was active in starting the Ultrasonic International (UI) conferences and who contributed greatly to their success. During his lifetime he was recognized as a great teacher who taught and inspired generations of students in acoustics and ultrasonics.

The presenters of up to five of the most outstanding (oral) papers presented at the 2027 ICU Los Angeles by a student or recent graduate (if the paper is based on the presenter's dissertation research) will be selected by a jury of high-profile jurors and will be awarded a certificate and a cash prize. The chair of the prize committee is Prof. Zhongqing Su of Hong Kong Polytechnic University who has been actively engaged with the ICU conferences as well as the journal Ultrasonics for many years.

You can apply for the RWB Stephens prize by email to the organizing committee (zhongqing.su@polyu.edu.hk) by Dec 31, 2026, by providing the following information:

• Name of the entrant
• Title of the paper
• Conference paper number
• Mentor or faculty advisor
• School or university where the research was carried out
• Date of diploma/degree or expected completion date

Note: You must already be registered as a participant of 2027 ICU Los Angeles.

The three best posters will be awarded at the 2027 ICU Los Angeles. The Best Poster Award is specifically given to young scientists, who are to be honored for their outstanding scientific contributions. The Best Poster Award includes a certificate.

Members of the jury will evaluate each poster together with the presenter's responses to their questions, and will select the three most meritorious poster contributions.