Master's Degree in Applied Physics?

I'm sorry if this has been discussed before. I've searched for a thread about this topic, but I haven't found anything that directly answered my question. I will be studying engineering physics at Ohio State this fall and I'm not entirely sure if I will need graduate school to get the most out of my degree. The two areas I'm interested in most are photonics/optics (designing lasers, photodiodes etc.) and nano-composite materials (I'm not too sure about specifics since I haven't started classes yet). Both of these areas fall under most schools' applied physics programs, I was just curious if an applied physics master's means anything. I don't particularly want to get a PhD, at least not yet, but I understand that to get better positions/salaries in companies or labs, it helps to have an advanced degree. I just want to know if it would be better to just go all the way and get a PhD in physics/engineering, or if a Master's in applied physics would work? Thanks.