For the past 20 years, OptiSwitch Technology Corporation’s technical staff has performed R&D on lasers, opto-electronics, pulse power, and fast, high action, high power, high current light triggered switches. These efforts have led OptiSwitch to develop specialty electronic and optical designs that support critical technology needs for defense and industrial applications.
• David Giorgi, PhD, President/CEO
• Tajchai Navapanich
• Jay Philippbar
• John Spero
OptiSwitch Technology Corporation has three Board Members who have guided the development of the corporation from its inception in 1999.
President/CEO
Dr. Giorgi has been the President and CEO of OptiSwitch Technology Corporation since its incorporation in 1999. He previously spent over 14 years at Energy Compression Research (ECR) originating new concepts and directing research in the design and development of high power, fast rise-time systems which incorporate Light Activated Silicon Switches (LASS).
These systems range from sources for high power microwaves and impulse RADARs to high dI/dt switches for capacitive discharges. From 1995 to 1998 Dr. Giorgi focused on the development of a high speed (<1 ns) and high voltage (7 kV) Pockels Cell driver and a short pulse (200-1000 ps) Q-switch microlaser, both of which are based on LASS technology.
Dr. Giorgi holds a BSEE, MSEE and Ph.D. from the University of California San Diego; has co-authored three patents; and authored numerous papers in the area of light activated switching.
Selected Papers:
D.M. Giorgi, J.R. Long, D.M. Crosley, T. Navapanich, “A High Current, High dI/dt, Light Activated Thyristor,” Proceedings of the 12 th IEEE Symposium on Electromagnetic Launch Technology, Snowmass, Colorado, pp. 186-190, 2004.
K. Cardwell, D. Giorgi, I. McIntyre, P. Solone, K. Stuurman, O. S. F. Zucker, E. Schultz, J. McGrew, N. Roessler, M. Bonebright, D. Hargis, and P. Binun, “Recent Experimental Results with LASS-Based Ultra-Wideband Radar Systems,” Proceedings of the 9 th IEEE International Pulsed Power Conference, Albuquerque, New Mexico, pp. 411-414, 1993.
D. M. Giorgi, A. H. Griffin, D. E. Hargis, I. A. McIntrye, and O. S. F. Zucker, “High Power, Light-Activated Switching: Experiments and Applications,” Proceedings of the 8 th IEEE International Pulsed Power Conference, San Diego, CA, pp. 122-125, 1991.
D. Giorgi, P. K. L. Yu, J. R. Long, V. D. Lew, T. Navapanich, and O. S. F. Zucker, “Light-Activated Silicon Diode Switches,” J. Appl. Phys., vol. 63, pp. 930-933, 1988.
Director of Operations
Since 1985 Tajchai Navapanich has worked with, and has co-written, the original patents on LASS devices at ECR Corporation. He has been involved in managing research projects, especially those relating to LASS devices.
Since 1987, he has been involved in founding several successful companies in the private sector, encompassing a wide range of areas including manufacturing, software development, import/export, and the food service industry. His management skills have proven to be an valuable asset in steering Phase II projects towards commercialization.
In 1983, Mr. Navapanich received his BSEE in Solid State Physics from the University of California, San Diego and has minor degrees in Physical Chemistry and Business Administration. Dr. Giorgi and Tajchai Navapanich have authored numerous papers in the area of light activated switching and have co-authored numerous patents.
Senior Electronics Engineer
Jay Philippbar has been working as a technical consultant in the electronics industry for over 25 years. During this time he has designed circuits and manufactured products for the consumer, industrial, scientific and medical markets.
Mr. Philippbar has experience in the areas of low-noise, non-linear, high power and high-speed analog electronics with emphasis on electro-optical circuits. In his work, he utilizes the latest design tools such as SPICE, OrCAD, PowerPCB, Pro-Engineer, SolidWorks and COSMOS.
Mr. Philippbar also has experience in machining precision and routinely uses Swiss and German made machinery for rapid prototype fabrication. Mr. Philippbar frequently utilizes his troubleshooting skills consulting with labs to solve challenging R&D problems.
Senior Process Engineer
John Spero has over 30 years experience in semiconductor foundry and processes. He has developed techniques for fabricating high performance devices at Hughes Electronics and Applied Micro Circuits Corp.
Mr. Spero is experienced in all aspects of semiconductor chemical engineering including diffusion, oxidation, implantation, annealing, and wafer handling. He has worked with various wafer materials including Cz and float-zone Silicon, GaAs, Silicon-on-Insulator (SOI), Silicon-on-Sapphire (SOS), and Silicon Germanium (SeGe). Mr. Spero holds a BS in Physics.
OptiSwitch’s Board of Directors consists of three members.
David Giorgi, President/CEO
King Golden, Chairman /Director
Ric Erdman, Director
