All News

U-Michigan a partner in two CHIPS Act Midwest microelectronics hubs

The latest DoD funding announcements bolster Michigan Engineering’s efforts to support revitalization of the U.S. semiconductor sector.

Research describing quantum-inspired computational imaging earns impact award

This Q&A with award co-recipient Alfred Hero offers a glimpse into the emerging field of single photon imaging.

Ian Hiskens paraglides into retirement

Hiskens is a renowned expert in power system dynamics, who made significant contributions to integrating renewable energy sources into the grid during his 15 years at Michigan.

Congrats ECE alumni who joined academia

Congratulations to these ECE graduates who have recently joined academia as faculty members!

Educating engineers as whole people

Researching education leads the way to a diverse, impactful community of professionals.

Wireless and battery-free sensors for sustainable smart cities

The sensors will provide real-time data for smart decision-making by allowing the natural environment and the built environment to communicate seamlessly.

New global partnership aims to advance renewable energy generation with net-zero hydrogen production technologies

The Global Hydrogen Production Technologies (HyPT) Center seeks to create a viable pathway to decarbonize energy-intensive industries such as ammonia, steel, cement, aluminum, transportation, and more.

Electrify Tech Camps Recharged

ECE’s Electrify Tech Camps returned after a pandemic-induced hiatus to the delight of tech campers eager for a hands-on experience with electrical and computer engineering.

Environmentally-friendly chrome-like finish for cars supports wireless sensing technologies for vehicle safety

Prof. L. Jay Guo led the design of novel thin film structures that mimic the chrome appearance, but are made with environmentally benign materials, which also work well with autonomous technology.

MASA achieves liftoff with record-setting rocket

The 20-foot tall Clementine is the largest liquid bipropellant rocket ever built by college students.

Research seeking to improve integration of renewable energy into the grid wins R&D 100 award

Led by Prof. Johanna Mathieu, the project utilizes strategic control of air conditioners to improve the overall efficiency and reliability of the power grid.

Cybernet CTO Charles Cohen works to shape the future of human-computer interaction, robotics, and artificial intelligence

Cohen (MS PhD EE ’91 ’96) talks about his career path, turning failure into opportunity, and the best thing his advisor Prof. Lynn Conway ever taught him.

Kaleo Roberts awarded fellowship for remote sensing research that could aid crop management

Roberts creates methods to better estimate the radar backscatter from corn fields, which could improve the accuracy of global biomass and soil moisture maps derived from radar observations.

ECE welcomes our new faculty for 2023/24

Welcome Electrical and Computer Engineering’s newest faculty members who will join the department this coming academic year.

Michigan Man Jack Underwood is an engineer through and through

The veteran and Michigan Medicine IT Manager graduated with a degree in electrical engineering from U-M this year, fulfilling a decades-long dream.

A look back at 25 years of University of Michigan innovation in computer architecture

Nine papers by EECS researchers have been highlighted as among the most significant of the last 25 years in an ISCA retrospective.

Two EECS PhD students receive Qualcomm Innovation Fellowship

Cameron Haire and Jiale Zhang have been selected as recipients of the prestigious fellowship, which aims to support forward-thinking PhD student research.

Semiconductor workforce program increases access to hands-on training

‘In undergrad, you sometimes feel like you’re just passing classes. But what we’re doing here is science.’

New kind of superresolution explores cell division

Interactions between structures at the nanoscale sync up with the way the whole cell contracts and expands during this vital process.

Duncan Steel retires, leaving a quantumly inspired legacy

With a history at Michigan dating back to the early 1970’s, Duncan Steel built a lasting legacy as he crossed disciplines and changed lives.

Kyumin Kwon’s research on automating analog circuit design earns Best Paper Award at SMACD23

Kwon combines a human knowledge-based model with an existing digital synthesis tool to significantly increase the speed of characterization and design for large scale analog circuits.

Research to simplify big data graphs earns Best Paper Award at IEEE SSP 2023

Research by PhD student Neophytos Charalambides and Professor Alfred Hero addresses computational and storage bottlenecks for graphs used in statistical problems, signal processing, large networks, combinatorial optimization, and data analysis.

Prof. Aline Eid seeks to better perceive the world using a 5G Wireless Power Grid

Prof. Eid is looking to design the future of smart cities and infrastructures using ultra-low power wireless sensing and communications technologies.

