Semiconductor, LED, Microelectronics Innovators Honored

WASHINGTON, Oct. 28 -- A developer of semiconductor advances, innovators in light-emitting diode (LED) technology and a microelectronics pioneer are among winners of The 2002 National Medal of Technology, to be presented Nov. 6 at a White House ceremony. The award, established by Congress in 1980, is administered by the Department of Commerce (DOC).

Calvin H. Carter, a founder of Cree Inc., a Durham, N.C.-based advanced semiconductor company, is being honored for "his contributions to the development of silicon carbide wafers, which lead to new industries in wide bandgap semiconductors and enabled other new industries in efficient blue, green and white light; full-color displays; high power solid-state microwave amplifiers; more efficient/compact power supplies; higher efficiency power distribution/transmission systems; and gemstones," said a DOC press release.

Carver A. Mead, a professor of engineering and applied science at the California Institute of Technology, is being reconignized for his "pioneering contributions to the microelectronics field, which include spearheading the development of tools and techniques for modern integrated-circuit design, laying the foundation for fabless semiconductor companies, catalyzing the electronic-design automation field, training generations of engineers that have made the US the world leader in microelectronics technology and founding more than 20 companies, including Actel Corp., Silicon Compilers, Synaptics and Sonic Innovations."

A team of innovators in the LED technology field will also be awarded: Nick Holonyak Jr., a professor of electrical and computer engineering, Microelectronics Lab, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; M. George Craford, CTO of Lumileds Lighting, San Jose, Calif.; and Russell Dean Dupuis, a professor in electrical and computer engineering at Georgia Institute of Technology at Atlanta, Georgia; "for their contributions to the development and commercialization of LED technology, with applications to digital displays, consumer electronics, automotive lighting, traffic signals and general illumination -- the world’s most efficient light source being mass-produced today."

Other winners will include a research pioneer in automotive technology to improve environmental standards, inventors of the three-way catalytic converter and a company that developed technology for the phase out and replacement of chloroflurocarbons in the environment.

For more information, visit: www.technology.gov/medal