Swarn Singh Kalsi

Dr. Swarn Singh Kalsi passed away peacefully in his home in Princeton, New Jersey, on March 2, 2025, surrounded by his family. Swarn was born on May 18, 1939, in pre-Partition India in a village outside of Lahore, and migrated to Kanpur, India with his family during Partition in 1947. He grew up in Kanpur along with his seven siblings. An extraordinarily brilliant man, Swarn tested sixth out of over 500,000 students in Utter Pradesh, awarding him a scholarship to study at the Indian Institute of Technology in Kharagpur, India, where he received a bachelor's in electrical engineering, and Benaras Hindu University in Varanasi, India, where he received a master's degree in electrical engineering.
As a young man, Swarn saw pictures of the 1964 World's Fair in New York City and resolved to one day live in the United States. Soon after, he married Kuldeep, his wife of 58 years. Months later, they moved to London where Swarn earned a Ph.D. from The Imperial College of Science & Technology, University of London. The Kalsis moved to the United States in 1970 where Swarn gained international recognition for his work in superconducting magnet technology and electrical engineering.
Swarn's work at General Electric, Northrup Grumman, and AMSC Superconductor, included superconducting magnet technology and electrical engineering, such as electrical rotating machinery, power equipment, power equipment and power systems. During his 50-year career, he designed and built superconducting magnets for many devices in areas of motors and generators, power cables, transformers, fault current limiters, fusion reactors, Maglev, and synchrotrons. He also had an extensive background in design and fabrication of conventional motors, generators, control systems, and switchgears. After retiring, he continued working as a consultant and helped clients design large superconducting generators for wind turbines, large motors for ship propulsion, transformers, fault current limiters, and magnet systems. Swarn held more than thirty U.S. patents and was named an Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Fellow in 2013. His book, Applications of High Temperature Superconductors to Electric Power Equipment, was published in 2011.
Thanks to Swarn's ambition to live in the United States, close to one hundred people now enjoy the American dream, including many of his and Kuldeep's siblings, their children and their grandchildren. He instilled in all who surrounded him the value of education and a strong work ethic. He loved to travel and remained young-at-heart through walking, yoga, and a wonderful sense of humor.
Swarn is survived by his wife Kuldeep, who lovingly cared for him throughout their marriage and in his final months, his son Sonny (wife Michelle) and daughter Kiran (husband Jim). He flourished in his role as grandfather to five grandchildren whom he adored. His legacy lives on in Devon and Cameron Kalsi as well as in Amrit, Ford, and Hank Chapman, whose lives he affectionately documented through thousands of photographs. He is also survived by two brothers, two sisters, and many beloved nephews and nieces in the United States, India and England.
In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to IEEE Foundation which advances technology for the benefit of humanity. https://www.ieeefoundation.org/
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