EECS community comes together to commemorate Juneteenth

The department’s annual Juneteenth celebration featured remarks from community leaders and emphasized the importance of diversity in STEM.

Kamal Sarabandi honored with 2024 IEEE Electromagnetics Award

Sarabandi is recognized for his outstanding contributions to the theory and application of electromagnetics.

Michigan and ECE advancing computer vision at CVPR 2023

Look at some of the ways ECE and other University of Michigan researchers are using computer vision for real-world applications.

Mingyan Liu named associate dean for academic affairs

Liu hopes to foster collaborative and innovative problem-solving among faculty from different disciplines.

Three ECE students earn SPIE Optics and Photonics Scholarships

Yakshita Malhotra, Ishtiaque Ahmed Navid, and Yixin Xiao all work with Prof. Zetian Mi.

Nanobiotics: AI for discovering where and how nanoparticles bind with proteins

A new tool in the fight against superbugs goes beyond protein folding simulations like AlphaFold, potentially revealing antibiotic candidates.

Dennis Sylvester named Interim Chair of Electrical and Computer Engineering

Sylvester is a pioneer in low-power IC design, a serial entrepreneur, and a leader in the professional community.

Organic photovoltaics offer realistic pathway to power-generating windows

A new fabrication process greatly improves the reliability of highly-efficient semi-transparent solar cells, which can be applied to windows to generate solar power.

Introducing young engineering students to the sociotechnical impact of technology

With the help of individual class modules, electrical engineering students relate technical content to issues of social justice, sustainability, and more.

Olivia Lee awarded NSF Graduate Research Fellowship for brain-machine interfaces that could improve control of robotic prostheses

Lee designs implantable and wearable electronics to help restore movement to those who have lost limbs or have been paralyzed.

New method to produce green hydrogen offers promising path to carbon neutrality

With next gen solar cell technology, Prof. Zetian Mi leads a DoE project to develop high efficiency, low cost, and ultrastable production of green hydrogen fuels directly from sunlight and water.

Inside the Quantum Research Institute

Mack Kira, co-director of the Quantum Research Institute with Steven Cundiff, is ready to take Michigan’s quantum activities to the next level.

Eliminating the Tradeoffs Between Farming and Solar Energy Development

Testing Semi-Transparent Solar Cell Technology at U-M’s Campus Farm.

Focused ambitions

While hunger for an artificial intelligence that can think like a human remains unsated, AI continues to appear in our lives in smaller ways.

Advancing chips for the auto sector is the goal of new Michigan-based initiative

U-Michigan joins industry, state, education partners to develop talent and technology.

Equity in the energy technology transition is new Institute’s goal

Prof. Johanna Mathieu is the new Associate Director of the Institute for Energy Solutions, which will continue U-M’s 75-year legacy of leadership in energy research.

Johanna Mathieu awarded 2023 IEEE PES Wanda Reder Pioneer in Power Award

Mathieu is a national leader on research to reduce the environmental impact, cost, and inefficiency of electric power systems.

Swetha Sakunthala Subbiah seeks more autonomous transportation and less motion sickness

Subbiah, an ECE Master’s student specializing in Control Systems, has long been interested in advancing autonomous cars and autonomous aviation.

New undergraduate courses prepare students for the Second Quantum Revolution

Quantum information science and engineering is one of the hottest fields in engineering – and ECE wants to make it accessible to everyone.

Gregory Robinson details the journey of NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope for Gilleo Lectureship

Under Robinson’s leadership, the James Webb Space Telescope project went from being years behind schedule and billions over-budget to one of NASA’s greatest achievements of the 21st century.

Peter Seiler voted 2023 HKN Professor of the Year

Prof. Seiler is a dedicated teacher who is receiving this award in just his third year as a faculty member at Michigan.

In a new Technical Sales course, students practice the skill set of selling technology to businesses

Alum Eli Neumann, the Senior Vice President of Worldwide Sales Engineers, co-designed the Center for Entrepreneurship course.

Quantum entanglement could make accelerometers and dark matter detectors more precise

And yes, they are looking to miniaturize it for smartphone dead reckoning.

2022-23 Undergraduate Student Awards

These students are recognized for their outstanding scholarship, research, service, leadership, and entrepreneurship.

