One of the recipients was B. Jayant Baliga, Distinguished Professor at North Carolina State University. Jay received this prestigious award "For development and commercialization of the Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistor and other power semiconductor devices that are extensively used in transportation, lighting, medicine, defense, and renewable energy generation systems".

This is the highest honor one gets in the United States for technological achievement.  Prof. Jay Baliga is a well known figure in the field of power electronics and often referred to as the "Father of the IGBT". He received this medal for his pioneering research at GE's Global Research lab in Schenectady, NY in the early 80s that led to the invention of Insulated Gate Bipolar Transistor (IGBT). Jay's accomplishments and corresponding list of the awards are numerous, but this honor stands out because it has been given by the President of the Unites States and selected from the entire field of technology. Prof. Baliga is a Distinguished University Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at North Carolina State University and is also founding director of the Power Semiconductor Research Center.

On a broader scale, this is a great honor not only for Prof. Jay Baliga, but also for the field of power electronics - which is usually in the shadow of the more popular ICs/semiconductors and computers/systems fields. Prof. Baliga's selection acknowledges the contribution of power electronics to the overall welfare of electronics in the context of science and technology.

The invention of IGBT is even more important today as energy conservation has become one of the central issues of our time encompassing many social, cultural and technological boundaries. The invention and commercialization of IGBT technology has led to its extensive use in the consumer, industrial, lighting, transportation, medical, renewable energy, and many other sectors of the economy. It has enabled energy savings in countless ways resulting in huge cost savings to consumers, and reduction of world-wide carbon dioxide emissions.

The National Medal of Technology was created in 1980 by the United States Congress under the Stevenson-Wydler Technology Innovation Act. It was a bipartisan effort to foster technological innovation and advance the technological competitiveness of the United States in the international arena. The first National Medals of Technology were awarded in 1985.

To understand the total context and importance of this award, one has to look at some of its past recipients which include:

• Steve Jobs & Steve Wozniak (1985:  For the development of personal computer: Apple Computer),
• Robert Noyce (1987: For the development of Integrated Circuits-IC: Intel Corp.),
• David Packard (1988: For the leadership in industry and government: HP)
• Jack Kilby (1990: For the development of Integrated Circuits-ICs: Texas Instruments-TI: Jack Kilby also won the Nobel Prize for Physics in 2000. He was credited with Robert Noyce for the development of Integrated Circuits)
• Gordon Moore (1990: For the development of Integrated Circuits-ICs and Microprocessors: Intel)
• Bill Gates (1992: For the vision on universal computing: Microsoft)
• Ken Olson (1993: For the development and use of computer technology: Digital Equipment Corporation-DEC)

Prof. B. Jay Baliga is among these distinguished individuals and he is the only individual, so far, to receive the award in the field of power electronics or power semiconductors.

Receiving the National Medal of Technology and Innovation is a unique event and I feel that Prof. Baliga should be honored and recognized for this achievement at the start of the Plenary Session at APEC 2012.

Provided by Mohan Mankikar, President, Micro-Tech Consultants

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