Karl J. Puttlitz Sr. and Paul A. Totta have won the 2008 IEEE Components, Packaging and Manufacturing Technology Award. They are being recognized for their pioneering role in the establishment of flip-chip interconnection technology, which has helped drive the miniaturization and improve the performance and durability of electronic devices such as personal computers and mobile phones.
Sponsored by the IEEE Components, Packaging and Manufacturing Technology Society (CMPS), the award recognizes outstanding contributions to miniaturization in the electronics arts. It will be presented to Puttlitz and Totta for pioneering achievements in flip-chip interconnection technology and semiconductor device and packages. Puttlitz and Totta developed flip-chip interconnection in the early 1960s while working at IBM for use in the company’s mainframe systems. The award will be presented at the 58th Electronic Components and Technology Conference May 29, 2008 in Lake Buena Vista, Fla.
Puttlitz, an IEEE Fellow, is president of Puttlitz Engineering Consultancy, LLC, which he founded in 2004. He retired from IBM in 2004 as a senior technical staff member, following a 43-year career during which he held numerous engineering positions with the company. Puttlitz holds B.S and M.S. degrees in metallurgical engineering and a doctorate in metallurgy/materials science engineering from Michigan State University.
Trotta, who holds 35 U.S. patents, retired in 1999 following a distinguished 40-year career at IBM, where he held both management and engineering positions. Totta was named an IBM Fellow in 1987 in recognition of his activities in chip and package interconnection technology. He holds a B.S. degree in metallurgical engineering from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, Troy, N.Y.