The National Academy of Inventors (NAI) has elected Edwin Piner, Ph.D., professor and chair of the Department of Physics at Texas State University, to the 2024 class of NAI Fellows.
Piner, who also serves as co-director of TXST’s Materials Application Research Center, is the university’s first faculty member elected to the NAI. NAI Fellowship is the highest professional distinction awarded solely to inventors. Piner, along with the other 2024 fellows, will be formally honored and presented their medals by a senior official of the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) at the NAI 14th Annual Meeting on June 26 in Atlanta, Ga. The full list of 2024 fellows can be found here.
Piner’s research is in wide bandgap and ultra-wide bandgap III-Nitride and diamond semiconductor materials, primarily for microwave, power, harsh environment and sensing systems. He holds 33 patents in the field of III-Nitride and diamond materials and devices, 31 of which have been licensed. His inventions are derived from the ever-increasing need for devices capable of higher power, efficiency, operating bandwidth and linearity while simultaneously reducing the size, weight and power consumption, as well as operating in harsh environments. While power semiconductors have historically used silicon as the functioning material, it is limited when it comes to high voltages. Therefore, III-Nitrides are increasingly being used instead of silicon. III-Nitride technology offers higher switching frequencies while keeping losses at very low levels, offering longer battery life and faster charging for mobile phones, electric vehicles and power tools, as well as faster data communication capabilities.
The 2024 cohort of fellows exemplifies the academy’s belief that groundbreaking innovation knows no bounds and inventors can be found everywhere. This is evident in the fact that the honorees represent 39 U.S. states and 12 countries, and 43% identify as underrepresented inventors.
The 2024 fellows hail from 135 research universities, governmental and non-profit research institutions worldwide and their work spans across various disciplines. They are not only phenomenal researchers holding prestigious honors and distinctions such as the Nobel Prize, U.S. National Medal of Technology and Innovation and National Medal of Science, and membership to the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, but they are also inventors who collectively hold more than 5,000 issued U.S. patents and whose innovations are making tangible societal and economic impacts today and will well into the future.
“This year’s class of NAI Fellows represents a truly impressive caliber of inventors. Each of these individuals are tackling real-world issues and creating solutions that propel us into the future. Through their work, they are making significant contributions to science, creating lasting societal impact and growing the economy,” said Paul Sanberg, Ph.D., D.Sc., FNAI, president of the NAI.
“NAI Fellows as a whole are a driving force of innovation, generating crucial advancements across scientific disciplines and creating tangible impacts as they move their technologies from lab to marketplace.”
Since its founding in 2012, the NAI Fellows program has grown to include 2,068 researchers and innovators, who hold more than 68,000 U.S. patents and 20,000 licensed technologies. NAI Fellows are known for the societal and economic impact of their inventions, contributing to major advancements in science and consumer technologies. Their innovations have generated more than $3.2 trillion in revenue and generated 1.2 million jobs.