Director named for the Office of Electronic Miniaturization

Submitted by Sonja Bickford
Phone: 455-2013
12/10/04

The Office of Electronic Miniaturization (OEM) at the University of Alaska Fairbanks has a new Director, Pramod C. Karulkar, who comes to UAF with an interdisciplinary background and diverse accomplishments in R&D, manufacturing, and academic environments. He arrived in Fairbanks in mid-December.

UAF Provost Paul Reichardt said that "UAF is very pleased to have attracted Karulkar to directorship of UAF’s developing Office of Electronic Miniaturization. He comes to us with impressive academic credentials and well recognized accomplishments in advanced electronic packaging within both industry and government. His stated commitment to establish and maintain dynamic relationships between UAF’s research and development programs and its academic, technology transfer, and public outreach efforts is very much in tune with UAF’s desire and philosophy.

Karulkar is very enthusiastic about the future of OEM , "Though this endeavor is unusual for Alaska and appears risky, the OEM is poised to fill the critical microelectronics prototyping needs of the nation; to provide infrastructure, training, and expanded research opportunities to the UAF community; and to catalyze local economic growth in high technology, said Karulkar."?

Karulkar attributes his decision to join OEM/UAF to his strong belief in OEM’s mission, solid growth opportunities for OEM, refreshing enthusiasm on the campus, and unforgettable hospitality of the OEM staff and the university leadership. Karulkar promises to work closely with the faculty and the university leadership to make OEM an integral part of the university’s academic and research mission. He is very confident that the OEM will successfully face several challenges in the coming years including adapting to the academic culture; tapping the R&D resources on the campus; collaborating with universities, industry, and government partners; and exceeding the requirements of OEM’s sponsors and customers.

His studies in the Electrical Engineering Department at the University of Wisconsin-Madison led to a Ph.D. in Materials Science and Engineering. He studied experimental and theoretical physics at the University of Pune in India (that has student and faculty exchange agreements with UAF); Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay (India); and Portland State University, Oregon.

Karulkar has contributed to developing technologies and pilot manufacturing of components for high performance, advanced electronic systems. He has held management, engineering and R&D positions in microelectronics and advanced technology divisions of Rockwell International Corporation, Hughes Aircraft Company, Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s Lincoln Laboratory, the Microelectronics Research Laboratory in Columbia-MD, and the Lockheed Martin Company. In his most recent major assignment, he was the director of the Microelectronics Division for the University Research Foundation (Greenbelt MD) and managed a large VLSI fabrication and advanced packaging facility for government customers.