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Society History

Empowering engineers since 1987

Below is a record of the IEEE Power Electronics Society’s history that honors those who performed voluntary asks with energy and zeal that far surpassed the requirements called for by the Society. It also conveys to future generations devoted to power electronics that they do not stand alone and their work continues the efforts of those who came before them.

Dean Patterson
History Chair
Dean Patterson
Past PELS President

Time Line

1970-04-20 to 1970-04-21

First edition of the Power Conditioning Specialists Conference held in Greenbelt, Maryland, USA (now the IEEE Conference on Power Electronics Specialists)

1978-10-25 to 1978-10-27

First edition of the International Telephone Energy Conference held in Washington, DC, USA (now the IEEE International Communications Energy Conference)

1983

The Power Electronics Council is formed

1985-06-24 to 1985-06-28

First international IEEE Power Electronics Specialists Conference held in Toulouse, France

1986-01

First issue of the IEEE Transactions on Power Electronics is published

1986-04-28 to 1986-05-01

First edition of the IEEE Applied Power Electronics Conference held in New Orleans, Louisiana, USA

1987-06-20

The Power Electronics Council becomes the IEEE Power Electronics Society

1988-08-22 to 1988-08-23

First Workshop on Computers in Power Electronics (the Society’s first “smaller conference”) held in Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA (now the IEEE Workshop on Control and Modeling for Power Electronics)

1991

The Power Electronics Specialists Conference became one of the first major IEEE conferences to have a formal rotation between Asia, Europe, and the United States

2009-09-20 to 2009-09-24

First edition of the IEEE Energy Conversion Congress and Exposition held in San Jose, California, USA

2014-03

First issue of the IEEE Power Electronics Magazine is published

2020

First edition of the IEEE Open Journal of Power Electronics is published

2024

PELS membership surpasses 13,000 members

Past Presidents

2021 - 2022

Liuchen Chang

2019 - 2020

Frede Blaabjerg

2017 - 2018

Alan Mantooth

2015 - 2016

Braham Ferreira

2013 - 2014

Dong Tan

2011 - 2012

Dushan Boroyevich

2009 - 2010

Deepak Divan

2007 - 2008

Hirofumi Akagi

2005 - 2006

Rik DeDoncker

2003 - 2004

Dean Patterson

2001 - 2002

Thomas Habetter

1999 - 2000

Philip Krein

1997 - 1998

Jerry Hudgins

1995 - 1996

Thomas Jahns

1993 - 1994

Fred C. Lee

1991 - 1992

Thomas G. Wilson, Sr.

1989 - 1990

Pierre Thollot

1987 - 1988

John Kassakian

1983 - 1986 (Council)

Trey Burns

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