Woodall Receives Nishizawa Medal for Extraordinary Contributions to Technology

In recognition of his exceptional achievements in material and device science technology, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) named Jerry M. Woodall, C. Baldwin Sawyer Professor of Electrical Engineering, Professor of Applied Physics and Co-Director of the Center for Microelectronic Materials and Structures at Yale, the recipient of its 2005 IEEE Jun-ichi Nishizawa Medal.

In recognition of his exceptional achievements in material and device science technology, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) named Jerry M. Woodall, C. Baldwin Sawyer Professor of Electrical Engineering, Professor of Applied Physics and Co-Director of the Center for Microelectronic Materials and Structures at Yale, the recipient of its 2005 IEEE Jun-ichi Nishizawa Medal.

This medal is named in honor of Jun-ichi Nishizawa, the “Father of Japanese Microelectronics,” for his lifetime of outstanding achievements. Presented for the first time in 2004, it consists of a gold medal, bronze replica, certificate and honorarium. The citation reads “for pioneering contributions to the liquid-phase epitaxy in the GaAs/AlGaAS systems, including applications to photonic and electronic devices.”

Woodall joined the Yale Faculty of Engineering in 1999 after many years at IBM Research. He received his B.S. in metallurgy from MIT and Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from Cornell University. At IBM Labs, he first worked on ways of growing highly purified and perfect GaAs crystals for early injection lasers. His later work involved the invention and development of technologically and commercially important compound semiconductor heterojunction materials, processes, and related devices. Examples include light-emitting diodes, lasers, ultra-fast transistors, and solar cells which are all in widespread use today.

Paul Fleury, Dean of Yale Engineering, remarked, “Professor Woodall’s curiosity, drive and creativity have for decades led to advances in technology that touch virtually everyone - though his microscopic inventions are invisible to most. The Nishizawa Award is but the latest in a long series of well-deserved and prestigious recognitions by the most knowledgeable of his peers.”

Woodall’s research has resulted in over 275 publications and 67 issued U.S. patents. Among his many awards are IBM Fellow and Invention Achievement Awards, the IEEE Jack A. Morton Award, the Medard Welch Founder’s Award [the American Vacuum Society’s highest honor],and the Electrochemical Society’s Edward Goodrich Acheson (Founder’s) Award. He is also a member of the National Academy of Engineering, a Fellow of the American Physical Society, the IEEE, the Electrochemical Society, and the AVS. He received the Federation of Materials Societies National Materials Award in 2002 and the National Medal of Technology presented by President Bush at the White House for 2001.

Share this with Facebook Share this with X Share this with LinkedIn Share this with Email Print this

Media Contact

Janet Rettig Emanuel: janet.emanuel@yale.edu, 203-432-2157