I first met Pat Boyd at Alpha Industries/TRG in 1978; I was fresh out of school, but he had already been at TRG for several years and at Microwave Associates (now MACOM) before that. Even though I had a boss and there were other experienced engineers around, it was Pat that I learned from the most. Test equipment and measurements, key suppliers and products, how not to electrocute myself while using high voltage tubes; it was valuable information that I use to this day. He was a wealth of knowledge on all things millimeter wave and he also shipped a large portion of TRG's shipments every month. He later took his expertise to MDT where he established several product lines. When Harmonix (now HXI) started taking off, the founders tagged him to supplement the team. Pat taught himself how to design products with MMIC content without much outside assistance and that acquired knowledge became the basis for the HXI component business. Any new requirement that a customer might have, he was game to try to meet the requirements and soon we had an extensive line of amplifiers and multipliers. This capability also helped to propel us into subsystems and he was a central part of the development of custom products for select customers.
Pat was also the kindest person you would ever want to meet. Engineers, technicians, sales representatives and suppliers all enjoyed working with him and conversing with him on a personal basis. I have already received return messages of heartfelt remorse from as far away as Japan and Thailand as I inform former colleagues and associates of his passing. Even in the face of adversity, he was a stable force in HXI for many years. When his health started to decline, he never lost his genial personal side and there was always a kind word from him. Even in poor health, Pat still wanted to work and contribute - he was still answering my questions from home even though he had not been at HXI for several years. Soon we'll be testing a new multiplier bias circuit that he designed from home for us last year. His work and his memory lives on with all who knew him. He will be greatly missed.