Shoichiro Yoshida

Co-developer of advanced steppers and scanners, high-precision instruments used in the complex process of making integrated circuits, Yoshida has been a pivotal figure in IC lithography innovation. A Japanese engineer born in Tokyo, he graduated from the University of Tokyo with a major in Precision Mechanical Engineering. In April of 1956, he joined Nippon Kogaku K.K. (renamed Nikon Corporation in April 1988), and for the first 15 years he was engaged in the design of optical instruments as well as other precision instruments, including astronomical telescopes, spectroscopic instruments, and ruling engines for optical grating. He oversaw initiatives that led to major milestones in IC lithography.

One of his most notable accomplishments was the development of advanced steppers and scanners, high-precision instruments used in the complex process of making integrated circuits. During the 1970s, he led an R&D team that developed the industry's first production-worthy stepper, the NSR-1010G. Nikon released the first domestically produced reduction projection-type exposure system—the NSR-1010G—for commercial use in January of 1981.

Over time, Yoshida directed many projects that led to the development of high-performance lithography systems that enabled manufacturing of the most advanced IC devices. His leadership helped establish Nikon as the international leader in the lithography market. He has also been instrumental in Nikon's strategy to merge optical technology with precision instrumentation to develop products specifically for the semiconductor manufacturing industry, including automatic mask defect detectors.

In 1983, he was elected Member of the Board, Director of Industrial Supplies & Equipment Division, and was appointed Division Manager for Nikon's stepper products. In 1987, Yoshida was promoted to Managing Director of Nikon Corporation, with wider responsibility for the Microscope and Measuring Instruments Division as well as steppers. In June of 1989, he was made Senior Managing Director, and in 1993, he was appointed Executive Vice President. In 1997, he became President of Nikon Corporation. He was named Chairman and CEO in 2001, and from 2005 he has served as Corporate Advisor.

He was elected to the Board of Directors of SEMI in 1990 and served a term as Chairman of the SEMI Board of Directors in 1998–1999. In July 2001, Yoshida was named Director Emeritus of the SEMI Board. Other positions he held included: from October 1985–September 1990, Project Director, Yoshida Nano-Mechanism Project, Research Development Corporation of Japan; in May 1997, he was elected President of SEAJ; in March 2000, he was elected President of The Japan Society for Precision Engineering; in May 2002, he was elected Chairman of the Japan Telescope Industries Association; and in June 2002, he was elected Chairman of the Japan Optical Industry Association.

He was named recipient of the 2006 IEEE Robert N. Noyce Medal for his contribution to, and leadership in, the technology and business development of IC lithography. In addition, Yoshida received the Science and Technology Agency President Award in 1984, the Medal with Blue Ribbon—Japan's premier award for technology achievement—in 1991, and the Order of the Legion of Honor, Grade of Chevalier, from the French Government in 2003.