Keith Evans – President and Chief Executive Officer – Member of Board of Directors

Keith R. Evans joined Kyma in 2005 and has over 20 years of executive experience in the compound semiconductor industry, including key positions at Semiconductor Laser International, IQE, Veeco Instruments, and Crystal-IS. He began his career at US Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) where led a research team in advancing the science and technology of III-V epitaxial crystal growth for national defense applications. Keith received a PhD in Physical Chemistry from Purdue University where he studied energy transfer in gas - solid interactions.

Jacob Leach – Director of Production

Jacob Leach joined Kyma in 2010 when he took on the role of Characterization and Device Engineer. He was recently promoted to Director of Production and is responsible for both thin film and bulk crystal growth for Kyma's substrate production.

Jacob received a PhD in Electrical Engineering from Virginia Commonwealth University in early 2010 under the mentorship of Professor Hadis Morkoç.  His dissertation focused on advancing the understanding of and optimizing the performance of InAlN/AlN/GaN HFETs.

Bob Metzger – Chief Engineer

Robert (Bob) A. Metzger joined Kyma in early 2009 as a Senior Process Analyst and recently became the company’s Chief Engineer.

Bob is responsible for Kyma’s long term equipment and facilities hardware optimization, and he participates in and leads a range of short and near term engineering projects.

An expert in the growth, fabrication, and characterization of advanced III-V and silicon semiconductor devices, Bob’s experience includes that of Research Scientist at HRL Laboratories. He received his PhD in Electrical Engineering from UCLA, along with his B.S. and M.S. degrees in the same field.

Bob is also a highly published author of science fiction and was a Nebula Award finalist in the novel category in 2002 for his second novel, Picoverse.

Bob is co-founder of the technical journal Compound Semiconductor, and has authored over a hundred professional research papers. He has also written several articles on science for a popular audience for Wired magazine, and has published speculative studies involving climate engineering and space propulsion, co-authored with fellow scientist/sci-fi novelists Gregory Benford and Geoffrey Landis, respectively. He is also active with the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA).

Karen Nield – Director of Finance

Karen Nield joined Kyma in during the summer of 2011 as the Director of Finance.

Karen has a strong track record in corporate finance, having formerly served in several executive finance roles, including most recently the position of VP Finance at ParagonDx, LLC, a spinoff of Gentris Corporation. She previously held Controller, CFO, and VP Finance positions at Greenscape, East Coast Metal Distributors, and was a Senior Accopuntant with PricewaterhouseCoopers.

Karen is a member of the North Carolina Association of Certified Public Accountants, and is an AFAA Certified Aerobic Instructor. She received a B.S. in Accounting from UNC Charlotte and a B.S. in Marketing from UNC Chapel Hill.

Ed Preble – VP Business Development and Chief Technology Officer – Member of Board of Directors

Edward (Ed) A. Preble joined Kyma in 2003 as a Senior Research Engineer, was promoted to COO in 2007, and took on the VP Business Development role late in 2009. Ed took the CTO role in late 2010.

Ed is an expert in the growth and characterization of bulk and epitaxial wide bandgap semiconductor materials. As COO, Ed is responsible for the day to day operations of the company, ensuring all primary operations function according to the company’s plan, including sales, production, finance, and R&D. He is also responsible for developing and implementing continuous operations improvement plans. Ed is a key player in IP portfolio management, strategic partnerships, and M&A activities.

Ed has experience from General Electric and received his Ph.D. in Materials Science and Engineering under Professor Bob Davis at North Carolina State University. He has authored numerous scientific articles and is an inventor on several patents.

Heather Splawn – Chief Operating Officer (COO)

Heather Splawn joined Kyma in early 2010 as Director of Business Development. In late 2010 Heather took on the role of Vice President of Operations. In August 2011 she was promoted to Chief Operating Officer.

Heather received her Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from Duke University in 2009. She was awarded a Corporate Research Postdoctoral Fellowship for Engineers sponsored by the National Science Foundation and the American Society for Engineering Education.

Heather was the Founding President of the University of South Carolina Chapter of Upsilon Phi Epsilon, an International Honor Society for the Computing and Information Disciplines. She served on the Executive Council of Phi Beta Kappa at USC and served as the President of the Engineering Graduate Student Council and then as a student representative to the Executive Committee of Graduate Faculty while at Duke. Heather is also a co-founder and former Director of Operations and Director of Finances of The DOUGHMAN, a charity race that promotes sustainability and local foods while benefiting SeeSaw Studio and the Durham Inner-city Gardeners program at the SEEDS community garden.

Kevin Udwary – Director of Engineering

Kevin Udwary joined Kyma in March of 2007 as Lead Wafering Engineer. In 2008, Kevin began to spend the majority of his time working in HVPE crystal growth in which he has significantly contributed to the development of Kyma’s current template products as well as large area bulk material. In late 2009, Kevin took on the Engineering Team Leader role, and in August of 2011 he was promoted to Director of Engineering.

Kevin received a B.S. in Physics from Siena College in 2001. He went on to spend a year in the Physics PhD program at the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute before leaving to work full time at Crystal IS, Inc. Kevin spent 5 years (2000-2005) at Crystal IS as a Crystal Growth Engineer, where he worked on development of Aluminum Nitride bulk crystals by sublimation growth.