Podcasts from Distinguished Professors
Charles Bostian, Alumni Distinguished Professor: “Forty Years of Radio Research - From Glowing Bottles to Machines That Think.”
Download MP3 (30.2 MB, Length: 26:28)
Fred Lee, University Distinguished Professor: “Power Electronics, Energy and Environment”
Download MP3 (30.2 MB, Length: 27:50)
Franklin Institute video of Thorp, Phadke’s power work
Arun Phadke and Jim Thorp were awarded the 2008 Franklin Medal for Electrical Engineering for their work in protecting the power grid. View the Franklin Institute announcement and 3-minute video.
May-June 2013
ECE students present at NASA Wearable Technology Symposium
ECE students served on interdisciplinary teams that presented textile design solutions at the NASA Wearable Technology Symposium. John Murphy (BSCPE '15) contributed to a design for a hands-free jetpack control boot, while Mahmood Alwash (BSEE '13) and Mark Koninckx (BSCPE '15) collaborated on a real-time visualization of the shape of inflatable structures during spacecraft deployment. Tom Martin served as a faculty adviser for the projects.
Nikhil Jain wins Torgersen Award
Nikhil Jain (MSEE '13) received the second place Paul E. Torgersen Award in the M.S. oral presentation category. The Torgersen Award showcases the top research performed by graduating master's and doctoral students in the College of Engineering.
Luke Lester appointed ECE head
Luke Lester has been appointed ECE department head effective August 10. Lester comes to Virginia Tech from the University of New Mexico, where he holds an endowed chair professorship and has been serving as interim department chair.
Chao Wang awarded grant to find vulnerabilities in concurrent software
Chao Wang has received a three-year Office of Naval Research (ONR) Young Investigator Program (YIP) grant to develop methods for detecting security vulnerabilities in multicore software. The young investigator grant is the most prestigious ONR grant for faculty members early in their careers.
ECEs among highest-paid college majors
Computer engineering and electrical engineering majors have some of the highest starting salaries for the class of 2013, ranking second and seventh, respectively. Engineering salaries increased 4percent since last year to an average of $62,535, well above the average for all majors of $44,928.
ECE advisory board member promoted to VP of marketing for NI
Eric Starkloff has been promoted to senior vice president of marketing for National Instruments. Starkloff joined NI in 1997 and has led promotion for systems platforms including PXI and CompactRIO. He has served on ECE's Industrial Advisory Board since 2010.
New undergraduate research course offered this fall
A new undergraduate research course, "Exploring Pervasive and Physical Computing," will be offered this fall. Students will work in teams to design and implement pervasive computing system prototypes using open source hardware and software. Applications for pervasive computing include healthcare, entertainment, social networking, and teaching. The project will be advised by William Plymale, an ECE adjunct faculty member.
College of Engineering honors ECE alum
The College of Engineering presented Sastry Kompella (ECE '06) with a 2013 Outstanding Young Alumni Achievement Award. Kompella is currently working at the Naval Research Laboratory, developing new technologies for wireless network systems, cognitive radios, and underwater networking communications.
ECE alum inducted into Academy of Engineering Excellence
Doug Juanarena (BSEE '75) has been inducted into Virginia Tech's Academy of Engineering Excellence, becoming one of 119 members chosen from more than 60,000 living alumni. Juanarena started his career at NASA, and has since founded successful engineering and consulting businesses.
Wireless @ VT hosting annual symposium
Wireless @ Virginia Tech will host its 23rd annual wireless symposium May 29-31 at the Inn at Virginia Tech. New panel sessions this year will discuss wireless hospital rooms of the future and wireless entrepreneurs. Registration is available online through May 22.
March-April 2013
Virginia Tech wins Collegiate Aerial Robotics Exhibition
Virginia Tech's Collegiate Aerial Robotics Demonstration (CARD) team won first place at the 2013 Collegiate Aerial Robotics Exhibition. The contest tasked teams with designing both a ground robot and an aerial robot to launch tennis balls at targets, and CARD had the only robot that could successfully reload itself during competition. Bryan Yanchulis (BSEE '15) is a member of the multidisciplinary student team, which was formed in fall 2012.
Students launching high-altitude balloon this morning
Students from Dennis Sweeney's Exploration of Space class are launching a high-altitude balloon between 9 a.m. and 10 a.m. this morning at Kentland Farms. The payload contains atmospheric pressure, humidity, and temperature sensors as well as an accelerometer and gyro platform. Follow the launch online.
Yang named Virginia Tech Scholar of the Week
The Office of the Vice President for Research has named ECE's Yaling Yang as Scholar of the week for her work with wireless network modeling, design, and security. Yang is currently working on an NSF-funded project to develop hardware-based security solutions for software-defined cognitive radios.
Arojuraye awarded NSF Graduate Research Fellowship
Adelaja Arojuraye has been accepted into the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program and awarded a three-year stipend as well as a cost of education allowance. Arojuraye is a doctoral student in electrical engineering.
Goley awarded NSF Graduate Research Fellowship
Patrick Goley (BSEE ’13) has been accepted into the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program and awarded a three-year stipend as well as a cost of education allowance. He will begin graduate work in the ECE department this fall.
ECE team awarded NIH grant for breast cancer research
Jason Xuan and Yue (Joseph) Wang have received a $400,000 grant from the National Institute of Health (NIH) to study the connection between a high-fat diet during pregnancy and the risk of breast cancer for descendants. Their research is part of a collaborative study led by Georgetown University.
2 ECE teams named finalists in DARPA Spectrum Challenge
Student teams from the Hume Center and Wireless@VT have qualified as finalists in the DARPA Spectrum Challenge, an international competition aimed at developing strategies for clear communication in spite of interfering signals on a radio channel. The ECE teams will compete for prizes totaling $150,000.
Symposium to honor Phadke and Thorp
ECE is co-hosting a technical symposium to honor Arun Phadke and James Thorp and their contributions to power systems research and education. “Celebrating the Visions of Synchrophasor Pioneers” will be held on May 9 at Dominion Virginia Power’s Herndon, Va. facility. Registration for the event is free and must be completed by April 21.
$200 prize for original projects using A&D boards
Eta Kappa Nu (HKN) is sponsoring a competition to encourage original projects using A&D boards. Cash prizes of $200, $150, and $50 will be awarded for the top three designs. The contest is open to students from all majors and the deadline is April 23.
Fred Lee recognized as top engineering author
ECE’s Fred Lee has been identified as one of the top three engineering authors, based on his research output and citation. He received an award at the 38th Annual Conference of the IEEE Industrial Electronics Society (IECON 2012) in recognition of this achievement.
Olinger awarded honorable mention from Goldwater Scholarship Program
Justeen Olinger (BSEE ’14) received an honorable mention from the Goldwater Scholarship program, a national foundation that supports undergraduate students in the STEM fields. Olinger was one of four students selected by Virginia Tech as a nominee for this scholarship.
ECE alum named provost of the American University in Cairo
Amr Shaarawi (MSEE ’84, Ph.D. ’89) was named provost of the Middle East’s preeminent English-language university, the American University in Cairo (AUC). Shaarawi joined the university in 1999 and was promoted to dean of graduate studies in 2010, a role that he will continue to perform while serving as provost.
Thomas Hou receives Dean's Award for Excellence in Research
Thomas Hou received the Dean's Award for Excellence in Research from the College of Engineering. Hou was recently awarded a grant from the NSF and the Office of Naval Research to improve radio spectrum usage.
Kathleen Meehan honored for innovation in engineering education
Kathleen Meehan has been awarded the W. S. "Pete" White Innovation in Engineering Education Award from the College of Engineering. Meehan has led the development of Lab-in-a-box, ECE's portable circuit design kit.
Patrick Schaumont named College of Engineering Faculty Fellow
Patrick Schaumont has been awarded a faculty fellowship from the College of Engineering. He will receive $5,000 annually for the next three years to support his research in secure embedded systems.
Joseph Tront receives Dean's Award for Excellence in Service
Joseph Tront received the Dean's Award for Excellence in Service from the College of Engineering. Tront was recognized for his leadership in using innovative technology for engineering education.
Chao Wang named Outstanding New Assistant Professor
Chao Wang received the Outstanding New Assistant Professor Award from the College of Engineering. Wang is currently using a five-year NSF CAREER award to develop techniques for detecting and repairing software bugs.
Capital Region organizations get introduction to ECE embedded security research
CESCA's recent Research Symposium on Embedded Security drew attendees from industry, government, academia, and research labs in the capital region. "We forged valuable relationships and we look forward to converting these into research collaborations and industry Affiliate Program memberships," said Patrick Schaumont, CESCA director."
Alum's power supply company featured in the Wall Street Journal
Inventronics, an LED driver company founded by Gary Hua (Ph.D., EE, '94), is featured in a March 24 Wall Street Journal story about China's growing production of high-end exports. Inventronics was noted for manufacturing the power supplies for the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge light show. While at Virginia Tech, Hua co-founded VPT, a leading power converter company and CPES industry partner, with Dan Sable (Ph.D. '91) and ECE's Fred Lee.
Charles Clancy featured in Roanoke Business Magazine
ECE's Charles Clancy is featured in a Roanoke Business Magazine story on best practices for business cybersecurity. Clancy advises businesses to practice "digital hygiene" by keeping firewalls current and enabling software auto-updates. "At the end of the day, for most companies it's an economic decision," says Clancy. "The amount you spend on securing your network should not be more than the value of the compromised information times the probability of an intrusion."
ICTAS building named in honor of ECE alum
Virginia Tech has renamed the headquarters building of its Institute for Critical Technology and Applied Science (ICTAS) to honor Hugh Kelly (BSEE '37, MSEE '38) and his wife Ethel. Hugh Kelly contributed to several notable projects at AT&T's Bell Laboratories, including the 1962 launch of the Telstar communications satellite. Ethel Kelly generously supported Virginia Tech engineering efforts, including the construction of what is now the Hugh and Ethel Kelly Building, and an ECE professorship.
William Davis honored with emeritus status
William Davis has been named "professor emeritus" by the Virginia Tech Board of Visitors. Davis joined ECE in 1978. In addition to teaching a popular radio lab course, he made significant research contributions in antennas, electromagnetic fields, microwave and nonlinear measurements, communications circuits, radio engineering, and wireless applications.
ECE student to present at the ACC Meeting of the Minds
William Klima (EE '13) was selected to present at the 2013 ACC Meeting of the Minds undergraduate research conference at Wake Forest University this April. He will present his project "An Introduction to Tech Transfer: Assessment, Protection, and Licensing of Inventions Through Virginia Tech Intellectual Properties." Selection for the conference was competitive and Klima is one of eight students that were chosen to represent Virginia Tech.
Analog Devices quotes Meehan in launch of new circuit design platform for engineering education
Analog Devices is quoting ECE's Kathleen Meehan in its launch of a new circuit design and testing platform that uses MATLAB software for data analysis. "The combination of MATLAB and the Analog Devices' Digilent design kits provides a very flexible, powerful learning solution," says ECE's Kathleen Meehan. As a strategic advocate for the Analog Devices University Program, Meehan provides product development guidance for the company.
ECE alumnus featured in Idaho National Laboratory Annual Report
Juan Deaton (Ph. D. '12) is featured in the Idaho National Laboratory Annual Report for his radio spectrum research (see page 15). Deaton evaluated the the architectural effects and benefits of using TV white spaces in cellular networks to help meet the growing demand for spectrum.
CPES team awarded patent for method for measuring losses in inductors and transformers
Fred Lee and Mingkai Mu (Ph.D. '13) were granted a patent for an apparatus and method for measuring magnetic core losses in inductors and transformers operating at high frequencies.
Vringo granted rights to two Wireless@VT patents
Virginia Tech Intellectual Properties (VTIP) has granted Vringo, a mobile technology company, exclusive rights to patents for a cognitive radio engine and a dynamic cellular cognitive system (DCCS) that were developed by Wireless@VT. Vringo will build upon Wireless@VT's work to develop technology that will allow first responders to quickly set up wireless networks.
ECE graduate programs move up in U.S. News rankings
Virginia Tech's EE and CPE graduate programs have moved up in the 2014 graduate school rankings released by U.S. News & World Report. EE and CPE are both tied for 19th in separate rankings. The Virginia Tech College of Engineering is ranked 24th overall for the third consecutive year.
CESCA hosting inaugural research symposium
The Center for Embedded Systems for Critical Applications (CESCA) will host its first research symposium on March 15 at the Virginia Tech Research Center-Arlington, with a live broadcast to Blacksburg. CESCA Research Day will enable firms in the area to introduce themselves to Blacksburg students while learning about CESCA advances and capabilities. "We hope to connect with people who do not have the opportunity to visit us in Blacksburg," says Patrick Schaumont, CESCA director.
January-February 2013
Space@VT begins partnership with AMSAT
Space@VT has established a formal partnership with the Radio Amateur Satellite Corp. (AMSAT). ECE's Robert McGwier will lead Space@VT in collaborating with AMSAT on projects that "mutually benefit space science, student engineering programs, and the amateur radio community."
