Jayant Baliga is an internationally recognized expert on power semiconductor devices. He is a Member of the National Academy of Engineering and a Fellow of the IEEE. He spent 15 years at the General Electric Research and Development Center, Schenectady, NY, leading their power device effort and was bestowed the highest scientific rank of Coolidge Fellow. He joined NCSU in 1988 as a Full Professor and was promoted to the rank of 'Distinguished University Professor' in 1997. Among his many NCSU honors, he was the recepient of the 1998 O. Max Gardner Award given by the North Carolina University Board of Governors to the one person within the 16 constituent universities who has made 'the greatest contribution to the welfare of the human race'; and the 2011 Alexander Quarles Holladay Medal of Excellence, the highest honor at NCSU from the Board of Trustees.

Prof. Baliga has authored/edited 18 books and over 500 scientific articles. He has been granted 120 U.S. Patents. The IEEE has recognized him numerous times - most recently with the 'Lamme Medal' at Whitehall Palace in London. Scientific American magazine included him among the 'Eight Heroes of the Semiconductor Revolution' when commemorating the 50th anniversary of the invention of the transistor.

Prof. Baliga invented, developed and commercialized the Insulated Gate Bipolar Trannsistor (IGBT) at GE. The IGBT is extensively used in the consumer, industrial, lighting, transportation, medical, renewable energy, and other sectors of the economy. It has enabled enormous reduction of gasoline and electrical energy use, resulting in huge cost savings to consumers, and reduction of world-wide carbon dioxide emissions. A detailed report on the applications and social impact of the IGBT is available. He received the National Medal of Technology and Innovation, the highest form of recognition given to an engineer by the United States Government, from President Obama in October 2011, at the White House; and the North Carolina Award for Science from Governor Purdue in October 2012.