John Roberts, co-founder & chief technical officer of GaN Systems Inc of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, a fabless provider of gallium nitride (GaN)-based power switching semiconductors for power conversion and control applications, has won the Information Technology Association of Canada (ITAC)'s 2013 Lifetime Contribution Award for "outstanding service to Canada's microelectronics industry". The ITAC is the voice of Canada's ICT industry and represents Canada's 33,000 high-tech firms, which together contribute $67.2bn to Canada's economy.
Roberts was presented with the award during ITAC's 19th National Executive Forum and CMC's 2013 Annual Microsystems Symposium on 16 October by Steve Kovacic, director, technology at Skyworks Solutions Inc. Roberts' list of achievements includes founding two Ottawa-based semiconductor firms: Calmos (later Tundra) Semiconductor and SiGe Semiconductor. He also founded the Strategic Microelectronic Consortium (an alliance of 25 industry companies including Nortel, PMC Sierra, IBM, Gennum Corp, c-MAC MicroTechnology and other hybrid and semiconductor manufacturers.
Roberts' co-founded GaN Systems with CEO Girvan Patterson. The firm is introducing gallium nitride high-power transistors based on its proprietary Island Technology, which is claimed to offer significant advantages over traditional silicon devices and can yield smaller, lighter and more efficient power electronics. GaN devices are projected to secure a significant portion of the silicon-based semiconductor market within the next 3-5 years, says GaN Systems.