Tom Hou elected chair of IEEE INFOCOM conference
ECE's Tom Hou was elected steering committee chair of IEEE's Conference on Computer Communications (INFOCOM) for 2013-2015. INFOCOM is widely regarded as one of the top conferences in the field of computer networks and wireless communication.
Saifur Rahman interviewed about smart grid technology
Saifur Rahman discussed ways to encourage the adoption of smart grid technology in an interview with FierceSmartGrid. "Smart grid concepts should be considered as building blocks, both in rebuilding infrastructure and promoting awareness that a smarter grid is less costly in the long run," said Rahman.
Jules White quoted on future of mobile apps
ECE's Jules White was quoted in a Virginian-Pilot article about mobile application development in the Tidewater area. White identified the key to successful apps as "simplicity with a real focus on solving one specific problem." He predicted continued growth for the market, with a shift toward disposable apps.
Virginia Tech selected as 'best value' university
The Princeton Review has identified Virginia Tech as one of the best values among public universities in 2013. The selection of colleges for this list is based on key indicators such as quality academics, low cost of attendance, and generous financial aid.
Hume Center offers new scholarship
The Hume Center has established a scholarship to honor the memory of Mark Kusiak (MSEE '92). The Mark Kusiak Memorial Scholarship is part of the Intelligence Community Scholars Program. Scholarship applicants must be ECE or CS undergraduates.
CESCA seminar archive now available online
The Center for Embedded Systems for Critical Applications (CESCA) has launched a video library of previous seminars. CESCA's weekly seminars feature ECE faculty members and guest speakers presenting key topics related to electronic system design.
Tutorial published on queuing and trunking
William Tranter and Allen MacKenzie have published "A Tutorial on Queuing and Trunking with Applications to Communications". The tutorial is available in book and PDF form.
Online Masters of Information Technology program highly ranked
U.S. News & World Report has named Virginia Tech's online Masters of Information Technology program as one of the top three distance-learning courses in the nation. The MIT program is coordinated by ECE, the Department of Computer Science, and the Pamplin College of Business.
ECE alum named VP of SEVEN Networks
Mike Ward (BSEE) has been named senior vice president of worldwide sales and field operations at SEVEN Networks, a mobile phone software development company. Ward will be responsible for developing the company's international customer base and managing customer and partner relations.
Reed recognized for wireless leadership
Jeffrey Reed, the director of Wireless@VT, received the 2012 Wireless Innovation Forum International Achievement Award. Reed was honored for his leadership in research and academic collaboration in the fields of software defined radio and cognitive radio.
Hume Center announces new portfolio director
ECE's Hume Center for National Security and Technology has named Mark Goodwin as its first portfolio director. His responsibilities will include overseeing the center's sponsored programs and project managers, and implementing strategies for sustained growth. Goodwin has more than a decade of experience in cyber security.
ECE alumni featured in Virginia Tech Magazine
Doug Juanarena (BSEE '75) and Brian Hartsock (CPE '06) were featured in a Virginia Tech Magazine profile of Rackspace's Blacksburg branch. Juanarena is vice president of operations for the cloud-computing company, and Hartsock serves as a product manager.
ECE team awarded patent for polarization diversity antenna
Amir Zaghloul and William Mark Dorsey (Ph.D. '09) received a patent for a dual-band, dual-orthogonal-polarization antenna. The antenna enables maximum polarization diversity for a given system.
ARI works with Dominion to help launch offshore wind energy
Virginia Tech's Advanced Research Institute, led by ECE's Saifur Rahman, is working with Dominion Virginia Power to design an offshore wind turbine facility. The team has received a $4 million grant from the Department of Energy for initial engineering, and could be awarded an additional $47 million for construction.
Hou team awarded $800,000 for spectrum sharing research
Tom Hou, with Wenjing Lou (CS) and Hanif Sherali (ISE), has received a $500,000 NSF grant to study higher-efficiency spectrum sharing via coexisting networks. The team is also investigating new spectrum-sharing methods for tactical communications, with a grant from the Office of Naval Research.
Secure Embedded Systems lab offers new open-source software
CESCA's Secure Embedded Systems lab has developed a modular, open-source environment for testing hardware against side-channel and other forms of implementation attacks. The IAMeter tool was created by a team of students advised by Patrick Schaumont.
ECE researchers celebrate New Year's at the South Pole
A space weather research team from ECE greeted 2013 at the South Pole. The researchers are working to deploy autonomous data collection stations across Antarctica. Read more about the NSF-funded project, led by Robert Clauer.
November-December 2012
ECE alumni recognized as Virginia's top entrepreneurs
Doug Juanarena (EE '75) and Bob Summers (CPE '98) are recipients of GAP 50 Entrepreneur Awards from the Center for Innovative Technology (CIT). The awards honor Virginia's most innovative entrepreneurs who are creating high-growth companies. ECE's Charles Clancy, Jeff Reed, and Jules White, as well as Glen Skutt (Ph.D. '96), were finalists.
Broadwater featured in Virginia Issues & Answers
Robert Broadwater is featured in the winter edition of "Virginia Issues & Answers," a public policy forum published by Virginia Tech's Office of University Relations. Broadwater's article, "Smarter Grids," offers suggestions for policymakers and utility providers to improve the powergrid in response to rising sea levels along coastal Virginia.
2nd edition of embedded systems textbook published
Patrick Schaumont recently authored a second edition of "A Practical Introduction to Hardware/Software Codesign." The book teaches embedded systems design, with an emphasis on the integration of custom hardware components with software. See all textbooks published by ECE faculty.
ECE team granted patent for efficient outphasing transmitter
Jeffrey Reed, Tamal Bose, and Xuetao Chen (Ph.D. '12) were granted a patent for techniques for using an outphasing transmitter to produce an output signal from a digital input signal. The CM signals can be converted to analogue, filtered, modulated, amplified, and then combined.
Anbo Wang receives Canadian patent for optical sensor
Anbo Wang received a Canadian patent for three forms of an intrinsic Fabry-Perot optical sensor and a technique for multiplexing optical sensors using optical time domain reflectometry.
CPES team awarded patent for switching capacitor/PWM converter topology
Fred Lee, with Ming Xu and Ke Jin, was awarded a patent for a power converter, which functions as a combination of a switching capacitor converter and a pulse width modulated (PWM) converter during respective portions of a switching cycle. The topology is capable of zero voltage switching.
ECE team awarded patent for cognitive radio
Tamal Bose (now Dept. Head at Arizona) and Barathram Ramkumar (Ph.D. '11) were awarded a patent for a cognitive radio device that processes baseband signals through equalization and Automatic Modulation Classification (AMC).
Patent for Doppler sensor for the measurement of torsional slip
Carvel Holton and Mehdi Ahmadian (ME) received a patent for a Doppler sensor for measuring torsional slip. The system is described for measuring properties of a travel vehicle or a travel surface.
Raman named IEEE Fellow
ECE’s Sanjay Raman has been named a Fellow of the IEEE for his leadership in adaptive microwave and millimeter-wave integrated circuits. The status of Fellow is one of the most prestigious honors of the institute, bestowed upon less than a tenth of a percent of the annual voting membership of IEEE.
Hudait appointed to board for Nanotechnology Reviews
ECE's Mantu Hudait has been named a member of the editorial advisory board for "Nanotechnology Reviews," an international journal that publishes nanoscience and nanotechnology research.
ECE LinkedIn group reaches 1,000 members
The "Virginia Tech ECE" LinkedIn group has reached a membership of 1,000 students, faculty, alumni, and friends of the department. The group provides updates on the latest departmental news and connects ECE students and alumni to networking opportunities.
ECE grad appointed to Board for International Food and Agricultural Development
President Barack Obama appointed Harold L. Martin Sr. (Ph.D. '80) to the Board for International Food and Agricultural Development (BIFAD). BIFAD is an advisory council for the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), and provides recommendations on agriculture and higher education issues related to food insecurity.
Evrenosoglu named teacher of the week
Virginia Tech's Center for Instructional Development and Educational Research (CIDER) recognizes ECE's C. Yaman Evrenosoglu for his dedication to project-based learning and his ability to effectively teach complex mathematical modeling and computation.
ECE alum promoted to Associate Dean at Oklahoma State
Charles (Chuck) Bunting was recently promoted to Associate Dean of Research for the College of Engineering, Architecture and Technology at Oklahoma State University. Bunting was a Bradley Fellow, and received his M.S. and Ph.D. in EE from Virginia Tech in 1992 and 1994, respectively.
Hsiao named IEEE Fellow
ECE’s Michael Hsiao has been named a Fellow of the IEEE for his contributions to the automatic test pattern generation of integrated circuits. The status of Fellow is one of the most prestigious honors of the institute, bestowed upon less than 1/10 of 1 percent of the annual voting membership of IEEE.
White's augmented reality technology licensed to PAR Works
Virginia Tech Intellectual Properties has licensed the augmented reality mobile technology developed by ECE's Jules White and CEE's Mani Golparvar-Fard to Precision Augmented Reality Works (PAR Works). White is the co-founder and chief scientist of PAR Works, a subsidiary of the Allied Minds investment firm.
New machine learning course offered this spring
A new class, "introduction to machine learning and perception" (ECE 4984/5984), will be offered this spring. Students will learn how algorithms are used to identify patterns and make predictions from large quantities of data. The course will be taught by Dhruv Batra, who will join the ECE faculty in January as an assistant professor.
Ha’s research mentioned in The Wall Street Journal
Research conducted by ECE's Dong Ha was included in a recent Wall Street Journal story about emerging technologies that use the human body as an energy source. Ha is developing a method for harvesting the energy that is generated as the body adjusts to environmental temperature changes. The circuit that he is designing could be used to power medical devices.
ECE alum to speak at Dec. commencement
The husband-and-wife team of Kirk Schulz and Noel Schulz (BSEE 1988, MSEE 1990) will deliver a keynote address at Virginia Tech's 2012 fall Graduate School Commencement. Kirk is president of Kansas State University and Noel is associate dean for research and graduate programs and a professor of ECE there. She also serves as president of the IEEE Power and Energy Society.
Shukla named ACM Distinguished Scientist
ECE's Sandeep Shukla has been named a Distinguished Scientist by the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM). This honor recognizes ACM members with at least 15 years of professional experience who have made a significant contribution to the field of computing, computer science, or information technology.
ECE team identifies LTE weaknesses
ECE's Jeff Reed and his team are identifying weaknesses in LTE communications. Cellphones and other devices use the LTE standard, and the National Telecommunications and Information Administration is considering using it in technology for first responders. The team has uncovered eight significant weaknesses.
White's augmented reality technology in the news
The mobile augmented reality system (MARS) developed by Jules White's startup company, PAR Works, is featured on Mass High Tech. One application of the MARS allows contractors to take a smartphone photo of a building wall and access an overlay of the building's blueprint.
ECE student inducted into Order of the Gavel
ECE Ph.D. Candidate Shaimaa Abdallah has been inducted into the Order of the Gavel, a Virginia Tech honor society that supports the intellectual and personal development of leaders of major student organizations. Abdallah is the president of the Graduate Student Assembly.
ECE student awarded Association of Energy Engineers Scholarship
ECE Ph.D. Candidate Reza Arghandeh was awarded the Association of Energy Engineers (AEE) Scholarship. Arghandeh is completing his dissertation on smart grid technology and renewable energy. "Improving power engineering is one of the best ways to serve the community," he said.
ECE leads solar energy course for Bluefield State College
ECE has partnered with Bluefield State College (BSC) to provide hands-on training in solar engineering to BSC students this fall. ECE's Jason Lai will demonstrate solar panel and grid system installation in a series of five classes held at Virginia Tech's Future Energy Electronics Center.
ECE alum named Hokie Hero
Capt. Mark Amos (BSEE '08) was recognized as a Hokie Hero at the University of Miami football game. The Hokie Hero program honors deployed alumni of the Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets. Huber is currently serving with the U.S. Air Force as a KC-10 pilot stationed in Southwest Asia.
Why it takes days to restore power
ECE's Saifur Rahman was interviewed by Time Magazine online and the Huffington Post for stories about the extensive power outages caused by Hurricane Sandy. Rahman identified the main components of the electrical grid and explained how each is at risk for failure during a natural disaster. He also offered suggestions for modifying electrical infrastructure to reduce vulnerability to flooding.
ECE alum featured in Virginia Tech Magazine
ECE alum Bob Summers (CPE '98) was featured in Virginia Tech Magazine for his TechPad organization. Conceived as an "entrepreneurial ecosystem," TechPad provides Blacksburg startups with access to a collaborative workspace and mentoring opportunities. With a focus on technology, TechPad has hosted many student and faculty entrepreneurs.
Rosalyn Moran joins ECE
Rosalyn Moran has joined the ECE faculty as an assistant professor. She comes to Virginia Tech from the Wellcome Trust Centre for Neuroimaging at University College London, where she was a senior research associate. She will be working with the Virginia Tech Carilion Research Institute (VTCRI).
September-October 2012
ECE's NEMS research featured in EE Times
A recent EE Times article highlights research that ECE's Leyla Nazhandali and Masoud Agah are conducting on switches for Nano-Electro-Mechanical Systems (NEMS). They have received a $425,000 NSF grant to develop improved methods for power gating using a CMOS-NEMS hybrid system to reduce power consumption.
