Professor, Electrical and Computer Engineering
University of Arizona
Tucson, AZ, United States
Dr. Liesl Folks’ activities span STEM education, policy to advance resilience of the global semiconductor supply chain, nanotechnology, spin-electronic devices / spintronic phenomena, and magnetic materials and devices. At the University of Arizona, she has held the positions of Vice President Semiconductor Strategy, Provost, and Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering. Prior to joining UA, she served the University at Buffalo as Dean of the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences and Professor of Electrical Engineering. Folks previously worked in research and development in support of the data storage industry in Silicon Valley, in roles at IBM Almaden Research Center, Hitachi San Jose Research Center, Hitachi GST Advanced Development, and Western Digital. She has served as President of the IEEE Magnetics Society. In 2024, she chaired the consensus panel which produced the National Academies report on Strategies to Enable Assured Access to Semiconductors for the Department of Defense. She has served on the National Advisory Board for the US National Reconnaissance Office. Folks holds a BSc and PhD in Physics from the University of Western Australia and an MBA from Cornell University in New York. She is a Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors and a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
Panel Discussion: Semiconductors in Arizona's Photonics Industry
Wednesday, October 8, 2025
11:45am - 12:30pm MT