Team working to reduce energy burdens in Detroit recognized with Michigan Difference Student Leadership Award

PhD students Joshua Brooks, Xavier Farrell, and Madeline Miller are part of an NSF Smart and Connected Communities project that partners with local Detroit organizations to reduce household energy insecurity.

Aayush Sujit Rajankar awarded the Michigan Difference Student Leadership Quiet Influence Award

Rajankar has played a big role in ensuring that ECE functions effectively and efficiently through his work in the copy room, and his commitment to DEI has helped ensure that ECE’s PhD Visit Day was inclusive for all.

Michael Flynn receives CoE Staff-Faculty Partnership Award

Prof. Flynn is remarkably respectful of all the staff he interacts with, while also showing great transparency and kindness.

Michelle Chapman awarded Staff Excellence Award for her 30+ years of outstanding work

Chapman is a Research Administration Senior Manager who embodies excellence, service, and compassionate leadership.

Mingyan Liu named Alice L. Hunt Collegiate Professor of Engineering

Mingyan Liu, renowned for her research specializing in communication networks and cybersecurity, has served as Chair of ECE since 2018. (video of the talk now available)

ECE Expeditions rides to the Lone Star State for a tour of engineering companies

Students networked with alums, tested demos of new technology, and toured labs at HPE, NASA, Ambiq, Dell, Torc Robotics, and NI.

2023 EECS Outstanding Achievement Awards

The EECS Department has honored four faculty for their sustained excellence in instruction and curricular development, distinguished participation in service activities, or for their significant achievements in scholarly research.

Who’d have guessed? The Friars are (pretty much) all EECS and engineering students!

Everyone in the U-M a cappella group is enrolled in an engineering major or minor – and their timing is great.

Christopher Rutledge honored with the 2023 Willie Hobbs Moore Distinguished Alumni Lectureship

Rutledge shared his journey from growing up in rural East Texas to becoming a Distinguished Engineer at Verizon, one of the biggest telecommunications companies in the world.

Andrew Wintenberg awarded Predoctoral Fellowship to support research impacting the safety of smart systems

Wintenberg is developing computer algorithms and tools to improve the security of cyber and cyber-physical systems.

Yan Long awarded Predoctoral Fellowship to support research impacting secure communications

Long aims to ensure that the information received from sensing devices is both trustworthy and confidential.

Aditya Varma Muppala awarded Predoctoral Fellowship to support research impacting imaging systems

Aditya is creating high-resolution, accessible, scalable, and portable imaging radars that are 200x cheaper and 100x smaller than what is currently available.

Ishtiaque Navid awarded Predoctoral Fellowship to support research impacting green energy

Navid is exploiting III-Nitride nanostructures for artificial photosynthesis and next generation nanoscale optoelectronics.

Sangmin Yoo awarded Predoctoral Fellowship to support research impacting next generation computing

Yoo is making memory devices more flexible and tunable, making them irresistible for modern AI applications.

Bahareh Hadidian awarded Barbour Scholarship to support research impacting wireless communications

Hadidian’s research is focused on high-frequency fully integrated circuits for the next generation of wireless communications and sensing technologies.

From new material to device: Ferroelectric HEMT could be a game changer for next generation electronics

Prof. Zetian Mi’s team proved the viability of a reconfigurable, ScAlN/AlGaN/GaN ferroelectric HEMT transistor that is critical for next-generation communication and computing systems

Parag Deotare awarded DURIP grant to probe exciton energy transport at nanoscale

The tool is expected to advance the study of exciton dynamics, which could help identify new research directions for clean energy and information technology.

Ishtiaque Ahmed Navid awarded the Richard and Eleanor Towner Prize for Distinguished Academic Achievement

Navid focuses on developing nanomaterials for artificial photosynthesis and optoelectronic devices.

Ruba Borno, VP of Amazon Web Services and ECE Alum, stresses empathy and accountability in leadership

Borno, an ECE Rising Star Award winner, recently spoke about her experience in leadership during the pandemic, how her refugee background shaped her life, and why she literally climbs a mountain a year.

UG student Ali Hammoud to present his winning Code-a-Chip design at ISSCC 2023

Hammoud’s project is based on the open-source hardware design tool called OpenFASoC, developed at Michigan.