VT emphasizes ties to industry at VTRC—Arlington
Virginia Tech emphasizes its ties to industry coming from the Virginia Tech Research Center — Arlington. ECE facilities at the center include the Hume Center for National Security and Technology directed by ECE's Charles Clancy, and the Computational Bioinformatics and Bio-imaging Laboratory directed by ECE's Yue "Joseph" Wang.
New handheld computer security course offered this spring
Patrick Schaumont will teach a new graduate-level class, "handheld computer security" (ECE 5984), this spring. The course will cover design and implementation of cryptographic operations in handheld computing devices, with an emphasis on system security.
New computer vision course offered this spring
A new graduate-level class, "advanced topics in computer vision" (ECE 6504), will be taught this spring. Students will learn how algorithms are used to enable computers to recognize visual concepts (such as shapes and actions) in images and videos. The course will be taught by Devi Parikh, who will join the ECE faculty in January as an assistant professor.
Shukla featured on EEWeb
ECE's Sandeep Shukla is the featured engineer on EEWeb, an electrical engineering community for hardware designers. In his interview, Shukla discusses the origins of his EE career, his current projects, and his predictions for the system design industry.
Hume Center develops future cybersecurity leaders
The Hume Center’s efforts to prepare students for careers in national security and technology were highlighted in a Federal News Radio report. ECE’s Charles Clancy, director of the Hume Center, said the center is developing a cyber curriculum that is supported by partnerships with federal agencies and members of the technology industry.
Alum’s software company lands major contract
SoftSolutions Inc., a software business founded by ECE alumnus James Foster, announced an agreement to complete an enterprise-wide installation of its Flex platform for Cenveo Inc. SoftSolutions is a Roanoke, Va. company that designs production management and control software for manufacturers.
New embedded software design class to be offered this spring
Sandeep Shukla will teach a new graduate-level course, “model-driven design of embedded software” (ECE 5984), this spring. Students will learn an emerging methodology for incorporating synchronous, polychronous, and other formal models into the embedded system design process.
Mary Taylor recognized for excellence in career advising
ECE’s Mary Taylor is the 2012 recipient of Virginia Tech’s Award for Excellence in Career Advising. Dr. Leslie Pendleton, director of ECE student services, praises Taylor for her “empathy and concern for her students, open door and welcome attitude, and enthusiasm for her role in the lives of our students.”
National Security Solutions Center opens
Virginia Tech's Ted and Karyn Hume Center for National Security and Technology and L-3 Communications celebrated the opening of their new joint research center: the National Security Solutions Center. The center is located at the Virginia Tech Research Center in Arlington.
New research group dedicated to ICs and antennas
Four ECE faculty members (Dong S. Ha, Kwang-Jin Koh, Majid Manteghi, and Sanjay Raman) have formed the Multifunctional Integrated Circuits and Systems (MICS) research group, which focuses on analog, mixed-signal, and radio frequency (RF) IC designs; antenna systems; and RF interfaces.
ECE alum named Hokie Hero
Col. Frank Huber (BSEE 1985) was recognized as a Hokie Hero at the University of North Carolina football game. The Hokie Hero program honors deployed alumni of the Virginia Tech Corps of Cadets. Huber is currently serving with the U.S. Army as the Senior Telecom Advisor to the Afghan Minister of Communications and Information Technology.
3rd Edition of 'Antenna Theory & Design' Published
Warren Stutzman recently co-authored a completely revised, third edition of the "Antenna Theory and Design" textbook. New topics include antennas for personal and mobile communications and base station antennas. See all textbooks published by ECE faculty.
NASA rocket to launch ECE experiments
A NASA rocket carrying experiments designed by Virginia Tech engineering students, including ECE senior Rob Boone, will launch tomorrow as part of NASA's RockSat-X educational program. ECE's Scott Bailey served as the faculty adviser for one of the experiments: an optical nitric oxide sensor that will measure nitric oxide levels in the upper atmosphere.
ECE team awarded patent for neural network motor operation
Professor Emeritus Krishnan Ramu and alumni Christopher Hudson and Nimal Lobo have been awarded a patent for a neural network and method for estimating regions of motor operation from information characterizing the motor.
Rahman honored with Meritorious Service Award from IEEE Power and Energy Society
The IEEE Power and Energy Society (PES) recently presented its 2012 Meritorius Service Award to ECE's Saifur Rahman, director of the Virginia Tech Advanced Research Institute, for exceptional and sustained technical, administrative, and professional contributions to the society. The award was presented by Noel N. Schulz (BSEE 1988, MSEE 1990), PES president.
Wang's breast cancer research in the news
Yue (Joseph) Wang’s research on the correlation between high estrogen levels in pregnant rats and increased cancer risk for their descendants was published in Nature Communications and covered by many news outlets. Working with researchers at Georgetown University Medical Center, Wang developed the mathematical models that were used in DNA analysis for the study.
In Memoriam: Bob Lambert
Bob Lambert, an ECE alumnus and leader in digital media, died September 7, 2012. Lambert served on the ECE Advisory Board from 1997-2007 and was a member of the College of Engineering Committee of 100. While serving as a senior executive for Disney, he helped develop an Academy Award-winning digital production system for Pixar.
Spectrum policy course to be offered this spring
Michael Marcus, a former senior technical advisor at the FCC, will teach ECE 6604 this spring. The course will cover the legal and technical issues surrounding spectrum management. Recent FCC proceedings will be used as case studies.
“Lab-in-a-box” featured in EE Times
ECE's Lab-in-a-Box is featured in an EE Times article by associate professor Kathleen Meehan. The article highlights the portable workbench convenience for students, low-cost, and ability to design, build and test any time, anywhere. The kit was created a number of years ago and has been refined to include updated components and online multimedia learning materials.
Paul Plassmann named ECE interim department head
ECE's Paul Plassmann has been named interim department head for the 2012-2013 academic year. Plassmann has been serving as assistant department head for graduate education, and will start as department head in October.
Midkiff named VP for IT and chief information officer
ECE department head Scott Midkiff has been named Virginia Tech's vice president for information technology and chief information officer. After conducting a nationwide search, "we realized that the best candidate to lead us forward...was already on our campus," said Virginia Tech president Charles Steger. Midkiff will start his new position in October.
ECE offers new undergraduate research robotics course
ECE is offering a new undergraduate research course: Humanoid Robot Control for the DARPA Robotics Challenge. Students will work on a team with researchers from Computer Science, TORC Robotics, TU Darmstadt (Germany), Cornell, and Oregon State.
College of Engineering highlights Engineering Technology Help Center
The College of Engineering highlights the service provided by Virginia Tech's Engineering Technology Help Center. It quotes retired ECE faculty member Butch Nunnally, who served as the first assistant dean of engineering computing and started the Software Assistance Triage (SWAT) team: students who help solve computing difficulties on campus.
July-August 2012
ECE team awarded Canadian patent for optical fiber sensor
ECE faculty members Yizheng Zhu and Anbo Wang have been awarded a Canadian patent for their optical fiber pressure and acceleration sensor fabricated on a fiber endface.
Rolando Burgos joins ECE
Rolando Burgos has joined the ECE faculty as an associate professor. He comes to Virginia Tech from ABB Corporate Research in Raleigh, where he served as principal scientist. His experience includes testing and circuit design with wide band-gap semiconductor devices, multilevel electromagnetic circuit simulation, linear and nonlinear control system design and analysis, digital signal processor programming, and VHDL and code generation for FPGA and other CPLDs.
Qiang Li joins ECE
Qiang Li has joined the ECE faculty as a tenure-track assistant professor. Li has been working as a research assistant professor at Virginia Tech’s Center for Power Electronics Systems (CPES). His research interests involve many aspects of power electronics, including high-density electronics packaging and integration, high-frequency magnetic components, high-frequency power conversion, distributed power systems, and renewable energy.
Guoqiang Yu joins ECE
Guoqiang Yu has joined the ECE faculty as an assistant professor. He was previously a postdoctoral fellow for bioinformatics and statistical machine learning at Stanford University School of Medicine and Bio-X. Yu is stationed at the ECE offices in the Virginia Tech Research Center — Arlington in Northern Virginia. His research interests include machine learning, pattern recognition, signal and image processing, and applied statistics.
Yizheng Zhu joins ECE
Yizheng Zhu has joined the ECE faculty as an assistant professor. He comes to Virginia Tech from Duke University, where he was a research scientist in the Department of Biomedical Engineering. He has designed quantitative optical microscopy techniques with high sensitivity, novel fiber-optic interferometers for studying depth-resolved one- and two-dimensional light scattering, and a clinical endoscopic system based on angle-resolved low coherence interferometry.
ECE students win best presentation award at ICFCC
ECE students from the Mobile Application computinG optimizatioN and secUrity Methods research group (MagnumGroup) received the best presentation award at the 4th International Conference on Future Computing and Communication. Daniel Guymon was the first author and Alan Baines gave the presentation. Their talk presented cyber-physical security algorithms that use accelerometer data to establish cyber identity.
ECE alum named CIO of iJET International
Mark Griffith (B.S. 1990) was promoted to Chief Information Officer at iJet International, a top supplier of risk assessment and management services for businesses. As CIO, he will supervise the development of iJet’s systems, including its popular WorldCue® Global Control Center platform. Griffith previously served as the company’s Vice President of Operations Technology.
Former ECE researcher named Endowed Professor at Auburn University
Shiwen Mao, a former ECE postdoctoral research associate and research scientist, was awarded the McWane Endowed Professorship from Auburn University’s Samuel Ginn College of Engineering. Mao joined the Auburn faculty in 2006. As a researcher with ECE from 2003-2006, he assisted Tom Hou in developing a new approach to wireless sensor network design.
Hou receives NSF grant for cloud privacy research
ECE's Tom Hou and computer science faculty member Wenjing Lou (PI) have received an NSF grant titled "Towards User Privacy in Outsourced Cloud Data Services." The project will combine cryptography and information-retrieval techniques to develop tools for data utilization services in outsourced cloud storage systems.
3 ECE teams receive ICTAS Junior Faculty Collaborative awards
ICTAS presented three ECE teams with Junior Faculty Collaborative awards to fund cooperative research between junior and senior faculty members. Winning proposals are Kwang-Jin Koh and Dong S. Ha’s “Low-Power Design of Radios for Wireless Devices,” Chao Wang and Michael S. Hsiao’s “Co-verification of Critical Cyber-Physical Systems,” and Sandeep Shukla and AOE’s Mazen Farhood’s “Co-Design of the Cyber and Physical Components of Autonomous Miniature Air Vehicles.”
Arghandeh receives best paper award at ICONE/ASME Power
Ph.D. Candidate Reza Arghandeh won the best student paper award at the 20th International Conference on Nuclear Engineering (ICONE). His paper, “Distributed Energy Storage Control for Optimal Adoption of Solar Energy in Residential Networks,” was co-authored with his advisor Robert Broadwater. ICONE was co-located with the ASME 2012 Power Conference July 30-August 3 in Anaheim, Calif.
Yang noted for use of ICTAS seed funding
Yaling Yang is featured on the ICTAS website for her success in converting ICTAS seed funding into a major NSF contract. Yang, with co-PIs Jeff Reed and Chao Wang recently won a $700,000 multi-year NSF grant for "SDR Shield," which will develop hardware-based security solutions for software-defined cognitive radios.
Electrical Engineers Keep You Connected
An op-ed by ECE's Tim Pratt was featured in the Roanoke Times. Pratt provides a correction to a recent article about GPS systems in cell phones. He then discusses the many contributions of ECEs to modern society -- many based on wireless systems. ECE accomplishments are due to their education, and abilities ranging from mathematical analysis to design, Pratt says.
ICTAS hires ECE alum as research program manager
The Institute for Critical Technology and Applied Science (ICTAS) at Virginia Tech selected ECE alumnus Ashwin Amanna to manage its Cognition and Communication, and National Security divisions. Amanna will lead initiatives to increase external funding for research in these areas.
Underwater Vehicle Team at Competition
Virginia Tech's Autonomous Underwater Vehicle team is competing in the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI) RoboSub competition in San Diego from July 17-22. The team is tweeting live from the competition under the username VTAUVT.
E-Textile prototype featured on cracked.com
Mark Jones and Tom Martin’s 8-year-old “Fancy Pants” prototype is featured in cracked.com’s “8 Mind-Blowing Realities of Our Future Full of Old People” article. Uses of the outfit include studying the progression of disease and guarding against falls among the elderly by monitoring wearers’ vital signs and motion patterns. ECE’s e-textile laboratory continues to find ways to merge electronics and textiles.
Guido awarded Commonwealth Research Commercialization Fund grant
The Center for Innovative Technology (CIT) awarded ECE’s Louis Guido with a $150,000 Commonwealth Research Commercialization Fund (CRCF) grant for his research proposal “Bottomless GaN Power Devices.” The CRCF encourages economic progress in Virginia by supporting science- and technology-based research and commercial development.
