News: Microelectronics
21 May 2026
Ocampo family establishes $100m fund to advance university research in RF, microwave and photonics engineering
Susan Ocampo, co-founder of technology investment company GaAs Labs LLC, has announced the establishment of the $100m John L. Ocampo Endowment Fund to support radio frequency (RF), microwave and photonics engineering research at leading academic institutions. The fund honors the late John Ocampo, a pioneer in the compound semiconductor industry whose work was dedicated to advancing high-speed communications across cellular, satellite, aerospace & defense and data-center applications.
The fund aims to bridge the gap between theoretical research and commercial application, ensuring that the next generation of engineers has the skills and resources to tackle the world’s most pressing challenges in the design and manufacturing of semiconductor solutions.
Empowering academic excellence
Donations from the fund are intended to be made annually to various universities to support research by professors and students specializing in RF/microwave, photonics, and semiconductor engineering. In its inaugural year, research programs across seven professors at the following universities — Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), University of California, Davis, University of Colorado Boulder, University College Cork/Tyndall National Institute (Ireland), and Santa Clara University — have been awarded grants.
“John believed that the future of technology depended on the brilliant minds in our universities,” says the Ocampo family. “By establishing this fund, we are not just honoring his achievements, but investing in the same spirit of curiosity and technical excellence that defined his life’s work.”
Legacy of impact
As an engineer and entrepreneur, John Ocampo was known for his unique ability to identify untapped potential in RF/microwave technologies and scale them into global successes. As co-founder of Sirenza Microdevices Inc and GaAs Labs, which acquired MACOM Technology Solutions Inc of Lowell, MA, USA (which designs and makes RF, microwave, analog and mixed-signal and optical semiconductor technologies) in 2009, his influence in shaping the compound semiconductor industry landscape has been both deep and lasting.
The $100m commitment is one of the largest private funds ever established to support RF/microwave and photonics engineering education. The Ocampo family says that it signals a belief in the continued importance of semiconductor innovation and the vital role of engineering education in maintaining technological progress.
MACOM dedicates Lowell Campus to John Ocampo
