Awards
4th JSAP Outstanding Achievement Awards
The “JSAP Outstanding Achievement
Award” recognizes outstanding individual
achievements in the field of applied physics.
The JSAP Executive Board selects the recipients based on the recommendations of theAwards Committee appointed by the president of JSAP. Three recipients of the awards
mentioned below had commemorative talks
during the Spring Meeting of Japan Society ofApplied Physics, March 2004.

Research Accomplishments

Recipient: Dr. Hiroyuki Matsunami
Professor emeritus, Kyoto University Director,
IAI Japan Science and Technology Agency,
Research Results Application Plaza in KyotoCitation: For pioneering research of
SiC semiconductor and its devices
SiC is a compound semiconductor withoutstanding physical characteristics. Its bandgap is several times higher than that of Si.
Its breakdown electric field is tenfold higher
and saturation velocity is three times fasterthan that of Si. Therefore, it has the potential to improve the performance of the conventional Si and GaAs electronic devices dramatically, especially in the field of high powerdevices. However, difficulty of growing highquality crystals and fabricating devices has delayed the electronic device application for along time. Dr. Matsunami recognized the importance of SiC in the late 60’s and since thenhas been devoted to the research of this material and device. He always took the leadingrole in developing a practical semiconductormaterial. SiC shows multiple crystal types due
to its complex crystal structure and it was almost impossible to grow a high-quality single
crystal. He developed a method of controlling crystal growth in the atomic level using aproper off-angle substrate and succeeded ingrowing a high-quality epitaxial single crystal.
By this method, research and development of
SiC related materials have been expanded andaccelerated on a global scale. This original research is widely recognized as a leading international research triggered by Japan.

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JSAP International No.10 (July 2004)

He established the control techniques ofp-type and n-type conductivity and also revealed the crystal growth mechanism academically using this growth method. He then clarified many specific physical properties of thishigh-quality SiC crystal. From 1993 to 1995,
he made a trial fabrication of high-pressure,high-speed, low-loss SiC Schottky diodes anddemonstrated the feasibility of devices which
was far superior to the theoretical limitation
for the first time in the world. Based on thisachievement, high-pressure, high-speed SiC
Schottky diodes and SiC MESFET have become
a commercial reality. He also worked on research on SiO2/SiC MOS interfaces. In 1999,
he succeeded in improving the performance ofMOSFET by 20 times using a new crystal orientation and set the grounds for the realization of high performance SiC power MOSFET.
It is highly expected that SiC will be applied to high-performance power conversion
devices and high-frequency power devices.
After all, not only does it lead to the effective
use of energy and the reduction of environmental burden, but it will also lead to the paradigm shift of power electronics based on
low-loss, high-power semiconductor devices.
The outstanding leadership that he has exercised in an effort to put SiC into practical use
is worthy of admiration and deserves the highhonor of the outstanding achievement award.

Educational Accomplishments

Recipient: Dr. Takashi Mimura
Research Fellow, Fujitsu Laboratories
Citation: For the invention and developmentof High Electron Mobility Transistor (HEMT)In 1979, Dr. Mimura developed a revolutionary high-electron mobility electronic device with a channel layer separating from impurities, drawing on his findings that highdensity two-dimensional electron gas wasformed at a hetero-interface formed between
two semiconductors with different band-gap.
He applied for a patent for his invention andcarried out development and trial manufacture and unveiled it as “High Electron Mobility Transistor (HEMT)” in JJAP. This paper was
selected as Citation Classic of Institute for Scientific Information because of its remarkableachievement of materializing the first field-effect device using a hetero-interface.
He continuously played a leadership role
in research and development toward thepractical use of HEMT and made considerable
contributions to the product development ofa low noise amplifier in microwave and millimeter wave ranges. HEMT became a commercial reality in 1985 as a low noise receiver
for radio telescope and it contributed to theprogress of radio astronomy. HEMT changed
its forms from AlGaAs/GaAs to InGaP/GaAs,InAIAs/InGaAs and and their pseudomorphicsystem. Because of its excellent high-speed
and low noise characteristics, it has been
widely applied for satellite broadcast receiver, cellular phone, car navigation receiver andmillimeter automobile radar as a basic tech-nology that is indispensable to IT society. Recently, further product development moves
ahead to meet a variety of needs for AlGaN/
GaN and strained Si/SiGe HEMTs and further
market expansion is anticipated. Ultimately,
HEMT was taken up as one of the nano-technologies in National Nanotechnology Initiative published by Clinton administration inJanuary 2000, and took a share in the worldattention for nano-technology. Invention ofHEMT has also accelerated the developmentof thin layer growth technologies such as
MBE and MOCVD that could bring about achange in the crystal composition at extreme
precision and has made significant contribution to the later development of electronic
devices and optical devices using compound
semiconductors. In view of today’s global understanding of mesoscopic physics triggeredby the development of these device technologies, HEMT has scientifically tremendous spinoff effects. These achievements deserve thehigh honor of the outstanding achievement
award.

Recipient: Dr. Tadao Tsuruta
Corporate Advisor, Nikon Corporation
Citation: For educational contributions of his scientific work “PENCIL OF RAYS”
Dr. Tsuruta has made considerable contributions to the fostering and education of students
and younger researchers in the field of optics
through his longstanding academic and literaryactivities. Among others, “PENCIL OF RAYS - Applied optics for optical engineers” (series of 6
volumes, 3,000 pages) is a masterpiece of hiswisdom accumulated over a period of times. Thework gives profound insight into physics andpractical technology in the business world. Heexplains how extensively today’s applied physics
is intertwined with classical optics fields with his
unique writing style and witty description cultivated by his wide array of knowledge.
He delves deeply into the original papers
written by the great physical scientists such as
Newton and Rayleigh by casting a contemporary perspective. Not only does he give readers a
joy of reliving the experiences of their findings,
but he also casts a new light to classical optics
and teaches us the importance of learning fromthe past. In the long history of optics field, there
were certainly many great works including Principles of Optics (Born and Wolf) as a sort of bible. However, his “PENCIL OF RAYS” presents
unique writing style and educational approachwith no precedent in the past and stands out interms of content and originality. Six volumes of“PENCIL OF RAYS” have won enthusiastic support from many readers including younger researchers and engineers, so the author’s contribution to the education of applied physics
education deserves to be highly praised.

JSAP International No.10 (July 2004)

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