Meehan appointed Analog Devices University Program Strategic Advocate
Analog Devices Inc. selected ECE faculty member Kathleen Meehan as one of four professors who will serve as strategic advocates for the ADI University Program. She will advance Analog Devices’ mission to support hands-on engineering education by developing software, teaching materials, textbooks, and lab projects for analog circuits.
Fred Lee given Taiwan's highest academic honor
Fred Lee, director of CPES, received the highest academic honor from Taiwan in his election as Academician of Academia Sinica. As Taiwan's top academic institution, Academia Sinica supports research in the humanities and sciences.
ECE alum named to Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association board of directors
Paige Atkins, vice president for cyber and information technology research at the Virginia Tech Applied Research Corporation, has joined the board of directors of the Armed Forces Communications and Electronics Association International. Atkins has a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from Virginia Tech and significant government and industry experience in the information technology field.
Hume Center Sponsors Cyber Challenge Camp
The Hume Center for National Security and Technology partnered with Booz Allen Hamilton to lead the East Coast U.S. Cyber Challenge summer camp. Targeting the next generation of cybersecurity specialists, camp organizers invited high school and college students to Virginia Tech's Arlington Research Center for four days of workshops that culminated with a cyber-attack/defense competition.
Schaumont named Virginia Tech Scholar of the Week
The Office of the Vice President for Research has named ECE's Patrick Schaumont as Scholar of the Week for his research on the design of secure and trustworthy digital hardware and embedded systems, such as are used by our handheld devices. Schaumont also works on the efficient integration of cryptographic hardware into software.
Rahman Receives IEEE Professional Leadership Award
ECE's Saifur Rahman, the director of the Virginia Tech Advanced Research Institute, was recently recognized with the Divisional Professional Leadership Award from IEEE-USA. Rahman was honored for his exceptional leadership efforts in promoting advancements in power and energy technology for public welfare.
May-June 2012
Virginia Tech wins RoboCup 2012
Researchers from Virginia Tech's Robotics and Mechanisms Laboratory (RoMeLa) have led their humanoid robotic champions to victory for the second consecutive year in RoboCup 2012, winning first place in both the Kid Size and Adult Size divisions. ECE student Mike Hopkins was the lead software developer for adult-sized CHARLI-2. Read more about Hopkins' research.
ECE student on Go Green in the City finalist team
ECE student Darius Emrani and chemical engineering student Katie Gloe form one of only 25 teams selected from an international pool of 600 challengers who will compete as finalists at the Go Green in the City 2012 competition in Paris. Their EnerGymnasia project proposes methods for harnessing energy generated by gym-goers and using it to power the electrical systems of gyms.
ECE Faculty Members on VT Faculty Entrepreneur Hall of Fame
ECE emeritus professor Richard Claus and ECE professor Fred Lee, are among the first honored on the new Virginia Tech Faculty Entrepreneur Hall of Fame. Out of more than 50 nominees, six were selected as part of the first group of inductees.
ECE student receives SYSTOR best student paper award
ECE student Alexandru Turcu won the "best student paper" award at the Fifth Annual International Systems and Storage Conference (SYSTOR) for his paper "On Open Nesting in Distributed Transactional Memory Systems," which was co-authored by ECE faculty member Binoy Ravindran.
ECE student on Tech Transfer Challenge runner-up team
Jake Overfield, who competed in the Tech Transfer Challenge with the runner-up Focus Radio team, is working to develop real-time camera auto focus capabilities. The Challenge facilitates the commercialization of technology products under development at Virginia Tech.
Leyla Nazhandali promoted to Associate Professor
Congratulations to ECE faculty member Leyla Nazhandali who has been tenured and promoted to the rank of Associate Professor.
Jason Xuan receives tenure
Congratulations to ECE faculty member Jason Xuan who has been tenured at his currently-held rank of Associate Professor.
Yaling Yang promoted to Associate Professor
Congratulations to ECE faculty member Yaling Yang who has been tenured and promoted to the rank of Associate Professor.
Mike Buehrer promoted to Professor
Congratulations to ECE faculty member Mike Buehrer who has been promoted to the rank of Professor.
Tom Hou promoted to Professor
Congratulations to ECE faculty member Tom Hou who has been promoted to the rank of Professor.
Binoy Ravindran promoted to Professor
Congratulations to ECE faculty member Binoy Ravindran who has been promoted to the rank of Professor.
Sandeep Shukla promoted to Professor
Congratulations to ECE faculty member Sandeep Shukla who has been promoted to the rank of Professor.
Dan Stilwell promoted to Professor
Congratulations to ECE faculty member Dan Stilwell who has been promoted to the rank of Professor.
ECE to develop outdoor cognitive radio testbed
A Wireless@VT team has received a $260,000 Department of Defense (DoD) Defense University Research Instrumentation Program (DURIP) grant to develop an outdoor cognitive radio network testbed. Tamal Bose serves as principal investigator (PI), with Haris Volos and Jeff Reed as Co-PIs.
Autonomous river mapping
In January, the Autonomous Systems and Controls Laboratory (ASCL), in collaboration with the Naval Postgraduate School, field tested its sensing and autonomy system for unmanned surface vehicles (USVs) on Mississippi’s Pearl River.
HAARP: from WUVT to the most powerful short-wave station on Earth
An interest in amateur radio and public broadcasting led Steve Floyd (BSEET '80) to serve as chief RF engineer and designer for the highest-power short-wave transmitting station in the world: the High Frequency Active Auroral Research Program (HAARP).
The family history factor in breast cancer
ECE's Joseph Wang and researchers at Georgetown University Medical Center have found that in rats, exposure of a pregnant mother to estrogenic compounds can result in increased risk of cancer in daughters.
Room to create
ECE students have new dedicated space for design projects, with the opening of the department's Integrated Design Studio. The design studio complements the new integrated design courses.
Breaking the terahertz barrier
Designing high frequency electronics brings researchers like ECE's Kwang-Jin Koh to the edge of silicon's capability. Applications of these higher frequencies include faster data transfer and the ability to detect hidden objects.
ECE alums promote new app
Two recent ECE graduates, Kenan Pulak (CPE '12) and Austin Marusco (CPE '12), have created a "non-creepy" personal locator app called Roundpop. They will be traveling the country to promote this app.
Wayne Scales named Virginia Tech Scholar of the Week
The Office of the Vice President for Research has named ECE's Wayne Scales as Scholar of the Week for theoretical modeling and experimental characterization of the earth’s atmosphere and space weather and for his leadership in establishing the Center for Space Science and Engineering Research.
Mahmoudian receives 2012 Blackwell Award for best ECE research paper
ECE graduate student Alireza Mahmoudian is the winner of the 2012 Blackwell Award for the best research paper in ECE. Working with ECE's Wayne Scales, Mahmoudian developed a radar technique for measuring aerosol density in space.
MacKenzie receives E.T.S. Walton Visitor Award
ECE's Allen MacKenzie has received an E.T.S. Walton Visitor Award from the Science Foundation of Ireland. This award will support MacKenzie's sabbatical in Ireland at Trinity College Dublin and CTVR / the telecommunications research centre during the 2012-2013 academic year.
EPC hires ECE alum as Director of Applications Engineering
Efficient Power Conversion Corporation (EPC) has hired ECE alum David Reusch as its Director of Applications Engineering. While working on his graduate degrees, Reusch received a Bradley Fellowship and later an NSF Fellowship.
ECE alum receives NSF CAREER award
Shuo Wang (Ph.D. '05) has received a National Science Foundation Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) award to study electric vehicle charging stations. Wang is an assistant professor of EE at the University of Texas at San Antonio.
Baker receives NSF CAREER award to study atmospheric asymmetries
ECE assistant professor Jo Baker has received a National Science Foundation Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) award to study possible atmospheric asymmetries between the northern and southern hemispheres.
Martin, Zellner-Basset team ties for 1st in Steger Design Competition
The entry by Tom Martin and Paola Zellner-Basset of the School of Architecture and Design tied for 1st place in the Charles W. Steger Design Competition for ideas to enhance the public spaces in the new Virginia Tech Research Center — Arlington. Martin and Zellner-Basset proposed an interactive textile design piece called "Time Stands Still." The jury cited its innovative approach to integrating technology and design.
ECE student receives Aspire! award
ECE student Patrick Goley is being recognized as one of 25 inspirational Virginia Tech students. The Division of Student Affairs presented him with the February Aspire! award for curiosity.
Schaumont named teacher of the week
Virginia Tech's Center for Instructional Development and Educational Research (CIDER) recognizes ECE's Patrick Schaumont for bringing cutting-edge topics into the curriculum, presenting students with exciting and meaningful hands-on projects, and giving engaging and clear lectures.
ECE alum elected to ECAN Board of Directors
ECE alum Jeannette Mills, Vice President of Customer Operations and Chief Customer Officer for Baltimore Gas and Electric Company, has been elected to the Board of Directors of the Esophageal Cancer Action Network (ECAN). She has served on the ECE Advisory Board since 2008.
ECE's Linda White named CASE Exemplary Employee
ECE's Linda White has received one of two annual awards from the College Association for Staff in Engineering (CASE). She received the Administrative Award for her exceptional contributions to the department.
Joseph Loring named distinguished alumnus
Joseph Loring (BSEE '47), founder of LORING, is the 2012 recipient of Virginia Tech’s College of Engineering Distinguished Alumnus Award, as well as the University’s Alumni Distinguished Achievement Award.
Jason Lai named Virginia Tech Scholar of the Week
The Office of the Vice President for Research has named ECE's Jason Lai as Scholar of the Week for advancing power electronics technologies that improve the efficiency of solar and wind energy generation and of hybrid electric vehicles.
Virginia Tech Hosts Cyber Security Summit and Competition
Virginia Tech hosted the second-annual cyber security summit and competition, attracting teams from Virginia Tech, the University of Maryland, the US Naval Academy, James Madison University, and the Marshall Academy.
Rahman named to top 100 in smart grid research
Saifur Rahman, the Joseph Loring Professor of ECE and director of the Advanced Research Institute, has been listed by Greentech Media as one of the top 100 people in smart grid research.
Pritchard Hall wins 2012 Virginia Tech Eco-Olympics
Pritchard Hall won the 2012 Eco-Olympics, an inter-residential competition to encourage students to reduce energy and water consumption. Pritchard Hall is named after Samuel Pritchard, who served as ECE's first department head.
College names Jules White as Outstanding New Assistant Professor
ECE's Jules White received the Outstanding New Assistant Professor award from the College of Engineering. White's research focus is in cyber-physical systems, including rapid and dependable integration of computing and communication technology into natural and engineered physical systems.
Patrick Schaumont receives Dean's Award for Excellence in Teaching
ECE's Patrick Schaumont received the Dean's Award for Excellence in Teaching from the College of Engineering. He often teaches the undergraduate classes of Digital Design II and Hardware-Software Codesign.
Jaime De La Ree receives Certificate of Teaching Excellence
ECE's Jaime De La Ree has received a Certificate of Teaching Excellence from the College of Engineering. In addition to his research in power systems, De La Ree frequently teaches the undergraduate Introduction to Power Systems class and mentors the IEEE hardware team.
ECE student on team honored with XCaliber Award
CPE junior, Ethan Groves, was on the team that won a 2012 Virginia Tech XCaliber Award for excellence as a group involved with technology-assisted teaching. The team developed technology that helped a visually impaired student understand the effects of complex mathematical formulas.
March-April 2012
Janak Patel delivers Bradley Lecture
Janak Patel, research professor at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, delivered a Bradley Distinguished Lecture on April 27. He discussed present and future CMOS process variations.
ECE space researchers featured in Virginia Tech Magazine
The Virginia Tech Magazine's article on the future of space flight features ECE faculty members Gregory Earle, Wayne Scales, and Scott Bailey, alumnus Bob Castle (BSEE '76, MSEE '78), and the SuperDARN research group.
ECE alum featured in Virginia Tech Magazine
ECE alum Letitia Long (BSEE '82), head of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (NGA), is featured in the Virginia Tech Magazine for her leadership in the intelligence community.
CESCA launches new website
Center for Embedded Systems for Critical Applications (CESCA) has launched a new website. CESCA, composed of nine ECE faculty, combines a broad range of interdisciplinary expertise to address the research challenges related to the development of smart, secure, reliable, integrated, low-cost, and distributed embedded systems.
Martin on team honored with XCaliber Award
Tom Martin is a member of an interdisciplinary team that received a 2012 Virginia Tech XCaliber Award for integrating technology in teaching and learning. The team was recognized for its work in the Interdisciplinary Product Development Studio. The group was further commended for designing and developing learning activities involving smart objects, a phenomenon that is estimated to be several years away from being adopted within the industry.
Student high altitude balloon mission success
Students from Jo Baker's Exploration of the Space Environment class have successfully launched a high-altitude balloon with a payload that takes photos and measurements from the atmosphere. The balloon has now landed. It reached a maximum height of more than 107,300 ft (32.7 km). See the launch on WDBJ7.
Virginia Tech honors Marvin Johnson for career achievements
Marvin Johnson (EE '64), of Huntington Beach, Calif. is a 2012 inductee into Virginia Tech’s College of Engineering Academy of Engineering Excellence, joining an elite group of 112 individuals out of more than 58,000 living engineering alumni.
