Our Scientific Director, Professor Michael Peter Kennedy was recently appointed to the role of President of the Royal Irish Academy.We are delighted to work with one of Ireland’s leading engineers, who leads and inspires our research team. Professor Kennedy was the founding Scientific Director of MCCI where he continues to inform and guide our research outcomes. We aim to develop high impact microelectronic research outcomes and in doing so, develop future leaders in the semiconductor industry. Under Professor Kennedy’s tutelage, our researchers are armed with significant insights to make innovative progress in microelectronic research.
Exceptional Career in Microelectronics
A graduate of UCD and the University of California at Berkeley, he received the inaugural RIA Parsons Award in Engineering Sciences in 2001. He was elected to membership of the Academy in 2004. Over his career, Professor Kennedy has published extensively in the fields of neural networks, chaos theory, and microchip design, ranging from basic to applied research.
As Professor of Microelectronic Engineering at UCC, he was founding Scientific Director of the Microelectronics Industry Design Association and MCCI. He also served for five years as UCC’s Vice-President for Research.
He has held visiting positions at several universities in Europe, including EPFL and Imperial College London. He served four years as RIA Policy and International Relations Secretary from 2012 to 2016, during which time he was a member of the Board of ALLEA, the federation of national academies in Europe.
He succeeds historian, Professor Mary E. Daly, who was elected as the Academy’s first female President in 2014. He is also the first President from UCC. Professor Kennedy has said he is ‘Honoured to be elected President and that he sees the all-island Academy playing a key advisory role in Ireland’s response to the challenges and opportunities of Brexit’.
He received the inaugural Parsons Award in Engineering Sciences in 2001 and was elected as a member of the Academy in 2004. He won UCC’s Invention of the Year Award in 2011 and led the development of the US-Ireland Research Innovation Awards in 2014/15, an initiative of the Royal Irish Academy and the American Chamber of Commerce Ireland.
Professor Kennedy and MCCI
“We wish Peter every success in his role as President of The Royal Irish Academy, and we are privileged to work with him. His expertise in all elements of IC design, informs and guides our students to deliver the very best in application driven microelectronics research”, said Donnacha O’ Riordan, Executive Director, MCCI, “One of our key ambitions is to develop leaders within in the field of Microelectronics and having Professor Kennedy on the team, enhances our researchers experience”.
MCCI’s research focus is on digitally assisted RF & analogue circuits, driving innovation in deep sub-micron analogue design, while establishing Ireland as a global hub for circuit innovation. The research we undertake is informed by our industry partners to deliver real commercial impact for companies as well as enhancing society with cutting edge innovation in microelectronic advancements.
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