Prof. Umesh K. Mishra

(BT/EE/1979)

Prof. Umesh K. Mishra is a professor in the Electrical & Computer Engineering Department at the University of California, USA. He is also the CTO, co-founder and board member of Transphorm, founded in 2007 and the first company to deliver gallium nitride (GaN) transistor products for high efficiency power conversion technologies. Prior to Transphorm, he co-founded Nitres Inc. in 1996, which was the first company to develop GaN LEDs and transistors.


Profile

Prof. Mishra did his B.Tech degree from the IIT Kanpur in 1979 and obtained his M.S. in Electrical Engineering at Lehigh University in 1981. Post his doctorate from Cornell University in 1984, he went on to serve as a principal staff engineer at General Electric. Prof. Mishra was elected to the National Academy of Engineering in 2009 for his contributions to the development of gallium nitride electronics and other high-speed, high-power semiconductor electronic devices. His company, Transphorm, was selected by the World Economic Forum as a 2013 Technology Pioneer for its innovations in GaN technology.

Prof. Mishra is a fellow of IEEE, member of the National Academy of Engineering, and a recipient of both the IEEE David Sarnoff Award and the ISCS Quantum Device Award. He was elected to the National Academy of Inventors in 2015. Prof. Umesh K. Mishra was conferred with the Distinguished Alumnus Award, 2006 from IIT Kanpur.

Achievements and Honors


  • Donald W. Whittier Chair in Electrical Engineering, UCSB, 2013.
  • Heinrich Welker Award for "The Development of GaN High Power Electronics from Conception, Education to Commercialization," International Symposium on Compound Semiconductors, 2012.
  • Member, National Academy of Engineering, USA, 2009.
  • Quantum Device Award, ISCS, 2007.
  • IEEE David Sarnoff Award, 2007.
  • Distinguished Alumnus Award, IIT Kanpur, 2006.
  • Young Scientist of the Year Award, International GaAs Symposium, 1992.
  • NSF, Presidential Young Investigator Award, 1989