Virginia Tech at University Technology Exhibition
ICTAS, the Hume Center for National Security and Technology, and the Virginia Bioinformatics Institute represented Virginia Tech at the second annual University Technology Exhibition sponsored by the Northern Virginia Technology Council. ECE's Charles Clancy, director of the Hume Center, presented an overview of “Research and Education in Cyber Security.”
Hudait named teacher of the week
Virginia Tech's Center for Instructional Development and Educational Research (CIDER) recognizes ECE's Mantu Hudait for using his many years of industrial experience to structure courses that teach students how to use course materials to solve relevant, real-world problems.
Tront appointed director of education at Hume Center
ECE's Joseph Tront is the newly appointed director of education of the university’s Ted and Karyn Hume Center for National Security and Technology. The Hume Center heads Virginia Tech’s educational and research programs in national security, and has taken a leading role in the university's growth in cyber security.
Masoud Agah named Scholar of the Week
The Office of the Vice President for Research recognizes ECE's Masoud Agah for advancing micro-electomechanical systems (MEMS) technology for application to ovarian cancer detection and gas chromatography.
ECE alum turns novelist
After a long and successful career in the semiconductor industry, Jim George (EE ’64) published his debut novel, Reunion, last month. Borrowing from his experiences growing up in Appalachia, George crafted a compelling coming-of-age story of a narrator who navigates high school in West Virginia during the late 1950s and early 1960s.
Jason Lai receives Tucker Professorship
ECE's Jason Lai has been named the James S. Tucker Professor by the Virginia Tech Board of Visitors. Lai is internationally recognized as an expert in energy efficient electronic technologies for transportation and industrial automation.
ECE alum presents IEEE Webinar
ECE alumnus Brian McCleery, now at National Instruments, was a presenter for an IEEE Webinar on "Accelerating Development of Smart Grid Power Electronics Control Systems with RCP and HIL Techniques."
Bose to head ECE at Arizona
Professor Tamal Bose is to become ECE department head at the University of Arizona. Virginia Tech’s ECE Department offers Professor Bose our congratulations and best wishes in this new leadership role.
U.S. News ranks VT engineering program among best
U.S. News and World Report listed Virginia Tech’s College of Engineering among the nation’s 25 best engineering schools for graduate studies. EE is tied for 21st, and CPE is tied for 24th. Virginia Tech engineering is 24th overall.
CPES awarded patent for Electromagnetic Interference Noise Separator
ECE faculty member Fred Lee, along with Shuo Wang (Ph.D. '06), has been awarded a patent for an Electromagnetic Interference Noise Separator.
Virginia Tech selected as 'best value' university
The Princeton Review has identified Virginia Tech as one of the best values among public universities in 2012. The selection of colleges for this list is based on key indicators such as quality academics, low cost of attendance, and generous financial aid.
AcrossWorld Education, Go Tech release touch-screen PC in India
AcrossWorld Education has partnered with Delhi-based Go Tech to launch an advanced touch-screen tablet PC in India. Gaurav Khanna, ECE alumnus and CEO of Go Tech, cites his time at Virginia Tech as encouraging his drive to serve his country.
January-February 2012
Wireless@VT, Oak Ridge collaborate on research
Virginia Tech and UT-Battelle LLC, which manages and operates Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL), have signed a five-year memorandum of understanding to collaborate on wireless communication and cognitive radio research.
Virginia Tech and University of New Mexico collaborate on radio telescope
ECE's Steve Ellingson is working with researchers from the University of New Mexico to operate 258 dual-polarized dipole antennas that combine to form a massive array radio telescope tasked with cracking the mysteries behind the universe’s beginning.
FreeWave hires ECE alum as CTO and VP of Engineering
Freewave Technologies has hired ECE alumnus Greg Veintimilla as its Chief Technology Officer and Vice President of Engineering. Freewave Technologies manufactures high-performance spread spectrum and licensed radios for critical data transmission.
Online Masters of Information Technology program among the top
U.S. News & World Report has listed Virginia Tech’s online Masters of Information Technology program as one of the top online programs in the country. The MIT program is coordinated by ECE, CS, and the Pamplin College of Business
Chao Wang receives NSF CAREER award to improve computer software debugging
Chao Wang has received an NSF CAREER award to study the increasingly complex problem of debugging software. The problem becomes more difficult with multicore processors and concurrent software. Wang says that detecting and repairing software bugs is becoming extremely labor-intensive because of the rapidly increasing size and complexity of today’s software.
ECE Senior starts Student Intellectual Property Society
ECE senior Kevin Sprenger, along with other students interested in both science and law, founded the Student Intellectual Property Society to promote understanding of intellectual property law.
High starting salaries for ECEs
Salaries for students who graduated in 2011 are higher than those of last year's graduates for all majors, but engineers are at the top with an average starting salary of $61,872. Computer engineers are the most highly paid of the engineering majors, with an average salary of $70,400.
November-December 2011
L-3 Joins the National Science Foundation’s Cybersecurity Research Program at Virginia Tech
L-3 STRATIS announced today that it has joined with Virginia Tech as an industry partner in the Security and Software Engineering Research Center (S2ERC). ECE's Charles Clancy is the director of the Ted and Karyn Hume Center for National Security and Technology and leads Virginia Tech’s S2ERC program efforts.
Lai receives grant from Center for Innovative Technology
ECE's Jason Lai received a grant of nearly $150,000 from the Center for Innovative Technology to develop a photovoltaic inverter for Virginia manufacturing industries.
Environmentally friendly supercomputers
The new Green500 List continues to show improvement in environmentally friendly supercomputers. The list was founded by Wu Feng, an associate professor of ECE and Computer Science.
Shukla publishes book on low power design
Sandeep Shukla recently co-authored the textbook "Low Power Design with High-Level Power Estimation and Power-Aware Synthesis." See all textbooks published by ECE faculty.
ECE graduate creates worlds of fun
ECE graduate Steve Velte left a job at Hewlett-Packard to focus on inventing new games. His most popular game, Jishaku, is a strategy game in which players must carefully place magnets on the game board, taking into account the magnetic fields of other magnets on the board.
ECE alum named full professor at Oklahoma State
Charles (Chuck) Bunting was recently promoted to Professor of ECE at Oklahoma State University. Bunting was a Bradley Fellow, and received his M.S. and Ph.D. in EE from Virginia Tech in 1992 and 1994, respectively.
Fred Lee receives K.T. Li Chair Professor Award from Taiwan's National Cheng Kung University
ECE's Fred Lee received the Kwoh-Ting Li Chair Professor Award from his alma mater, National Cheng Kung University in Taiwan, as part of the university's 80th anniversary celebration.
Webcam of Signature Engineering Building
Construction has begun on the new Signature Engineering Building, located at the corner of Prices Fork Road and Stanger Street. From a webcam located on top of Whittemore, you can view the progress of the construction.
ECE Senior president of urban dance organization
ECE Senior Larry Franco is the president of Bamboom Dance Company, a student organization dedicated to urban dance. They have an upcoming performance at the Asian American Student Union Culture Show on Saturday, November 5.
AEP honors ECE Alumnus
Appalachian Power renamed its visitor center in honor of former company president and CEO Joseph Vipperman ('62), an ECE alumnus. The center, located on top of the hydroelectric Smith Mountain Dam, opened in 1967 and was recently remodeled.
September-October 2011
VT MEMS Laboratory launches new website
The Virginia Tech Microelectro-mechanical Systems (MEMS) Laboratory has launched a new website. Current research at VT MEMS Lab centers on the development of CMOS-compatible three-dimensional silicon micromachining techniques, smart microchip coolers, micro gas analyzers for environmental and healthcare applications, and biochips for cancer diagnosis and cancer treatment monitoring.
CPES researchers on team awarded $2.5 million Solar ADEPT grant
CPES power electronics researchers are on a team led by Ideal Power Converters that has been awarded a $2.5 million grant from DOE's Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) to create a dual bi-directional silicon IGBT module. The project is part of the ARPA-E Solar Agile Delivery of Electrical Power Technology (ADEPT) Program. Researchers from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute are also on the team.
L-3 and Virginia Tech Announce Partnership in Cybersecurity Research and Development
L-3 Communications announced that it has formed a cooperative partnership in cybersecurity research and development with Virginia Tech’s Ted and Karyn Hume Center for National Security and Technology. A key element of this relationship will be the establishment of L-3’s Cybersecurity Solutions Center, which will be located in the Virginia Tech Research Center – Arlington, where the Hume Center has its cybersecurity innovations lab.
Virginia Tech cybersecurity breakthrough keeps sensitive data confined in physical space
In a breakthrough that could aid spies, keepers of medical records, and parents who want to prevent their kids from "sexting," a team led by ECE's Jules White has created software to remotely put smart phones under lockdown. The phones are given permission to access sensitive data while in a particular room, but when the devices leave the room, the data is completely wiped. Watch a video about this technology.
Clinical Proteomic Tumor Analysis Consortium award
The National Cancer Institute has recently announced awards to five national proteomics research centers, forming the Clinical Proteomic Tumor Analysis Consortium (CPTAC). One of the five CPTAC centers, led by Johns Hopkins University, includes research teams from Virginia Tech, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, MD Anderson Cancer Center, Stanford University, and the University of Chicago. The principal investigator of the VT team is ECE's Yue (Joseph) Wang, and co-investigator is ECE's Jason Xuan.
ECE faculty member selected for National Academy of Engineering symposium
ECE's Tom Martin has been selected to take part in the National Academy of Engineering's third Frontiers of Engineering Education symposium. Of the 65 engineering educators selected, four are from Virginia Tech.
ECE professor wins best paper award from Asian Test Symposium
ECE's Michael Hsiao won a best paper award from the Asian Test Symposium 2010 for a paper titled "Tackling the Path Explosion Problem in Symbolic Execution-Driven Test Generation for Programs." Other authors on the paper are Saparya Krishnamoorthy and Loganathan Lingappan.
ECE alumna appointed assistant professor at George Washington University
Recent ECE postdoc Zuyi Wang has been appointed a tenure-track assistant professor of bioinformatics, Department of Integrative Systems Biology, at George Washington University. Her dissertation and postdoctoral research was supervised by Yue (Joseph) Wang, Grant Dove Professor of ECE.
ECE graduate joins EECS faculty at Peking University
Kaigui Bian, an ECE graduate supervised by Jung-Min "Jerry" Park, joined the faculty of EECS at Peking University, Beijing, China, as an assistant professor on August 15, 2011. His current research focuses on cognitive radio networks, mobile internet, and network security. His teaching interests include wireless networking and network security.
ECE graduate appointed assistant professor at Mayo Clinic
Recent ECE Ph.D. graduate, Yuji (Julia) Zhang, has been appointed as a tenure-track assistant professor of medical informatics, Department of Health Sciences Research, at Mayo Clinic (Mayo College of Medicine). Her dissertation was supervised by Jason Xuan, associate professor of ECE.
Virginia Tech Applied Research Corporation names vice president for cyber and IT research
Paige Atkins, a cyber and information technology executive with more than 27 years of government and industry experience, has been named vice president for cyber and information technology research at the Virginia Tech Applied Research Corporation in Arlington, Va. She holds a bachelor of science in electrical engineering from Virginia Tech.
MEMS breath analysis technology featured in the news
Electronicsnews.com is featuring microelectronics research led by ECE's Masoud Agah and Andrea Dietrich of civil and environmental engineering. The team's results show that microelectronics can be used to analyze exhaled breath to determine if people have been exposed potentially toxic substances.
Altera donates FPGA platform for computer engineering labs
This semester, students in two senior-level computer engineering design courses are using an FPGA development platform recently donated by Altera Corporation. The new donation includes Terasic DE2-115 development boards and the Altera Quartus development software.
Naval Research Lab launches satellite to augment communications needs
The Naval Research Lab launched their Tactical Satellite-IV (TacSat-4) on September 27. The satellite augments current geosynchronous satellite communications. Principal investigator for the project is ECE alumnus Mike Hurley, who is currently chair of the ECE advisory board.
Virginia Tech Alums in National Security
FedScoop, a government IT media company, names 11 Virginia Tech alumni who are information technology leaders in intelligence and national security. The list includes five ECE alumni, including ECE advisory board member Alan Wade.
NVIDIA names Virginia Tech as CUDA Research Center
NVIDIA has named Virginia Tech as a Compute Unified Device Architecture (CUDA) Research Center for general-purpose computing on graphics processing units (GPUs) across multiple research fields. Computer Science and ECE faculty member Wu Feng will head Virginia Tech's CUDA efforts.
Krishnan Ramu honored with emeritus status
ECE's Krishnan Ramu has been named "professor emeritus" by the Virginia Tech Board of Visitors. Ramu joined ECE in 1985. He served as director of the Center for Rapid Transit Systems and the Motion Control Laboratory. His research innovations included switched reluctance motor drives for no-cable elevators and friction-free linear propulsion for maglev systems.
ECE student co-president of new Honors Residential College
ECE Junior Patrick Goley is a co-president of the new honors residential college, located in East Ambler Johnston Hall. This is Virginia Tech's first residential college, and there will be an open house on September 16.
