IEEE Circuits and Systems Magazine - Q3 2022 - 4

Ron Rohrer: It's just plain fun to do what I do. Like
every engineer, I love to solve problems and the world
presents us with plenty of problems to solve. I'm very
lucky to have had a varied education. My undergraduate
education was strong on fundamentals and awarded
innovation. Much of my graduate education was more
devoted to the discipline. That's a great combination:
first, think outside of the box; then tease the answer into
the box.
My advice to all students is to master the fundamentals.
For CAD/EDA, complexity is in the problem size, so
keep it simple at the leaf cell level. Understanding the
underlying physics and linear algebra is crucial, and
both fields are your best friends. A simple, reasonable
approximation of the basic physics can be coupled to a
well-structured interconnection of those cells.
Question 2: Your contributions to the CAD/EDA field
have been acknowledged by many major awards. Of
all these prestigious awards for your groundbreaking
work, what is the achievement that you are most proud
of and why?
Ron Rohrer: Of course, I'm pleased that my peers
have recognized my research contributions. And awards
beget awards. But I'm most touched to have received the
IEEE Education Medal. Research comes relatively easily
to me, and I'm always doing it. Teaching is harder and I
want it to be as good as possible. To that end, I'm continually
experimenting to make things easier to understand
and to present ideas and information in a way that helps
students recognize the relevance of what they're learning.
One set of classes stands out: the three-quarters circuit
simulation sequence I taught in 1969-70 at UC Berkeley. I
was on a two-year leave of absence working at Fairchild
Semiconductor when my former research advisor Ernie
Kuh called and said, " I'm about to become Department
Chairman and you must teach my Network Synthesis sequence. "
I tried to resist, but ultimately couldn't. I had
taken Network Synthesis taught by Ernie eight years before,
but I had never taught it. Pressed for time I told the
class, " If you write the best circuit simulation program in
the world, I'll give you all As. I'll be your advisor as you
develop the ideas. " As we imported the concepts underlying
FairCirc, they did, and I did. Not all of my education
experiments go that well, but I still keep trying to put in
wrinkles that might inspire students.
Question 3: You have more than thirty years of experience
in academia, including positions at CMU, the
University of California at Berkeley, and the University
of Illinois. In addition to being a legendary inventor,
you have also served on the boards of directors of
over a dozen start-ups and held executive positions
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IEEE CIRCUITS AND SYSTEMS MAGAZINE
in publicly traded companies. Can you elaborate on
these incredibly diverse experiences? And how did the
industrial experience influence your academic career?
Can you share with young faculty how you choose
your research direction and how you commercialize
your research results?
Ron Rohrer: Having had serious roles in industry,
I've come to realize that research isn't everything. Ideas
are worth very little, their implementation more and
their marketing and sales incredibly more, as this is
when end-users are convinced to try something new, to
change how they've been doing things. Note that I said
end-users, plural; one isn't enough. As we all know, it's
very difficult to get people to change. The first thing to
ask a would-be entrepreneur is, " What pressing problem
will that solve for whom? " The second for an academic
is, " Are you willing to give up your tenured position to
follow this dream? "
Having learned from my 1968-70 Fairchild experience,
the first thing I do when I attain a new academic position
is to visit the nearest semiconductor company to find out
where they're hurting in terms of circuit design yield and
testing. That can be something they want to do but can't,
things that are too slow, things that aren't adequately accurate,
things that are unreliable, etc. That then defines
the research of my graduate student group.
Question 4: In addition to being a researcher and an inventor,
you are also a great educator and an outstanding
mentor. You have mentored a distinguished group
of Ph.D. and master's graduates, you authored or coauthored
five textbooks, and the sequence of circuit
simulation courses you introduced at the University of
California, Berkeley has benefited many researchers in
these fields. Throughout your career, how do you balance
the role of a researcher and an educator? What
from your perspective are the most important characteristics
of a successful graduate student? What is your
approach to mentoring students?
Ron Rohrer: To me, research and teaching go hand
in hand. Both are about simplifying things to maximize
understanding. The real world of integrated circuits is
very complex. To avoid ad hoc approaches, one must
understand it completely. I try to work collaboratively
with my graduate students, treating them as equals as
much as they'll allow me. It's our problem to be solved
not their problem. In the beginning, it's my approach as
the collaborative research evolves, they take more and
more ownership.
Question 5: You have done much groundwork to participate
in the establishment of the CAD/EDA community.
You were the founding editor of the IEEE Transactions
THIRD QUARTER 2022
IEEE Circuits and Systems Magazine - Q3 2022

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