LAS VEGAS, USA (AVING) -- <Visual News> Applied Materials announced the promotion of Dr. Omkaram (Om) Nalamasu to chief technology officer (CTO) for the company, effective January 24, 2011. Dr. Nalamasu will report to chairman and CEO Mike Splinter and will provide critical insight to further enhance Applied's technology leadership in the industries it serves.

"Om's extensive experience in fostering innovation at global corporations, research universities and world-class R&D laboratories has served Applied well over the past few years in his role as deputy CTO and general manager for our Advanced Technologies group," said Splinter. "His passion for innovation, demonstrated leadership skills, and a proven track record of excellence in research and commercializing science and technology will continue to be invaluable as he transitions to the role of CTO."

Dr. Mark Pinto, Applied's CTO since 2004, will remain executive vice president and general manager for the company's Energy and Environmental Solutions (EES) and Display groups. Under his leadership, EES was formed and has grown to more than $1 billion in revenue in just four years. The energy and display businesses contributed 25% of Applied's revenue in its most recent fiscal year. Since the company expects strong future growth in these areas, Dr. Pinto will focus on leading these businesses full time.

Dr. Nalamasu is a recognized expert in materials science and technology. As deputy CTO, he successfully led the company's innovation efforts through funding and incubation of long-term R&D/product development investments; global research investments in academia and consortia and new business venture capital investments into start-ups; as well as through value-added partnerships with customers, supply chain partners and government funding agencies.

Prior to joining Applied in 2006 as corporate vice president and general manager for Applied's Advanced Technologies Group, Dr. Nalamasu was vice president of Research and a NYSTAR Distinguished Professor of Materials Science and Engineering at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. He held various R&D leadership positions at Bell Laboratories and later Lucent Technologies for 17 years, including managing several generations of lithography development for the Lucent/NEC CMOS R&D alliance.

Dr. Nalamasu has made significant contributions to optical lithography and polymeric materials science and technology. He received the prestigious American Chemical Society National Award for Team Innovation for his work on 193 nanometer (nm) resists and successfully moving an innovative idea to a product now in commercial use. He was chief technical officer of the New Jersey Nanotechnology Consortium, which he co-founded to foster nanotechnology partnerships across academia, industry, and government using Bell Labs' $400 million device fabrication facilities in Murray Hill, NJ. He also pioneered deep-ultra violet (UV) optical lithography materials and processes.

Dr. Nalamasu holds more than 25 patents, has edited two books and contributed to more than 200 papers, review articles and book chapters. He serves on multiple national and international advisory committees and boards and has been awarded several national and international awards.