Blue LED inventor to be awarded Japan's Order of Culture
Nobel Laureate Shuji Nakamura has been selected to receive one of Japan's highest honours: the 2014 Order of Culture Award. The award comes in the wake of Nakamura's 2014 Nobel Prize for Physics he received in recognition of his invention of the blue light emitting diode (LED).
The Order of Culture medal, which recognises contributions to the nation's culture, will be presented by Emperor Akihito in a ceremony at the Imperial Palace on November 3rd, which is also Day of Culture in Japan.
Nakamura, UC Santa Barbara professor of materials, was among several award candidates selected by Japan's Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology. Chosen from a list of people designated as Persons of Cultural Merit, the recipients of the Order of Culture award are decided by the cabinet of Japan.
"This is the most prestigious award in Japan," Nakamura said. "It is my great honour to receive it for recognition of my work in the invention of bright blue LEDs and energy efficient white light sources."
