Advanced Electronics Technology
Dr. Richard W. Ralston - Biography
Dr. Richard W. Ralston is Associate Head of the Solid State Division at MIT Lincoln Laboratory. He shares responsibility both for component research and development, and for subsystem demonstration across a broad range of technologies. These include imagers, RF receivers, integrated circuits, lasers, and solid state and biomolecular nanostructures. Previously, he was Leader of the Analog Device Technology Group. In that position, he managed research and development of surface-acoustic-wave filters, charge-coupled devices, superconductive circuits, and signal-processing subsystems.
Dr. Ralston joined the Laboratory in 1971, and his early research focused on lead-salt diode lasers. His research interest then shifted to surface-wave acousto-electric devices, which exploited piezoelectric fields in semiconductors for amplification and programmable matched filtering. While leading the Analog Device Technology Group, he oversaw transition of technology to space systems. He also helped create, and served as Principal Director of, the Consortium for Superconducting Electronics, which joined researchers on MIT campus and at Lincoln Laboratory with scientists from other universities (Cornell University, Boston University, State University of New York, Stony-Brook) and with staff at large and small companies (IBM, Lucent, Conductus, CTI-Cryogenics). This collaboration demonstrated many firsts in superconducting electronics, including improved receivers for cellular telephone base stations.
He is a senior member of the IEEE and has served on local chapters and national committees in various capacities. Dr. Ralston holds BS and MS degrees in electrical engineering from Lehigh University and a PhD degree in applied quantum electronics from Yale University.
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