NSF Awards Virginia Tech with an Industry/University Cooperative Research Center Site in Cybersecurity
Virginia Tech, in cooperation with L-3 Communications, Northrop Grumman, General Dynamics Advanced Information Systems, and Verisign Labs, has received a five-year continuing grant to establish an NSF Industry/University Cooperative Research Center (I/UCRC) site for cybersecurity. ECE's Charles Clancy is leading the new cybersecurity site.
July-August 2011
Yaling Yang receives NSF CAREER award to study incompatibility issues on wireless networks
ECE assistant professor Yaling Yang has received a National Science Foundation Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) award to spearhead the sorting of cross-layer incompatibility issues that slow wireless networking delivery on the Internet.
Photonics Center receives two $1 million awards
Virginia Tech's Center for Photonics Technology has been awarded grants from the U.S. Department of Energy and the Electric Power Research Institute. Together, these awards are worth more than $3.2 million. The center is directed by ECE professor Anbo Wang.
ECE team wins grand prize at IEEE International Future Energy Challenge
A team of ECE students won the grand prize and the best efficiency award at the 2011 IEEE International Future Energy Challenge for their low cost lithium ion battery charger.
Wu Feng awarded AMD Research Faculty Fellowship for work in heterogeneous computing
Computer Science and ECE faculty member Wu Feng has received an AMD Research Faculty Fellowship from Advanced Micro Devices Inc (AMD). This award supports his research in heterogeneous computing — particularly his work with graphics processing units (GPUs) and accelerated processing units (APUs).
Researchers building new sensor to stop falls in the elderly
ECE professor Dong Ha is joining Thurmon Lockhart of Industrial and Systems Engineering, and Karen Roberto of Human Development, to build a sensor that can determine when an elderly person is about to fall.
Charles Clancy joins ECE
Charles Clancy has joined the ECE faculty as an associate professor. He is also Director of the Ted and Karyn Hume Center for National Security and Technology. His research area is radio frequency spectrum security.
Gregory Earle joins ECE
Gregory Earle has joined the ECE faculty as a professor. He comes to Virginia Tech from the University of Texas at Dallas, where he was on the faculty of the Physics Department since 1996. He will be joining the Center for Space Science and Engineering Research Group.
Yaman Evrenosoglu joins ECE
Yaman Evrenosoğlu has joined the ECE faculty as an assistant professor. He comes to Virginia Tech from the University of Nevada, Reno, where he founded and directed the Electrical Power and Renewable Energy Systems research laboratory.
Chao Wang joins ECE
Chao Wang has joined the ECE faculty as an assistant professor. He was previously a research staff member at NEC Laboratories in Princeton, NJ, where his research focused on specification and verification of complex computer systems.
ECE alum talks low-power supercomputing on NPR Morning Edition
ECE alum, John Shalf, a Staff Scientist at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory was interviewed on NPR's Morning Edition. Shalf describes how the Cray XE6, called "Hopper," consumes 3MW of power and how researchers are working on alternatives for low-power supercomputing.
Unmanned Surface Vehicle Featured on Channel 10
ECE Professor Dan Stillwell and his team of researchers are testing an unmanned surface vehicle at Claytor Lake. The vehicle was featured in a WSLS Channel 10 news story on July 25. Many NBC affiliates have run the story.
The Second Wave of Wireless
Using a network of 48 cognitive radios spread across four floors of the Institute for Critical Technology and Applied Science (ICTAS) building, Wireless@VT researchers are keeping at the front of the fast-evolving field of wireless communications.
ECE T-Shirt Cannon Ties for 1st in Qualcomm Competition
Three ECE students — Doug DeCarme, Shaver Deyerle, and Zach Rattner — built an Android controlled t-shirt cannon for Qualcomm's annual "Battle of the Schools." The students, who are also Qualcomm employees, tied Michigan State for first place. Watch a YouTube video of the project.
Campus Dining App for Smartphones
Working with ECE professor Jules White, Aaron Romano (CPE '11) developed a campus dining app for smartphones. This app allows users to browse menus and nutrition information on the go.
Underwater Vehicle Team at Competition
Virginia Tech's Autonomous Underwater Vehicle team competed in the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International (AUVSI) RoboSub competition in San Diego from July 12-17. ECE students Shawn Furrow, Erin Mazza, and Carlo del Mundo are on the competition team, which is advised by ECE professor Dan Stilwell and Aerospace and Ocean Engineering professor Craig Woolsey.
Environmentally Friendly Supercomputers
The new Green500 List shows continuing rapid improvement in environmentally friendly supercomputers. The list was founded by Wu Feng, an associate professor of ECE and Computer Science.
Researchers Characterize Biomechanics of Ovarian Cells in Mice
A team led by ECE's Masoud Agah has released findings from a study that they believe will help in cancer risk assessment, cancer diagnosis, and treatment efficiency in a technical journal: Nanomedicine. By studying the viscoelastic properties of the ovarian cells of mice, they were able to identify differences between early stages of ovarian cancer and more advanced and aggressive phenotypes.
Welcome visiting professor Francisco Gonzalez-Espin
ECE welcomes visiting professor Francisco Gonzalez-Espin from Polytechnic University of Valencia (UPV), Spain. He will be working with CPES researchers for the next three months.
May-June 2011
CPES Receives US Patent on 3D Integration of Embedded Power Modules
The Center for Power Electronics Systems has received a patent on a 3D integration of embedded power modules, which support a stacked arrangement of heat spreader, inductor, and active device layers. The patent application was sponsored by the CPES Intellectual Property Protection Fund.
Roadmap published for dynamic mapping of estrogen signaling in breast cancer
The first roadmap to mathematical modeling of a powerful basic "decision circuit" in breast cancer has been developed and published in Nature Reviews Cancer. Working with researchers from Georgetown University, Virginia Tech's John Tyson of Biology and ECE's William Baumann and Yue (Joseph) Wang are listed as authors. ECE's Jason Xuan is also on the Center for Cancer Systems Biology's $7.5 million contract.
Patrick Schaumont promoted to Associate Professor
Congratulations to ECE faculty member Patrick Schaumont who has been tenured and promoted to the rank of Associate Professor.
Yong Xu promoted to Associate Professor
Congratulations to ECE faculty member Yong Xu who has been tenured and promoted to the rank of Associate Professor.
JoAnn Paul receives tenure
Congratulations to ECE faculty member JoAnn Paul who has been tenured at her currently-held rank of Associate Professor.
Luiz DaSilva promoted to Professor
Congratulations to ECE faculty member Luiz DaSilva who has been promoted to the rank of Professor.
Partnering with national energy lab to develop new technology
ECE’s Anbo Wang is one of several Virginia Tech researchers working together with the National Energy Technology Laboratory. Wang is developing electro-optic carbon dioxide sensors and a wireless sensor network for carbon sequestration sites.
McGwier named director of research for Hume Center
Robert McGwier has been named director of research for the Ted and Karyn Hume Center for National Security and Technology, and a research professor in ECE. McGwier comes to Virginia Tech from the Institute for Defense Analyses’ Center for Communications Research in Princeton, N.J., where he has served as a member of the technical staff working on advanced research topics in mathematics and communications supporting the federal government.
Increasing collaborations with researchers from Nanjing
A delegation from Nanjing University of Posts and Telecommunications (NUPT) visited Virginia Tech and ECE to discuss growing existing research collaborations between the two universities. The delegation was led by NUPT President Zhen Yang, who is active in wireless networking research.
ECE alumni inducted into Academy of Engineering Excellence
The College of Engineering has inducted two ECE alumni, Don Powers and Don Pemberton, into its Academy of Engineering Excellence. They join a select group of the now-105 alumni in the academy.
ECE’s Dave Fritz named CASE Exemplary Employee
ECE’s Dave Fritz has received one of two annual awards from the College Association for Staff in Engineering (CASE). He received the Technical Award in consideration of his exceptional contributions to the department.
Tim Pratt receives Certificate of Teaching Excellence
ECE professor Tim Pratt has received a Certificate of Teaching Excellence from the College of Engineering. Pratt’s teaching and research interests include satellite communications, position location systems, and radar.
College names Joseph Baker as Outstanding New Assistant Professor
ECE’s Joseph Baker received the Outstanding New Assistant Professor award from the College of Engineering. Baker is a member of Space @ Virginia Tech and a part of the group working on the SuperDARN radar system.
Agah named Dean’s Faculty Fellow
The College of Engineering has named ECE associate professor Masoud Agah a Dean’s Faculty Fellow. Agah’s research focuses on microelectromechanical systems.
Anbo Wang receives Dean’s Award for Excellence in Research
ECE professor Anbo Wang received the Dean’s Award for Excellence in Research from the College of Engineering. Wang is director of the Center for Photonics Technology.
ECE alum named to UF ECE academy
Wayne Bennett (BSEE ’60, MSEE ’63) has been honored as one of the 25 inaugural members of the University of Florida’s ECE academy. The academy recognizes UF alumni who have made significant contributions to engineering. Bennett also served as an ECE professor at Virginia Tech for 15 years.
$1 million from NSF to research wireless networks
Tom Hou and Scott Midkiff have received more than $1 million from the NSF for two research projects in advanced wireless networking. One project is titled “Exploring Performance Limits of Multi-hop MIMO Networks via Tractable Models and Optimization.” The other is “Throughput Optimization of Cooperative Relaying in Wireless Networks,” a cooperative effort with ISE’s Hanif Sherali.
Yu receives 2011 Blackwell Award for best ECE research paper
ECE graduate student Guoqiang Yu is the winner of the 2011 Blackwell Award for the best research paper in ECE. Yu has made made several original contributions to the development of powerful and innovative bioinformatics algorithms and has been published in journals such as Bioinformatics and the Journal of Machine Learning Research.
Mazur named top graduate in College of Engineering Class of 2011
David Mazur (EE ’11) is the top graduate in the College of Engineering's Class of 2011 this spring. Mazur, a Bradley Scholar, has been accepted into ECE’s graduate program in power engineering and will begin his studies this fall as a Bradley Fellow. He is from Pittsburgh, Pa.
ECE cyber security team creates winning network security product
An ECE team won third place in the 2011 National Security Innovation Competition sponsored by the National Homeland Defense Foundation. The Virginia Tech product, the Moving Target IPv6 Defense (MT6D), is an innovative network security and privacy tool for IPv6.
NVIDIA “Compute the Cure” award to analyze genome using GPUs
Wu Feng, with David Mittleman of the Virginia Bioinformatics Institute have won the first worldwide research award from the NVIDIA Foundation’s “Compute the Cure“ program. The $100,000 award will be used to create an optimized solution for genome analysis.
March-April 2011
CPES annual conference draws record attendance
The annual conference of ECE’s Center for Power Electronics Systems (CPES) drew a record 213 attendees, including 140 external participants from 11 countries and 73 participants from the CPES universities.
CPE student featured on Education-Portal.com
CPE senior Ali Nazemi recently spoke with Education-Portal.com about our computer engineering program. Nazemi, who is working on his second BS, discussed the CPE curriculum and gave advice for prospective students.
Dietrich promoted to associate research professor
Carl Dietrich (M.S. ’92, Ph.D. ’00) has been promoted to associate research professor. He is a critical member of the Wireless@VT team developing the OSSIE project for open source sofware-defined radios, and works with ECE’s Jeff Reed and Tamal Bose.
IEEE Pie a Professor!
IEEE at Virginia Tech raised $563 from their annual Pie-a-Professor event. The funds raised by the event go to Relay for Life and the American Cancer Society. A YouTube video is available that shows some of the fun.
Graduating ECE students earn Torgersen Award
Two ECE students are winners of the College of Engineering’s annual Torgersen Award. Haris Volos tied for second place in the Ph.D. oral presentation category, and Matthias Hofmann won second place in the Ph.D. poster presentation category. The Torgersen Award showcases the top research performed by graduating master’s and Ph.D. students.
Martin receives university Diggs teaching award
ECE’s Tom Martin has received the 2011 Edward S. Diggs Teaching Scholars award from the university. The award honors Martin’s ability to integrate research and education. Martin’s work with interdisciplinary student projects was highlighted in the 2010 ECE Annual Report.
Sedki Riad receives award for international education
The university has honored ECE professor Sedki Riad with the 2011 Alumni Award for Excellence in International Education. The award recognizes Riad’s work as director of VT-MENA, a cooperative program that allows students from the Middle East and North Africa to earn advanced degrees in CS and ECE.
IBM award will help schoolchildren learn about computer science
Wu Feng has received a $16,000 award from IBM to develop and deliver a computer science curriculum to K-8 schoolchildren using virtual computing. The project will host a visually-oriented curriculum using existing high-speed networks and a new fiber-optic communication network.
Saifur Rahman receives professional achievement award from IEEE-USA
ECE’s Saifur Rahman has been awarded the 2010 IEEE-USA Professional Achievement Award. The award recognizes his leadership in forming the Technologies for Carbon Management Initiative.
NVC Engineering Open House
The College of Engineering is holding a spring open house for the Northern Virginia Center. The open house will be Thursday, April 28, from 5 to 8 PM. See the brochure for details (PDF file).
