L. Rafael Reif received the degree of Ingeniero Electrico in 1973 from Universidad de Carabobo, Valencia, Venezuela, and the MS and PhD degrees in electrical engineering from Stanford University in 1975 and 1979, respectively.

From 1973 to 1974 he was an assistant professor at Universidad Simon Bolivar, Caracas, Venezuela. In 1978 he became a visiting assistant professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering, Stanford University. In 1980 Dr. Reif joined the faculty of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he is currently the Provost and the Maseeh Professor of Emerging Technology. He was the director of MIT's Microsystems Technology Laboratories for the period 1990-1999, the associate department head for Electrical Engineering in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science (EECS) for the period 1999-2004, and the department head of EECS for the period 2004-2005. He is presently working on three-dimensional integrated circuit technologies, and on environmentally benign microelectronics fabrication.

Dr. Reif held the Analog Devices Career Development Professorship of MIT's Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, and was awarded the IBM Faculty Fellowship of MIT's Center for Materials Science and Engineering from 1980 to 1982. He received a United States Presidential Young Investigator Award in 1984. Dr. Reif is a fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). His election carried the citation "For pioneering work in the low-temperature epitaxial growth of semiconductor thin films." Dr. Reif is also a recipient of the Semiconductor Research Corporation's 2000 Aristotle Award "in recognition of his commitment to the educational experience of SRC students and the profound and continuing impact he has had on their professional careers." He is a member of Tau Beta Pi, the Electrochemical Society, and the IEEE.