Subhendu Guha (Photo, as it appears on www.ovonic.com)

Scientist Subhendu Guha, noted for his pioneering work in amorphous silicon, has won the 2005 World Technology Award in energy, the Press Trust of India reported.

The award for Guha's innovative work on the science and technology of thin-film amorphous and nano-crystalline silicon materials and solar cells was announced at a gala ceremony in San Francisco at the conclusion of the World Technology Summit recently.

"I'm honored to receive the award. It is personally gratifying, but I particularly appreciate the collaboration of my colleagues to carry out cutting-edge research to develop products that have great societal values," Guha was quoted as saying.

Guha, who lives in Bloomfield Hills, Michigan, with his wife Jayshree, was born and brought up in Kolkata. He studied at Presidency College with physics as his major subject.

Guha is now executive vice president of United Solar Systems Corporation in Troy, Michigan, and the leading inventor of flexible solar shingles, a state-of-the-art technology for converting sunlight to electricity.

The awards, instituted in 2000, were for different categories - biotechnology, space, energy, environment, education and policy. It was sponsored by leading organizations like such as The American Association for the Advancement of Science, Time magazine, CNN, Microsoft and Fortune magazine. They honor individuals and corporations from 20 technology-related sectors, who are selected by their peers as innovators, who perform work of the greatest likely long-term significance.

After earning Ph.D. from University of Calcutta, Guha joined TIFR ( Tata Institute of Fundamental Research) and started working on semiconductors. In 1974-1975, Guha did a year of post-doctoral training at the University of Sheffield in England. In 1982, Guha left TIFR and joined ECD (Energy Conversion Devices) in U.S. In 1990, he co-founded United Solar Systems, a joint venture company ECD and Canon Inc. of Japan to manufacture solar cells. Guha's company has received R&D magazine's 'R&D 100' Award, which has often been described as the 'Nobel Prize of applied research.'

United Solar was chosen for its triple junction solar module. The importance of Guha's innovation has already been recognized not only by the U.S. Department of Energy, but also by many others who are concerned about environmental technologies. James P. Clark, founder and chairman of the World Technology Network, was quoted as saying "Guha's contribution to the field of photovoltaic energy has been outstanding, and the award is just acknowledgment of that fact."

(Compiled from news dispatches)