Baliga elected to the National Inventors Hall of Fame
Dr. Jayant Baliga, Distinguished University Professor of Electrical Engineering, will be inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame.
Baliga is being honored for his invention of the Insulated-Gate Bipolar Transistor (IGBT), a power semiconductor device used as an electronic switch around the world in all sectors of the economy, ranging from transportation to consumer appliances to factory robots and medical devices in hospitals.
The improved efficiency gained by using the IGBT in a wide range of applications has resulted in saving more than 1.5 trillion gallons of gasoline and reducing electrical energy consumption by more than 75,000 terra-watt-hours (equivalent to not having to build 1,366 one-gigawatt coal-fired power plants). Since its invention, the IGBT has saved consumers $24 trillion while reducing carbon dioxide emission by more than 100 trillion pounds.
The National Inventors Hall of Fame was launched in 1973 to inspire the next generation of inventors by celebrating the achievements of visionary U.S. patent holders who, through their innovations, have changed the world.
Baliga’s induction ceremony will be held in May 2016 at the Smithsonian American Art Museum and the National Portrait Gallery in Washington D.C.
Return to contents or download the Spring/Summer 2016 NC State Engineering magazine (PDF, 3MB).
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