CESCA Short Course Series Summer 2011
In collaboration with the Continuing and Professional Education organization at Virginia Tech, CESCA is beginning a series of short, three-day courses on contemporary topics in electronic design (PDF file). The courses are taught by CESCA faculty, and will be offered in Virginia Tech's Northern Virginia campus in Falls Church, Va. The courses are open to industry and academics.
Projects on IPv6 addresses, auroral spirals win 2011 GSA awards
Two ECE students won awards at this year’s Graduate Student Assembly (GSA) Research Symposium. Matthew Dunlop and Nathaniel Frissell won first and second place, respectively, in the poster presentation category.
Regal Beloit acquires Ramu, Inc.
Regal Beloit, a leading manufacturer of motion control and power generation products, announced its acquisition of Ramu, Inc. today (PDF file). Ramu, Inc. is a startup founded by ECE professor Krishnan Ramu to develop switched reluctance motor technology.
Virginia Tech Hosts Inaugural Cyber Security Summit and Competition
Student teams from Virginia Tech and four other institutions participated in the inaugural Cyber Security Summit on April 2. The summit featured speakers in the cyber security field and a competition where teams faced off in efforts to attack and defend computer networks. Several ECE students played critical roles in organizing and setting up for the summit.
Clancy named Director of Ted and Karyn Hume Center for National Security
The Virginia Tech College of Engineering has named Charles Clancy the director of the Ted and Karyn Hume Center for National Security and Technology, and associate professor in the Bradley Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering.
Wang invited to serve on NIH study section
Yue (Joseph) Wang, the Grant A. Dove Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering has accepted an invitation from the Center for Scientific Review at the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to serve as a member of the Biodata Management and Analysis (BDMA) Study Section.
Joseph Baker named Steven O. Lane Junior Faculty Fellow of Electrical and Computer Engineering
Joseph Baker, assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering and highly involved in the SuperDARN project, has been named the Steven O. Lane Junior Faculty Fellow of Electrical and Computer Engineering by the Virginia Tech Board of Visitors.
Xuan awarded $1.56 million cancer research grant
Jason Xuan has been awarded a $1.56 million grant from the NIH to investigate the role of estrogen signalling in breast cancer patients who are resistant to endocrine therapy. Xuan's team will use computational methods and computer modelling and hopes to ultimately develop information that can help identify new drug therapies.
ECE junior to present at ACC Meeting of the Minds
ECE junior Darius Emrani is one of seven Virginia Tech undergrads selected to present at the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Meeting of the Minds conference this April. He worked with Lucas Wells (EE ’11) on “The Effect of Central European Defense Doctrine on the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in the 21st century.”
ECE Lab-in-a-box presented at ECEDHA meeting
Associate professor Kathleen Meehan presented ECE’s Lab-in-a-box kit at the March meeting of the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department Heads Association (ECEDHA) in Phoenix, Arizona. She was joined at the meeting by Cortney Martin of Virginia Tech’s CIDER.
CPES participates in APEC 2011
Dushan Boroyevich, co-director of CPES, gave an invited plenary talk at the Applied Power Electronics Conference (APEC) in Fort Worth, Texas. CPES researchers presented 21 papers at the conference, and received 9 awards for their presentations and posters.
ECE alumnus wins IEEE outstanding teacher award
ECE alumnus Barry Mullins is the winner of the 2010 IEEE C. Holmes MacDonald Outstanding Electrical and Computer Engineering Teacher Award.
Beverly Hills gallery to showcase art by Jules White
The Gregory Way Gallery in Beverly Hills, Calif. is set to showcase the art work of Jules White , assistant professor of computer engineering. The solo exhibit, opening March 26, will feature vivid photo collages of places and things White has encountered during his travels.
MEMS Ph.D. wins Outstanding Dissertation Award
Mehdi Nikkhah (Ph.D. ’10) has been awarded the Virginia Tech 2010 Outstanding Dissertation Award for Sciences and Engineering for his dissertation. The Graduate School gives only two such awards each year.
Rahman receives IEEE-USA Professional Achievement Award
ECE's Saifur Rahman was the recipient of the IEEE-USA Professional Achievement Award for 2010 for "leading the collaboration between IEEE and other engineering societies to form the Technologies for Carbon Management Initiative."
Hamilton Turner awarded Best Paper at PECCS conference
ECE graduate student Hamilton Turner won the best presentation and paper award at the international conference on Pervasive and Embedded Computing and Communication Systems (PECCS). His presentation and paper are titled "Analyzing Mobile Application Software Power Consumption via Model-driven Engineering."
Sweeney joins ECE as the director of instructional labs
ECE welcomes Dennis Sweeney as Director of Instructional Labs. He will oversee the creation, operation, and ongoing improvement of instructional laboratories. Sweeney comes to the ECE from the Aerospace Corporation, where he served as an engineering specialist. Previously, he served as a research associate in ECE's Center for Wireless Telecommunications.
ECE grad named executive director of VT Applied Research Corp. Blacksburg
The Virginia Tech Applied Research Corporation has selected H. Bennett Teates of Blacksburg, Va., to be the executive director of its Blacksburg operations. Teates earned his BSEE from Virginia Tech in 1964 and has more than 40 years experience working in the National Security arena.
CPES at 2011 ARPA-E Energy Innovation Summit
On February 28th through March 2nd, 2011, CPES participated in the prestigious Technology Showcase at the 2nd Annual ARPA-E Energy Innovation Summit in Washington D.C. Read more
ECE Recruits Student Ambassadors
Are you looking for a way to be more involved with the department? Something to put on your resume? A chance to recruit top-notch High School and General Engineering students into the EE or CpE major? Then we have an opportunity for you!
January-February 2011
ECE profs are contributing authors to Encyclopedia of Sports Medicine
Yue (Joseph) Wang and Jianhua (Jason) Xuan are a contributing authors of the recently published Volume XVIII of the Encyclopaedia of Sports Medicine series, which covers Genetic and Molecular Aspects of Sports Performance. Wang and Xuan contributed to the chapter on Bioinformatics and Public Access Resources.
Fred Lee elected to National Academy of Engineering
Fred Lee has been elected to membership in the National Academy of Engineering for his contributions "to high-frequency power conversion and systems integration technologies, education, industry alliances, and technology transfer. Lee is the third ECE professor to achieve this honor, joining Arun Phadke and Jim Thorp.
Engineering at Virginia Tech to team with University of Nottingham
The British Council for Relations with Other Countries is funding a strategic research and international education partnership between Virginia Tech Engineering and the University of Nottingham, UK. The grant will provide seed funding for ECE's Dushan Boroyevich and a CEE professor to support Ph.D. students in collaborative research projects.
MEMS Lab featured on NSF Live Science
ECE's MEMS Lab, headed by Masoud Agah, was featured on NSF's Live Science.
Riad receives Alumni Award for Excellence in International Education
Sedki Riad will receive the 2011 Alumni Award for Excellence in International Education. Riad's involvement with VT-MENA made him a strong candidate and this year's honored recipient.
Tranter, Bose, and Thamvichai publish book on MATLAB simulations
Ratchaneekorn Thamvichai and ECE's William Tranter and Tamal Bose have published their book, Basic Simulation Models of Phase Tracking Devices Using MATLAB.
CPES Receives US Patent on Quasi-Parallel Voltage Regulator
The Center for Power Electronics Systems has received a patent on a quasi-parallel voltage regulator that can improve the regulation and transient response of power supply architecture. The patent application was sponsored by the CPES Intellectual Property Protection Fund.
Rocket-launched experiment to measure nitric oxide in upper atmosphere
In early February, a NASA sounding rocket will carry Scott Bailey’s experiment 100 miles above Alaska. Bailey and his team hope to measure the amount of nitric oxide in the upper atmosphere by studying spectrograph readings taken between 30 and 100 miles above the ground.
Virginia Tech engineers work with InterDigital to increase the speed and accessibility of future wireless systems
ECE’s Claudio da Silva is working with a team of Virginia Tech researchers to develop more reliable and efficient spectrum sensing techniques to meet the ever-expanding demand for wireless technologies. Read more at the Virginia Tech Engineering website.
Guaranteeing bug-free software for critical embedded systems
Sandeep Shukla has received about $1.25 million in new grants for safety-critical software system design. The grants will be used to develop models, methods, and algorithms that generate provably-correct and predictable embedded software.
ECE team establishes data platforms at South Pole
An ECE research team spent the winter holidays in Antarctica, establishing data collection platforms that, when deployed, will help with studies of global phenomena from the solar wind/magnetosphere interaction. Led by Professor Robert Clauer, the team included post-doctoral researcher Hyomin Kim and graduate students Kshitija Deshpande and Joseph Macon.
MEMS research shows promise for detecting metastatic breast cancer cells
ECE's MEMS Laboratory, directed by Masoud Agah, is investigating specific silicon microdevices that may provide a new way to screen breast cancer cells' ability to metastasize. The interdisciplinary team included researchers from mechanical engineering and engineering science and mechanics.
Stiles joins Tech as security, intelligence visiting prof
Kenneth Stiles, an officer with the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) with over 25 years experience, is joining Virginia Tech as a visiting faculty member through 2012. Stiles will teach courses and work with the Ted and Karyn Hume Center for National Security and Technology, as well as the Intelligence Community Center of Academic Excellence.
November-December 2010
Student team wins in VT $5K competition
A student team from Tom Martin’s interdisciplinary design course won in the medical category of the VT $5K, an annual competition to produce executive summaries. ECE student Cole Hasson was on the 3-person team, whose project was a data distribution service for diabetic children.
ECE team wins Best Paper at MILCOM
ECE's Mike Buehrer and postdoctoral associate Haris Volos received the The Fred Ellersick Award for Best Paper in the Unclassified Technical Program at MILCOM 2010 in November. Their paper is titled: "Robust Training of A Link Adaptation Cognitive Engine."
DARPA to fund wireless distributed computing proof-of-concept
ECE professor Jeffrey Reed is the principal investigator on a project to develop an advanced distributed computing system for wireless environments. The project, funded by DARPA, is a collaboration between Wireless @ Virginia Tech and the Virginia Bioinformatics Institute.
Ramu receives service award from IEEE Industrial Electronics Society
The IEEE Industrial Electronics Society has honored ECE professor Krishnan Ramu with the Anthony J. Hornfeck Service Award. Ramu received the award, given for his outstanding service to the society, at a ceremony in Phoenix, Arizona on November 9. The award included a $2,000 cash prize.
IEEE ranks Virginia Tech high on Patent Power scorecard
Virginia Tech was ranked #10 among universities on IEEE Spectrum’s annual Patent Power scorecard. The university earned the high ranking from its “pipeline originality” score, which measures the originality of a patent by its relation to patents from different technologies. Look at the scorecard at IEEE Spectrum, or read more at VTNews.
Alum receives College of Engineering service award
Edward G. Tiedemann, Jr. (EE ’75) has received the 2010 Distinguished Service Award from the College of Engineering. Tiedemann served on the ECE advisory board from 1997 to 2000, and on the college’s advisory board from 2002 to 2006. He is a senior vice president of engineering at Qualcomm, Inc.
Book cover design by Jules White listed in top 21
The online news site Huffington Post has listed a book cover design by ECE assistant professor Jules White as one of the 21 best designs of the year. He produced the cover, a photo collage of a front porch, for a book by James P. White.
Alum receives award for master’s thesis
ECE alum Mohammad Amin Zareian-Jahromi received an award from the William Preston Society in honor of his master’s thesis. The award, given in the category of Innovative Application of Technology to Scholarship, also makes him a nominee for the Conference of Southern Graduate Schools’ annual thesis competition.
September-October 2010
New course explores space environment
This spring, ECE’s Joseph Baker will be teaching ECE 2984: Exploration of the Space Environment. The course will cover the technological challenges and opportunities associated with the exploration of space.
Space@VT to host international meeting
The Virginia Tech SuperDARN Radar Group within Space@VT is hosting a meeting of the National Science Foundation Upper Atmosphere Facilities at the Hotel Roanoke October 26-29. The meeting is being organized by ECE faculty members Mike Ruohoniemi and Joseph Baker. About 50 space scientists, engineers, program directors, and managers will participate in the meeting.
FCC veteran to teach course on wireless policy, innovation
Michael Marcus, a former senior technical advisor at the FCC, will be teaching ECE 6604 in the spring. The course covers legal and technical issues that face new radio technologies; students will analyze recent FCC decision-making processes.
Displaced Haitian students continue education at ECE
Through the Virginia Tech-Haitian University Undergraduate Internship Program, some students from Haiti are now continuing their education in Blacksburg. Watch video coverage of the program from Channel 13.
VT launches smart grid portal
An ECE team has launched a web portal that serves as a clearinghouse for smart grid information on more than 200 projects, including cost-benefit analyses, lessons learned, regulation activities and more. The project sponsored by a $1.25 million grant from the Department of Energy and was led by Saifur Rahman, director of the Advanced Research Institute.
Shukla publishes books on hardware, embedded software synthesis
ECE’s Sandeep Shukla has two new books in print. He was an editor for Synthesis of Embedded Software, and the author of Low Power Hardware Synthesis from Concurrent Action-Oriented Specifications. Both volumes are published by Springer.
