Indian-American scientist awarded Faraday Medal

Washington: Stanford University Professor Emeritus Arogyaswami Paulraj, a top Indian-American scientist, has been awarded the Faraday Medal in recognition of his invention of MIMO Wireless, a key technology powering 4G and 5G mobiles as well as Wi-Fi wireless networks.

Presented the medal at a ceremony in London this past weekend, Paulraj became the 100th recipient of the award, with his citation reading, "For the invention, advancement, and commercialization of MIMO Wireless."

The Faraday Medal is one of the world's most prestigious awards for engineers and scientists who advance technologies with global impact, a media release said on Wednesday.

First awarded in 1922 to Oliver Heaviside, the Faraday Medal is the longest-standing global recognition in science and technology, it said.

"I am extremely honoured to be awarded with the IET Faraday Medal. I believe digital access is truly an equaliser in terms of opportunity creation, and with 5G, India clearly has the potential to enter and succeed in deep technology industries," Paulraj said.

"Since almost all the value addition in these industries comes from innovation and IP ownership, the industry has many barriers to entry. Going forward, India must thoroughly understand all the industry dynamics to frame a successful path," Paulraj, who is also a Celesta Capital Advisor, said.

MIMO (Multiple In, Multiple Out) wireless technology powers 4G, 5G mobiles, and WiFi networks, with far-reaching impact including the revolution of high-speed wireless access, connecting 6.5 billion smartphone users and another 12 billion personal and machine-type devices to the internet, the release said.

The ubiquitous broadband wireless connection to the internet would not be possible without MIMO, it said and added that according to the mobile and WiFi industry groups, the global economic value of MIMO-powered wireless networks was US $7.6 trillion in 2022.

MIMO uses multiple antennas at the transmitter and receiver in a wireless link, along with signal encoding at the transmitter and decoding at the receiver, to boost wireless data rates.

Paulraj has received many global honours for his contributions to MIMO technology. He also serves on several advisory committees across the India and US research and development ecosystem, including serving as the Fabless Committee Chair with the Indian Semiconductor Mission, the release said.

Born in Pollachi, Tamil Nadu, in 1944, Paulraj joined the Indian Navy at age 16 and was commissioned in 1965. He served for 25 years before moving to Stanford University.

His contributions from that period included well-known mathematical breakthroughs for signal estimation and high-resolution parameter estimation.

Paulraj had also led two successful projects in India to develop anti-submarine sonar systems, the release said.

Notably, the APSOH sonar, developed between 1977 and 1983, was perhaps the world's most advanced sonar system and India’s most successful military technology achievement from that period, it said.

Paulraj also founded or cofounded three national laboratories in India, spanning AI and robotics, military electronics, and high-performance computing. But circumstances led him to leave India in 1991 and join Stanford University, the release.

He invented the MIMO technique in 1992 while working on a DARPA project for US defence, it said.