Order of Merit for a pioneer of high-frequency technology

The medal was awarded to the honorary member of the Bavarian Academy of Sciences by Minister President Dr Markus Söder at a ceremony in the State Chancellery. The award honours his services as a "sign of grateful recognition for outstanding scientific achievements and services to the Free State of Bavaria and the Bavarian people". A maximum of 2,000 living persons can receive this honour.

Minister President Söder emphasised at Platform X: "[Prof. Rohde, red] has made outstanding achievements with the highest intelligence on so many levels in science and teaching, in business and in the promotion of young scientists. His name is known worldwide in the field of high-frequency and microwave technology. He has made a significant contribution to making state-of-the-art communication possible [...] For his extraordinary life's work, he is receiving the highest honour that Bavaria has to award - the Bavarian Order of Merit."

Ulrich L. Rohde: "I accept the award with gratitude and respect. I am delighted that my life's work has been recognised and that the star of the Order of Merit now shines above it."

Prof. Rohde's scientific focus is on high-frequency and microwave technology. His work is primarily concerned with the theory, mathematical representation and practical implementation of low-noise, highly linear microwave circuits in electronics. Since 1962, he has published more than 300 peer-reviewed technical articles, around 150 scientific papers and conference contributions as well as six textbooks. In 1982, he and his team at RCA developed "Software Defined Radio (SDR - signal processing technology)", which is used today in all modern radio and communication devices as well as in all smartphones.

In 2009, Prof. Dr Ulrich L. Rohde's foundation made it possible for him to become Professor of Radio Frequency and Microwave Technology at BTU Cottbus-Senftenberg. Prof. Dr Matthias Rudolph has held this position ever since. As an honorary professor, he holds the field of study of Radio Frequency and Microwave Circuits at the university.