In Memorium: Vijai K. Tripathi

Vijai K. Tripathi, Professor Emeritus and former Department Head of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Oregon State University, died on May 1, 2004, after a seven-year struggle with ALS, better known as "Lou Gehrig's disease."

He was born in Kanpur, India, in December 1942. He received the bachelor of science degree at a young age of 15 from Agra University in 1958, and a master's degree in electronics and radio engineering from Allahabad University in 1961. He worked as a senior research assistant at the Indian Institute of Technology in Bombay from 1961 to 1963. He immigrated to the United States in 1963 to attend the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, where he received the master's and doctoral degrees in electrical engineering in 1964 and 1968, respectively. He started his professorial career at the University of Oklahoma. He moved to Oregon State University in 1974 and was on the faculty for more than 25 years. He became a full professor in 1985 and served as Head of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering from 1994 to 1997. He continued to serve as Professor Emeritus after retiring due to his illness in 1999.

Professor Tripathi was a dedicated educator and a distinguished scholar. He developed an innovative, integrated research and teaching program of international recognition in the areas of microwave electronics and electromagnetics at Oregon State University. He was a visionary and leading authority in the field of signal integrity in high-frequency analog and high-speed digital electronics, with his pioneering contributions serving as the cornerstone for its foundation and the springboard for its future growth.

Early on Prof. Tripathi recognized the significance that electromagnetic interactions due to the signal and power distribution network in packaged electronic systems will have on electrical system performance. In response to the escalating demand for comprehending the signal integrity and EMI issues and developing the knowledge and expertise for their effective resolution through noise-aware design, he established a unique educational program, one of the first of its kind worldwide, that helped set the norm for university-based education and training in high-frequency/high-speed signal integrity.

His educational activities were complemented by a prolific research program that led to seminal contributions in the general areas of RF and microwave circuits, electronic packaging, interconnects, and computational electromagnetics and its applications for the development of methodologies and tools for the computer-aided design (CAD) of microwave and high-speed electronic circuits. More specifically, his seminal research work on SPICE-based modeling of coupled and lossy transmission lines, as well as the electromagnetic analysis of multilevel interconnect structures, has found wide application in the electrical characterization and modeling of the high-density interconnections and packaging structures in state-of-the-art packaged electronic systems.

In parallel to his theoretical work, his research contributions in the area of experimental characterization of interconnects and packaging structures led to significant breakthroughs in the development of novel probing techniques and sophisticated de-embedding methodologies for accurate characterization and modeling of interconnections in microwave and high-speed electronic circuits, including the TDR measurement-based interconnect model extraction and signal integrity analysis algorithms first commercialized by Tektronix and later productized by TDA Systems.

His prolific educational and research work was complemented by an unselfish dedication to professional service. Prof. Tripathi held various leadership positions in the professional societies including the co-chair of the IEEE Topical meeting on Electrical Performance of Electronic Packaging during 1994-1997, chair of the MTT-12 technical committee, several guest editorial appointments for the IEEE Transactions on Microwave Theory and Techniques, an Associate Editor appointment for the IEEE Transactions on Circuits and Systems II, member of the editorial boards of several journals, and member of the technical program committee of the International Microwave Symposium and several other international conferences. As chairman of the IEEE ED/MTT-S Oregon chapter he organized many technical meetings that brought together students and engineers working in industry. He organized and taught numerous, well-attended short courses and workshops locally, at IEEE sponsored conferences including the IEEE International Microwave Symposium, and at several locations in Asia and Europe. He received numerous recognitions for his contributions in research and education, most notably his election to IEEE Fellow in 1993 for "contributions to microwave and millimeter-wave circuits and to coupled transmission-line techniques." He was also the first recipient of the Alumni Professor Award of the College of Engineering at OSU in 1991-92 for his excellence in teaching, inspirational and dedicated guidance of his graduate students and distinction in scholarship. He was a sought-after consultant to many high-tech companies and held visiting appointments at renowned academic and research organizations including Chalmers University of Technology in Gothenburg, Sweden, Duisburg University in Germany, and the Naval Research Laboratory in Washington, D.C.

Prof. Tripathi was an exceptional and inspirational teacher and advisor to numerous master's and doctoral students as well as post-doctoral fellows. Many of his students and faculty moved on to distinguished careers in industry and in academia. As an indication of his devotion, he continued to mentor his graduate students and young faculty long after being confined to his bed and losing his ability to breathe on his own and speak during his illness.

Prof. Tripathi was deeply appreciative of the shared travel and other fun activities, and later, the support of numerous friends throughout his long illness. He has inspired many students and colleagues through his intellect, his dedication, and his foresight. He will be missed by the many who knew him personally or through his research contributions.

Memorial contributions can be made to the Vijai Tripathi Graduate Student Fellowship Fund through the non-profit Oregon State University Foundation at 850 SW 35th Street, Corvallis, OR 97333 (osufoundation.org).