Stephen Forrest Elected to National Academy of Inventors

Stephen Forrest, Paul G. Goebel Professor of Engineering, has been named Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors (NAI).

Election to NAI Fellow status is a high professional distinction given to academic inventors who have demonstrated a prolific spirit of innovation in creating or facilitating outstanding inventions that have made a tangible impact on quality of life, economic development, and the welfare of society.

Prof. Forrest is one of 414 NAI Fellows who collectively hold nearly 14,000 U.S. patents. He alone is an inventor on more than 260 U.S. issued patents, with many more patent applications pending.

He has helped start five companies: Epitaxx (purchased by JDSU), Sensors Unlimited (purchased by Goodrich), Universal Display Corp. (traded as OLED on NASDAQ), Global Photonic Energy Corp. (now NanoFlex Power Corp.) and ASIP Inc. (now part of Avago Technologies).

Prof. Forrest directs the Optoelectronic Components and Materials (OCM) Laboratory. His group focuses on photovoltaic cells, organic light emitting diodes, and lasers & optics. He is a strong proponent of finding practical sustainable solutions to lighting and energy, and works with a diverse multidisciplinary team who investigate a wide variety of phenomena and devices related to electronic materials and optics. He is a professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Physics, and Materials Science and Engineering.

Prof. Forrest is a member of the National Academy of Engineering, and a Fellow of IEEE, OSA, and APS. He has received the IEEE/LEOS Distinguished Lecturer Award, the IPO National Distinguished Inventor Award, and the Thomas Alva Edison Award for innovations in organic LEDs. He received the MRS Medal for work on organic thin films, and the IEEE/LEOS William Streifer Scientific Achievement Award for advances made on photodetectors for optical communications systems. He received the Daniel E. Noble Award for his pioneering contributions to the development of organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) that paved the way for advancements in high-efficiency flat-panel displays and solid-state light sources for general lighting.

He was recently named one of the world’s most influential scientific minds by Thomson Reuters.

The NAI Fellows will be inducted on March 20, 2015, as part of the 4th Annual Conference of the National Academy of Inventors at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. U.S. Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) Deputy Commissioner for Patent Operations Andrew Faile will be providing the keynote address for the induction ceremony. Fellows will be presented with a special trophy, newly designed medal, and rosette pin in honor of their outstanding accomplishments.

See also:

National Academy of Inventors announces 2014 NAI Fellows, PR Newswire

U-M professors elected to National Academy of Inventors, The University Record