CORRECTION: In a previous version of this article stated that Mike Splinter became president/CEO of Applied Materials in 2005. This is incorrect. Mike Splinter became president/CEO of Applied in 2003. The correction has been made to this article. Solid State Technology regrets the error.

Mike Splinter, chairman and chief executive officer of Applied Materials, was awarded the 2013 Robert N. Noyce Award, presented annually by the Semiconductor Industry Association, for outstanding achievement and leadership in support of the U.S. semiconductor industry. Splinter has been on the SEMI International Board of Directors since 2005.

The award is one of the industry’s highest honors and celebrates the memory of Robert Noyce, co-inventor of the integrated circuit and co-founder of Fairchild Semiconductor and Intel Corporation. The award will be presented at the annual SIA Award Dinner to be held on November 7, 2013.

"We applaud the SIA for recognizing Mike Splinter for his enormous contributions to the semiconductor industry,” said Denny McGuirk, president and CEO of SEMI.  “As the first recipient of the Robert N. Noyce Award from the SEMI Board of Directors, his selection underscores the critical contributions of equipment and materials suppliers to the continued health and progress of the semiconductor industry."

With a portfolio of more than 10,000 patents, Applied Materials is a key equipment and technologies supplier that helps build the advanced microchips and displays essential to today’s top-selling electronic devices. Mike Splinter was named president and chief executive officer of Applied Materials in 2003 and chairman of the board of directors in 2009. Splinter is a 40-year veteran of the semiconductor industry and has led Applied Materials to record revenue and profits during his tenure.

Prior to joining Applied Materials, Splinter was an executive at Intel Corporation where he held a number of positions in his 20 years at the company, including executive vice president and director of Sales and Marketing and executive vice president and general manager of the Technology and Manufacturing Group.

Splinter began his career at Rockwell International in the firm’s Electronics Research Center. During his tenure, he became manager of the company’s Semiconductor Fabrication Operations and was awarded two patents. Author of numerous papers and articles, Splinter earned both Bachelor of Science and Master of Science degrees in electrical engineering from the University of Wisconsin, Madison.