Jun-ichi Nishizawa

Jun-ichi Nishizawa (西澤 潤一, Nishizawa Jun'ichi, born September 12, 1926) is a Japanese engineer known for his invention of optical communication systems (including optical fiber, laser diode etc.), PIN diode and SIT/SITh. He is currently a professor at Sophia University.
He is considered the "Father of Japanese Microelectronics".

Nishizawa was born in Sendai, Japan, on September 12, 1926. He earned a B.S. in 1948, and a Doctor of Engineering degree in 1960, from Tohoku University.

In 1953, he joined the Research Institute of Electrical Communication at Tohoku University. He became a professor there and was appointed director to two research institutes. From 1990 to 1996, Nishizawa served as the President of Tohoku University.

He became the president of Iwate Prefectural University in 1998.

Nishizawa is a Life Fellow of the IEEE. He is a Fellow of several other institutions, including the Physical Society, the Russian Academy of Sciences, and the Polish Academy of Sciences. Nishizawa was decorated with Order of Culture by the emperor of Japan in 1989. He also received the Japan Academy Prize (1974), IEEE Jack A. Morton Award (1983), the Honda Prize and the Laudise Prize of the International Organization for Crystal Growth (1989).

IEEE conferred the Edison Medal on him in 2000, and introduced the IEEE Jun-ichi Nishizawa Medal in 2002.