Gerald J. Iafrate Ph.D.

Iafrate, Gerald J.
Position Department / Business Unit
Professor Electrical and Computer Engineering
Institution Disciplines
North Carolina State University Physics Electronics
City State / Provence
Raleigh North Carolina
Country Website
USA link
Fax
(919) 513-1247

Prof. Gerald J. Iafrate is currently a professor of electrical and computer engineering at North Carolina State University, Raleigh, where his work include quantum transport in nanostructures such as resonant tunneling diodes and quantum dots. He is also studying quantum dissipation, with emphasis on ratchet-like transport phenomena and nonequilibrium processes in nanosystems. Dr. Iafrate is a fellow of the IEEE, APS, and AAAS.

Fields of Research Specialization:

  • Nanoscience and technology
  • Solid-state physics
  • Bloch electron dynamics and quantum transport
  • Nanoelectronics
  • Density functional theory
  • Science and technology analysis and management

Education

BS in Physics, Long Island University, 1963; MS in Physics, Fordham University,1965; Ph.D. in Physics, Polytechnic Inst. of Brooklyn, 1970.

Career Highlights

Dr. Iafrate joined the faculty of North Carolina State University as a professor of electrical and computer engineering in August, 2001.  Previously, he was a professor of electrical engineering at the University of Notre Dame, where he also served as associate dean for research in the College of Engineering, and as the first director of a newly established University Center for Excellence in Nanoscience and Technology.  He is a fellow of three major professional societies: The American Physical Society (APS), the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), and the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).  Recent research interests include high field quantum transport in band-engineering heterostructures, molecular electronics, and quantum coherence and entanglement in interacting quantum systems.

Dr. Iafrate retired from federal service in 1997 after a thirty-two year career with the Department of the Army.  From 1989 to 1997, Dr. Iafrate was the director of the U.S. Army Research Office (ARO), serving as the Army's key executive for the conduct of extramural research in the physical and engineering sciences in response to Department of Defense (DoD) objectives.  Prior to becoming director of ARO, Dr. Iafrate was the Director of Electronic Devices Research at the U.S. Army Electronics Technology and Devices Laboratory (ETDL) at Ft. Monmouth, NJ.

Awards

In 1998, Prof. Iafrate received the prestigious Hammer Award from Vice President Al Gore for being a member of the Federated Laboratory Team who conceived and created the Federated Laboratory Concept for Reinventing Government.

Important Articles

  1. Applications of Quantum-Based Devices: Trends and Challenges, G.J. Iafrate and M.A. Stroscio, IEEE Transactions on Electron Devices, 443, 1621 (1996).
  2. "Quantum Transport for Bloch Electrons in a Homogeneous Electric Field", G.J. Iafrate and J.B. Kreiger, Phys. Rev. B, 50, 7553 (1994).