Rodolfo Zich: Professor, Scientist, and Innovator with Broad Visions

Rodolfo S. Zich, vice-rector from 1984 to 1987 and rector of the Politecnico di Torino from 1987 to 2001, was professor of Electromagnetic Fields at the Politecnico di Torino from 1976 to 2012 and then professor emeritus until his death on May 8, 2023. He was a great scholar of applied electromagnetics and one of the main architects of the innovation of the university system in Italy. Following in the footsteps of professor Mario Boella, his mentor, he contributed greatly to consolidating the Turin school of antennas and applied electromagnetics, strength-ening institutes and research centers already existing in the area, and creating and leading new ones. Thanks to Rodolfo Zich strategic visions and under his leadership, the Politecnico di Torino, the oldest and already one of the major in Italy, doubled in size. In his professional life he held several high-profile managerial positions and received many honors; among these his induction into the “Accademia delle Scienze di Torino” in 1987 and his nomination to Honorary Life Member of IEEE in 2016. With this writing, all his friends and colleagues at the Accademia delle Scienze di Torino, founded in 1783, honor him by recognizing his successes and scientific achievements.