ECE alum Kai Cui empowers consumers to make sustainable fashion choices with her new app

Cui is the founder and CEO of CarbonTag™, a startup that developed the first carbon emission calculator for consumer fashion products.

Ishtiaque Navid receives SVCF Scholarship to support his research in semiconductor materials

Navid’s research is focused on artificial photosynthesis and optoelectronics using III-Nitride based semiconductor materials.

Arthur Xiao receives SVCF Scholarship to support his research in semiconductor materials

Xiao has been working on several projects in Prof. Zetian’s Mi’s group, including micro LED technology and renewable energy.

Nanoscale ferroelectric semiconductor could power AI and post-Moore’s Law computing on a phone

Next-gen computing material gets down to the right size for modern manufacturing.

Five EECS faculty receive Ted Kennedy Family Faculty Team Excellence Award

These faculty each contributed toward a successful center that developed specialized hardware “building blocks” for a range of applications.

Jeff Fessler receives Stephen S. Attwood Award

Prof. Fessler has made lasting contributions to the field of medical imaging, which has led to safer imaging techniques for countless individuals.

Euisik Yoon receives Monroe-Brown Foundation Research Excellence Award

Prof. Yoon is a world-class researcher and innovator in the field of MEMS and microsystems, whose research has impacted our understanding of the brain, and the efficacy of cancer treatment.

Jay Guo receives Wise-Najafi Prize

Prof. Guo’s research in the miniature world is being commercialized by two different companies he co-founded, and has also been licensed to a third company.

Brian Gilchrist receives Neil Van Eenam Memorial Undergraduate Teaching Award

Prof. Gilchrist has devoted his career to engaging undergraduate students in research and providing them opportunities to participate in real-world team-based projects.

LNF Poster Winners announced

The winning research focused on emitting white light with OLEDs, improving atomic layer deposition methods, and high efficiency green and red MicroLEDs for AR/VR.

Scalable method to manufacture thin film transistors achieves ultra-clean interface for high performance, low-voltage device operation

Led by Prof. Becky Peterson, the research focuses on a category of materials important for low power logic operations, high pixel density screens, touch screens, and haptic displays.

ECE sweeps LNF calendar photo contest

The winners for this year’s LNF calendar photo contest were all ECE students.

Laura Balzano receives 2023 MLK Spirit Award

Prof. Balzano has contributed in many ways to promoting an inclusive environment for her students, and is a model for her colleagues.

Vijay Subramanian receives 2023 Ernest and Bettine Kuh Distinguished Faculty Award

The award recognizes Subramanian’s outstanding research, service, and teaching in the area of networked systems.

Mohammad Aamir Sohail awarded inaugural Quad Fellowship in recognition of his excellence in quantum research and international cooperation

Sohail, a PhD student, is one of four U-M students to receive the fellowship, which is given to top graduate students from Australia, India, Japan, and the United States.

Six ECE staff recognized for their outstanding contributions to the ECE community

Silvia Cardarelli, Gordy Carichner, Michelle Chapman, Julia Falkovitch-Khain, Robert Gordenker, and Linda Scovel are the 2022 recipients of the CoE Staff Incentive Award

Six ECE faculty will help shape the future of semiconductors as part of the JUMP 2.0 program

Elaheh Ahmadi, David Blaauw, Michael Flynn, Hun-Seok Kim, Hessam Mahdavifar, and Zhengya Zhang bring their expertise and creativity to this nationwide undertaking in the area of semiconductors and information & communication technologies.

Centenarian and alumnus Gus Gaynor: tech leader, entrepreneur, and communicator

Gaynor’s remarkable career as an entrepreneur, director of engineering at 3M, author, and long-time volunteer for IEEE spanned more than seven decades.

Kamal Rudra named a JN Tata Scholar

This highly selective scholarship is awarded to students from India studying overseas.

Prof. Emerita Lynn Conway to be inducted into National Inventors Hall of Fame

She is recognized for her role in transforming the global microelectronics industry with the invention of VLSI, or Very Large-Scale Integration.

Cheap, sustainable hydrogen through solar power

Withstanding high temperatures and the light of 160 suns, a new catalyst is ten times more efficient than previous sun-powered water-splitting devices of its kind.

A brain game may predict your risk of infection

When a person’s cognitive function is highly variable, they’re likely to be more infectious and have more symptoms after exposure to a respiratory virus.