Chang, Chun-Yen oral history

Professor Chung-Yen Chang was born in Fengshan, Taiwan. He received a B.S. Degree in Electrical Engineering from Cheng Kung University (NCKU) in 1960; and both a Masters Degree (1962) and Ph.D.(1970) from National Chiao Tung University (NCTU). Over the years he contributed significantly to semiconductor, microwave and optoelectronics research in support of Taiwan’s high-tech industry. In 1964, Dr. Chang and his colleagues established a state-of-the-art Semiconductor Research Center (SRC) at NCTU. Under his leadership, the SRC became the foundation of Taiwan’s high-tech development. He was also the first president of National Nano Device Laboratories (NDL) from 1990-1997 and was the President of NCTU from 1998-2006. In the early 1970’s, Dr. Chang took two years out of his academic career to be a founding executive of Fine Product Electronic Corporation. However, he quickly returned to his leadership role in academia and as a government advisor on technology development. Many of Professor Chang’s former students became founders some of the most influential Taiwanese technology companies ----Acer, UMC, TSMC, etc. Throughout his long career, he served, both in formal and informal capacities, as an important science and technology advisor to the Taiwanese government and in that role had a large influence on how the high- tech industry developed. In this oral history, Dr. Chang discusses the key decisions made by the government and industry leaders in the establishment of the Taiwanese high-tech industry, talks about some of the most prominent personalities involved and his views on the role of educational institutions in the creation of Taiwan’s vibrant economic and technical environments (1970-2010) and his personal contributions to those environments over the years.