Hall of Fame

The Grainger Engineering Hall of Fame recognizes Illinois engineering alumni, and others affiliated with the College, who have significant achievements in leadership, entrepreneurship, and innovation of great impact to society. Each year the college will honor these remarkable accomplishments by inducting a class of honorees into the Grainger Engineering Hall of Fame.

Technology pioneer and business leader; Early employee and innovator at Oracle Corporation; Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Informatica Corporation, an enterprise software category leader.

Computer pioneer and co-founder of Digital Equipment Corporation, the world's first minicomputer company.

Co-author of Mosaic, the first widely used web browser that transformed the exchange of information. Co-founder of Netscape Communications Corporation, which produced the Netscape Navigator web browser.
Co-inventor of the transistor which revolutionized the electronics industry. Co-creator of the fundamental theory of superconductivity, known as the BCS theory.

Innovator in the fields of semiconductors, liquid crystal displays, and digital watches; pioneered the industry of programmable gate arrays; Co-founder of XILINX, the field programmable gate array creators.

Co-author of Mosaic, the first widely used web browser that transformed the exchange of information. Co-founder of Netscape Communications Corporation, which produced the Netscape Navigator web browser.
Inventor of the plasma display monitor, forerunner of the modern flat panel television screen, and co-developer of PLATO, the first computer-based interactive educational network and home of the first online community.
Global entrepreneurial industrialist, philanthropist, and innovator; Founder of Carver Industries and Bandag Company, Inc.

For his entrepreneurial spirit as a co-founder of YouTube and for his internet technology innovations.

For his pioneering impact in the technical development of nuclear power and his advocacy for professional development in power engineering.

"Father" of the molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) method for producing novel layered materials used in wireless and optical communications, lasers, and transistors.

Inventor of the first yellow light emitting diode (LED) and pioneer in the development and commercialization of LED materials

For his role in developing low-power, high-performance computer technology used in today’s mobile devices.

For pioneering contributions to elementary particle physics and for applying fundamental physics principles to inform public policy in national security and intelligence.

For entrepreneurship and pioneering contributions to electric vehicles.

Global business and technology visionary who oversaw world-leading engineering breakthroughs at General Electric in areas as diverse as medical imaging, jet propulsion and advanced lighting, and whose research contributed to the advancement of computer tomography X-ray systems.

International educational leader known for innovative technical contributions to communciations systems; Engineering Dean who guided the Illinois engineering program to national prominence.

For his contributions to society in the development of real-time embedded software products including those used in the Mars Pathfinder and Stardust projects.

Worldwide entrepreneurial leader, former President and Chief Executive Officer of Motorola, and retired Chief Executive Officer of Eastman Kodak Company.

Pioneer in the field of therapeutic ultrasound who first used computers in diagnostic ultrasonography and neurosonic medical imaging to detect disease.

For corporate leadership in guiding International Paper Company to become a world leader in forest and paper products.

For his preeminence in numerical analysis, building algorithms that laid the foundation for high-speed scientific computing.

Pioneer of entrepreneurship and innovation as Founder and Chief Executive of W. W. Grainger, Inc.

For his indelible influence in growing the sport of football in America—from establishing and coaching the Chicago Bears for 40 successful seasons to founding the National Football League.

Scientist, Entrepreneur, Philanthropist, whose contributions to thick-and thin-film technology have made a significant impact in biomedical, communications, aerospace, and defense industries.

Global leader in new aircraft development programs introducing advanced technology in aerodynamics, acoustics, avionics, and systems.

Inventor of the quantum well laser, who also introduced the Henry linewidth enhancement factor to explain the significant line broadening of semiconductor lasers.

Inventor of the light-emitting diode (LED) and a contributor to the first practical quantum well laser, which enabled modern fiber optics communication.

World-renowned aeronautical scientist who championed the Lunar Orbit Rendezvous (LOR) and the Lunar Module (LEM) concepts used in NASA’s manned moon landing program

Entrepreneur and Co-Founder, Chairman, Director and Former CEO of II-VI, Inc.; Innovator in infrared optical materials, and the growth of II-VI compound semiconductor crystals and other optical, laser, and electronic materials.

For his entrepreneurial spirit as a co-founder of YouTube and support of other entrepreneurs as a mentor and investor.

For entrepreneurial tenacity in building Generac to a leader in lightweight portable generators and his philanthropic spirit in helping shape the next generation of engineers.

Global entrepreneur and innovator forging new applications of technology as President of Flex-N-Gate Corporation, a global automobile parts manufacturer.
Co-inventor of the integrated circuit. Co-inventor of the hand-held calculator and the thermal printer used in portable data terminals.

For significant contributions in both research and development through industry to productivity tools in parallel computing.

For global contributions to low-temperature physics, which earned him the 2003 Nobel Prize.

Technology Entrepreneur, angel investor, and cryptographer; Cofounder of PayPal, creator of online security and fraud-prevention systems; Founder and CEO of Slide; Founder and CEO of Hard Valuable Fun (HVF) incubator lab.

World-renowned leader in aerodynamics, hydrodynamics, and aircraft design.
International business leader and Chairman of the Board of Respironics, Inc., leading the company in the production of the first CPAP machine.
Leading developer of image compression methods; coinventor of jpeg.
Worldwide leader in understanding structural engineering with significant global contributions to geotechnical and earthquake engineering.

Technology entrepreneur who co-founded PayPal and other consumer internet companies, and created “instant transfer” and the first on-line advertising network; General Partner at venture capital firm Founder’s Fund.

For his breadth of influence in the fields of systems engineering and software development and for his investment and leadership in the Southeast Asia tech industry.

Software visionary and entrepreneur who influenced communications and productivity in business; Chief Software Architect of Microsoft; Founder of Groove Networks; Creator of Lotus Notes.
International leader in entrepreneurial applications of high-voltage integrated circuits for medical ultrasound, flat panel displays, and LED Lighting; Cofounder, President, and CEO of Supertex, Inc.
Entrepreneurial leader; Founder and Chairman of Vulcan Spring & Manufacturing Co.

Early leader, outstanding innovator and entrepreneur in the CAD/CAM industry, who redefined how we conceptualize, design, and produce millions of products.

For pioneering contributions to solid-state electronics in MOS and biopolar technologies.

Innovative leader in higher education; Model administrator, teacher and researcher; Award-winning scientist and inventor of digital appliance controls used in appliances and microwave ovens worldwide.

International entrepreneur, co-founder and retired Chief Executive Officer of Advanced Micro Devices, Inc., a multinational semiconductor manufacturer that develops computer processors and related technologies for commercial and consumer products.
Global business and technology visionary whose achievements in semiconductor laser research and commercialization revolutionized the optical communications and materials processing industry.

Technology entrepreneur, founder, chairman, and Chief Executive Officer of Siebel Systems, a global leader in application software and recognized as one of the world’s preeminent software companies.

For establishing nuclear magnetic resonance as a powerful tool to elucidate the structure of materials and using it to make fundamental discoveries in physics and chemistry that have enabled a host of modern technologies.
Distinguished engineering educator and author of internationally renowned textbooks. As Engineering Dean, he led the College of Engineering to international eminence during a time of great growth and innovation within the College.

Visionary whose research contributed to the plasma display panel technology, its lower power consumption and higher contrast ratio; Business leader at Panasonic whose worldwide advocacy resulted in plasma TV commercialization; Founded Plasmaco

Pioneer in the discovery and development of radioimmunoassay, a revolutionary technique enabling major advances in endocrinology. Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, 1977.

Entrepreneurial leader, global philanthropist; Founder and Retired Chairman of Hsin Chong Construction Group, Ltd