February 13, 2012 -- Chih-Yuan (C. Y.) Lu, a semiconductor engineer, scientist, and entrepreneur in Taiwan, is being honored by IEEE with the 2012 IEEE Frederik Philips Award. The award, sponsored by Philips Electronics NV, recognizes Lu for leadership and contributions to research, development and industrial alliances in semiconductor technology.

The award will be presented on February 20 at the IEEE International Solid-State Circuits Conference in San Francisco, CA.

Lu is an expert in electron devices and integrated circuits (IC) with important research contributions to memory technology, including recent work on nonvolatile memory (NVM). He also, with ITRI, led Taiwan to a world-class position in semiconductor manufacturing. Lu founded semiconductor companies in Taiwan that have impacted the industry worldwide, and kept companies profitable even during down periods in the technology sector.

Lu was recruited in 1989 to join Taiwan’s Electronic Research and Service Organization/Industrial Technology Research Institute (ESRO/ITRI) to implement the country’s largest and most ambitious research and development project. In his role as chief director general, he was the architect of the National Submicron Project, which resulted in a critical revolution in Taiwan’s semiconductor industry. The goal was for Taiwan to catch up to the state-of-the-art semiconductor technology. In less than five years, Taiwan went from a lagging position in the world semiconductor industry to a leading contributor. Under Lu’s guidance, the project provided Taiwan with its own dynamic random access memory (DRAM) mass-production capabilities and 8" wafer process technology.

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Lu co-founded Vanguard International Semiconductor in 1994, which was Taiwan’s first technology independent and commercially operated memory company. Lu also founded Ardentec in 1999 for wafer-level integrated circuit testing. The start-up’s quick success has been used by the Harvard Business School as case-study material. After joining Macronix International in 1999, Lu has led that company to many innovations in strategy, nonvolatile memory technology and project operational management, taking it to one of the most profitable memory companies in the world.

An IEEE Fellow and American Physical Society Fellow, Lu’s honors include Taiwan’s National Applied Science and Technology Medal, Taiwan’s National Invention Award, a Distinguished Achievement Award from the Chinese Institute of Engineers and an IEEE Third Millennium Medal. He has published over 360 technical papers and holds over 140 international patents. Lu received his bachelor’s degree from National Taiwan University, Taipei and his master’s and doctorate degrees from Columbia University, New York, N.Y. Lu is currently president of Macronix International Corporation, Ltd. and chairman of Ardentec Corporation, both in Hsinchu, Taiwan.

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