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̽��ֱ��prestigious awards, which were established in 1995, recognise the outstanding contributions of engineers who have been working in the field for fewer than 30 years. No more than four can be awarded in any given year.

Professor Amaratunga, who is head of the Electronics, Power and Energy Conversion group in the Department of Engineering, received the silver medal for his pioneering development of silicon chips with inbuilt high voltage power-switching devices, which are now a feature of the AC/DC converters essential in most consumer electronics.

He has also formed several successful companies to commercialise his work. These include the semiconductor developer CamSemi, and Enecsys, which specialises in connecting energy sources such as solar, wind and fuel cells to the electricity grid.

His latest project is to develop nanoscale supercapacitators, which are tiny energy storage devices based on forests of multi-walled carbon tubes billionths of a metre wide. In time they could replace the batteries in products ranging from electric vehicles to handheld computers. Professor Amaratunga is also a fellow of Churchill College.

Presenting the medal, Lord Browne of Madingley, who is president of the Royal Academy of Engineering, said: “ ̽��ֱ��greatest inventor is the engineer. Engineers approach a problem in a manner which is both visionary and realistic – they draw simultaneously on science and business to provide solutions to challenges through the application of new technology.”