Chennupati Jagadish, President of the Australian Academy of Science


Chennupati Jagadish an Indian-Australian physicist and academic, is the President of the Australian Academy of Science, and a Distinguished Professor of Physics at the Australian National University Research School of Physics. He is head of the Semiconductor Optoelectronics and Nanotechnology Group which he established in 1990. He is also the Convener of the Australian Nanotechnology Network and Director of Australian National Fabrication Facility ACT Node.

Jagadish obtained his B.Sc. degree in physics from Acharya Nagarjuna University (VSR College, Tenali) in 1977, M.Sc. (Tech) in applied physics (with specialization in electronics) from Andhra University in 1980 and M.Phil. and Ph.D. degrees in physics (semiconducting thin films) from the University of Delhi in 1982 and 1986, respectively. 

After completing his PhD in physics at the University of Delhi, Jagadish worked at Sri Venkateswara College, New Delhi as a lecturer in Physics and Electronics during 1985–1988. He was a post-doctoral fellow at Queen's University Physics Department during 1988–1990. He moved to the Australian National University in 1990 to join the newly established Department of Electronic Materials Engineering in the Research School of Physics. He has served as vice-president and Secretary for Physical Sciences of the Australian Academy of Science (2012-2016) and was elected President of the academy in May 2022, to serve a term of four years until May 2026.

Jagadish also provides services to many other universities around the world as a guest faculty, distinguished faculty and holds honorary positions.

He is an active member of IEEE Australian Material Research Society where he was President (2019-2022). He was also President, IEEE Photonics Society (2018-2019), and President, IEEE Nanotechnology Council (2008-2009), and regularly speaks at international conferences and meetings on Material Sciences, Photonics, Electronics, Semiconductors, Quantum Electronics, Physics, etc. He has also delivered plenary talks, and guest talks and organized several sessions in MRS, IEEE meetings around the globe.

Jagadish has received many awards and honours including being elected a Fellow of the American Physical Society in 2003. He was awarded the Federation Fellowship (2004–2009) and Laureate Fellowship (2009–2014) by the Australian Research Council. He was awarded the 2013 Walter Boas Medal from the Australian Institute of Physics. and the 2015 IEEE Pioneer Award in Nanotechnology.

He was named a Companion of the Order of Australia for eminent services to physics and engineering in the Australia Day Honours 2016., and received the UNESCO medal for his contributions to nanoscience and nanotechnologies, and the 2019 Thomas Ranken Lyle Medal from the Australian Academy of Science. 2019 was the same year he received the Beattie Steel Medal, Australian Optical Society, and the IEEE Education Award of Electron Devices Society 2, 2019.

In 2020, he was elected an international member of the National Academy of Engineering for contributions to nanotechnology for optoelectronic devices. In 2022, he was elected as an international fellow of the UK’s Royal Academy of Engineering. In 2023, the President of India conferred on Jagadish the Pravasi Bharatiya Samman Award for his “contributions to science and technology and education". This is the highest honor given to overseas Indians by the Government of India.

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