AEP donation honors ECE alum Vipperman
In honor of ECE alum, Joseph Vipperman ('62), American Electric Power (AEP) has donated $1 million to Virginia Tech's Institute for Critical Technology and Applied Science (ICTAS). Vipperman is a retired executive vice president of AEP. The gift is designated to support efforts in sustainable energy and clean coal technology.
White receives NSF grant to tap 'citizen scientists' for data collection during catastrophes
Newly hired Jules White has received a $65,000 grant from the NSF to create a massive data collection system that would rely on information captured by “citizen scientists” who would use devices such as smart phones to take photographic evidence from the site of disaster areas. White's research focus is in cyber-physical systems, including rapid and dependable integration of computing and communication technology into natural and engineered physical systems.
VT 5th in engineering among recruiters
According to a Wall Street Journal survey, Virginia Tech is 5th most popular among recruiters and 13th overall. “Graduates of top public universities are often among the most prepared and well-rounded academically, and companies have found they fit well into their corporate cultures and over time have the best track record in their firms,” said a Wall Street Journal article on the survey.
Reed named Willis Worcester Professor
Jeff Reed's appointment as the Willis G. Worcester Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering was renewed for another five-year term by the Virginia Tech Board of Visitors. Reed is an internationally known researcher in software and software defined radios. The Worcester Professorship is appointed for excellence in research.
Rahman named Joseph Loring Professor
Saifur Rahman's appointment as the Joseph Loring Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering was renewed for another five-year term by the Virginia Tech Board of Visitors. Rahman is the founding director of the Advanced Research Institute and Tech’s Northern Virginia Division of the College of Engineering.
July-August 2010
Stilwell works across disciplines to build autonomous boat
An ECE team led by Dan Stilwell is helping develop a new autonomous boat that can venture safely where humans can’t. Stilwell’s team is working with AOE’s Craig Woolsey and researchers at the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School. Read more at the Virginia Tech spotlight on his research.
Jules White joins ECE
Jules White has joined the ECE faculty as an assistant professor. An expert in cyber-physical systems, White comes to Virginia Tech from Vanderbilt University, where he was a research assistant professor. He is also an accomplished painter.
In Memoriam: Ira Jacobs
Ira Jacobs, a professor of electrical engineering and former interim department head died August 11, 2010 after a long battle with cancer. An expert in fiber optic telecommunications, Jacobs joined ECE in 1987 after a 32-year career at Bell Labs.
ECE alum 1st woman to head major US intelligence agency
ECE alumna Letitia A. Long (BSEE) has been named director of the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency. She is the first woman to head a major US intelligence agency. Alternate news story.
Rahman appointed chair of NSF advisory committee
ECE’s Saifur Rahman has been appointed chair of the NSF’s Advisory Committee for International Science and Engineering. The appointment extends his membership on the committee until September 2013.
Life beyond silicon
The increasing density and speed of today’s semiconductor devices has hit the limits of silicon’s capability — and a Virginia Tech microelectronics team is developing a technology to not just continue semiconductor miniaturization for logic and memory chips, but also to colocate photonics applications with silicon-based circuitry, including light generation by lasers and more efficient solar-cells.
Underwater vehicle team competed in July
The Virginia Tech underwater vehicle team, led by Micah Boswell (CPE ’11), competed at the annual Autonomous Underwater Vehicle Competition. The competition, sponsored by the Association for Unmanned Vehicle Systems International and the Office of Naval Research, focuses on realistic underwater missions. See more at the AUVSI foundation website.
PhD student studies at northernmost university
Ph.D. student Nathaniel Frissell spent spring 2010 studying at the world's northernmost university, The University Centre in Svalbard (UNIS), which is located on the Svalbard archipelago, well north of the Arctic Circle. Frissell's research area is space weather, and Svalbard is well suited for observing daytime auroras. He is a member of the Center for Space Science and Engineering Research (Space@VT).
May-June 2010
Tech’s Lumenhaus wins 2010 Solar Decathlon Europe
The Lumenhaus team has won the overall competition at the 2010 Solar Decathlon Europe. ECE grad student Zack Zaremski led the power system team and traveled to Spain for the competition. Virgilio Centeno was one of the eight faculty members on the project. Nine additional ECE students participated.
Zellner Awarded SMART Scholarship from DoD
Ph.D. student Phillip Zellner has been awarded a three-year Science, Mathematics and Research for Transformation (SMART) scholarship from the Department of Defense (DoD). Zellner's research focuses on MEMS systems to act as “labs-on-a-chip” to perform analytical chemistry, diagnose diseases, and discover drugs. He has developed a first-ever single-mask, single-etch process to create buried 3-D channels in silicon substrate. His advisor is Masoud Agah, director of the MEMS laboratory.
Riggins Featured in Corps Magazine
ECE alumna and U.S. Air Force Captain Jamie Riggins is featured in the Spring 2010 Corps Review. Riggins is currently posted at Kirtland AFB, N.M., with the Airborne Laser Test Bed (ALTB) System Program Office. She is the ALTB software engineering branch chief and oversees all software activities and facilities that support the development, integration, and testing of the system. Riggins was a Bradley Scholar and Fellow while studying ECE and worked with autonomous vehicle research in the ASCL Laboratory under Dan Stilwell.
Tront named Pete White Chair for Innovation in Engineering Education
Joe Tront has been named the W.S. "Pete" White Chair for Innovation in Engineering Education. The position was established by AEP to honor ECE alum Pete White and to encourage interest and improvement in engineering education. Tront has been a leader at Virginia Tech in innovative teaching using technology.
Allen MacKenzie promoted to Associate Professor
Congratulations to ECE faculty member Allen MacKenzie who has been tenured and promoted to the rank of Associate Professor.
Bob Clauer receives tenure
Congratulations to ECE faculty member Bob Clauer who has been tenured at his currently-held rank of Professor.
Masoud Agah promoted to Associate Professor
Congratulations to ECE faculty member Masoud Agah who has been tenured and promoted to the rank of Associate Professor.
Cameron Patterson named VT Scholar of the Week
ECE’s Cameron Patterson has been recognized as a Virginia Tech Scholar of the Week. Patterson's research includes optimization of FPGAs for communications and networking hardware, and he is collaborating on the ETA, a low frequency radio telescope project exploring the secrets of the universe.
ECE alum William Dally to receive Eckert-Mauchly Award
William J. Dally of NVIDIA Corp. will receive the Eckert-Mauchly Award this June at the 2010 International Symposium on Computer Architecture. The award is jointly presented by the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) and the IEEE Computer Society (IEEE-CS) for innovative contributions to the architecture of parallel computers. Dally received a B.S. degree from ECE.
ECE student receives Tau Beta Pi scholarship
ECE undergraduate Shawn Furrow has been awarded a scholarship from Tau Beta Pi (link to PDF file). ΤΒΠ, the national engineering honor society, made the award on the basis of scholarship, campus leadership and service, and academic commitment.
New Accelerated UG/G Degree Program
The Accelerated Undergraduate / Graduate Degree (UGG) program allows advanced undergraduate students the opportunity to earn both a B.S. degree from their home department and an ECE M.S. or Ph.D. degree. The application deadline for Fall 2010 enrollment is May 31st.
ECE student finalist in IEEE Change the World competition
EE graduate student Taeyoung Yang has been named a finalist in the IEEE Presidents’ Change the World Competition. Yang’s team developed a new antenna design for cell phones to help prevent interference with hearing aids.
ECE alum wins DoD SMART scholarship
Ph.D. student Matthew Lux (EE '08) has been awarded a Science, Mathematics, and Research for Transformation (SMART) Scholarship by the Department of Defense for three years in the Genetics, Bioinformatics, and Computational Biology program. Lux is a member of Virginia Bioinformatics Institute (VBI) Jean Peccoud's Synthetic Biology Group, where work is focused on streamlining the design and fabrication of artificial gene networks
ECE profs earn college awards
A number of ECE faculty members have been honored by the College of Engineering. Bill Baumann received the Dean’s Award for Excellence in Teaching and a Certificate of Teaching Excellence. Hardus Odendaal received the Dean’s Award for Excellence in Service. Jason Lai received the Dean’s Award for Excellence in Research, and Steve Ellingson received the College of Engineering Faculty Fellow Award.
Anbo Wang named SPIE Fellow
Anbo Wang has been named a Fellow of the International Optics and Photonics Society (SPIE). Wang was cited for his achievements in optical fiber sensors, particularly for harsh environments. Among other achievements, his miniature laser bonded self-calibrating interferometric fiber-optic sensor technology for oil downhole applications, which earned him an R&D 100 Award in 2004.
ECE grad student wins Baird Memorial Award
CPE grad student Daniel Guymon has been awarded the university's 18th annual A. Alan Baird Award. The award recognizes the student who has made the most outstanding contribution to the residence hall program.
VPT continues support of Space@VT
VPT has donated its third contribution to the Space@VT program. The $15,000 brings the firm's support to $45,000 over four years. VPT, founded by ECE alumnus Dan Sable, is a subsidiary of Heico Corp.
Lumenhaus Solar Decathlon team wins VT XCaliber Award
The Lumenhaus Solar Decathlon team has received the Virginia Tech XCaliber Award for excellence in creating and applying technologies on a large-scale team project. ECE's Virgilio Centeno is one of eight faculty members receiving the award. More than 100 students from different colleges and majors worked on the project.
March-April 2010
ECE researchers awarded DURIP funding
ECE research teams are part of Virginia Tech's $1.2+ million DURIP funding. Tamal Bose and Wireless@VT were awarded funds for a mobile cognitive radio testbed and high-performance spectrum analyzer. Dan Stillwell is on a $440,000 project to create an autonomous vehicle network that will serve as an experimental testbed for decentralized estimation, approximation, and learning theory.
HKN announces contest winners
Alan Overby took first place and Jay Y. Jung second place in the HKN/ECE contest for original designs using student Spartan or ANDY boards.
Space@VT featured on NSF 360 Science News
The Center for Space Science and Engineering Research (Space @ Virginia Tech) is featured this week on the NSF 360 Science News site. The group is leading a $6 million project to build additional radar units for the SuperDARN network to study electric fields, plasma structures, atmospheric waves, and other effects in the ionosphere and atmosphere. The project is led by ECE's Mike Ruohoniemi.
Lumenhaus goes to Madrid
Virginia Tech is entering Lumenhaus into the European Solar Decathlon in Madrid, Spain. Ten ECE students worked on the project with PhD student Zack Zaremski serving as ECE leader.
ALOHAnet developer delivers Bradley Lecture
Norman Abramson, professor emeritus of electrical engineering at the University of Hawaii, delivered a Bradley Distinguished Lecture on March 26. He led the team that developed ALOHAnet, the first wireless packet network.
ECE student receives Outstanding Graduating Senior award
Virginia Tech named Justin Andrew Waugh Outstanding Graduating Senior in the College of Science. The award recognizes his academic and extracurricular achievements as a physics and ECE double major.
ECE grad students win Torgesen Awards
Vignesh Vivekraja (left) won first place in the M.S. Poster category of the Torgesen Awards, and Liguang Xie (see below) won second prize in the M.S. Oral Presentation category.
ECE Ph.D. student wins 1st prize for video in research symposium
Liguang Xie won first prize and $500 in the video presentation category of the Graduate Student Association's 2010 Research Symposium. His video showcases his research on motion estimation using low-cost accelerometers.
ECE alum sponsors Hume Center for National Security
ECE alum Ted Hume, with his wife, Karyn, are sponsoring a new Center for National Security and Technology to engage students and faculty interested in working with intelligence agencies. ECE Professor Jeff Reed is serving as interim director.
ECE Ph.D. student takes first prize at research symposium
ECE Ph.D. student Bassam Alfeeli tied for first prize at the Graduate Student Association’s Research Symposium. He is advised by ECE's Masoud Agah. Mehdi Nikkah, an ME PhD student, who is also advised by Agah, was recognized as graduate man of the year.
ECE grad named distinguished engineering alumnus
Harold L. Martin Sr. (Ph.D. ’80) has been named the 2010 Virginia Tech College of Engineering Distinguished Alumnus. Martin became the Chancellor of NCA&T State University last summer.
Bostian honored with emeritus status
The Board of Visitors has conferred the title “Alumni Distinguished Professor Emeritus” on Charles Bostian. The emeritus title is conferred on retired professors specially recommended to the Board by the Virginia Tech President.
ECE profs part of new Center for Cancer Systems Biology
ECE faculty members Yue (Joseph) Wang, Jason Xuan, and Bill Baumann, along with John Tyson of biology are part of the new $7.5 million Center for Cancer Systems Biology, sponsored by the National Cancer Institute. The Center will investigate the development and treatment of breast cancer. The Virginia Tech team will be involved in bioinformatic analysis and mathematical models.
In Memoriam: William A. Blackwell
ECE mourns the death of former department head and professor William A. Blackwell, who died March 12, 2010 at the age of 89. Blackwell was head from 1966-1981, during a period of fast growth for the department.
ECE alumni win IEEE best paper award
ECE alumni Neal Patwari, Randolph Moses, and Neiyer Correal have received a best paper award from IEEE Signal Processing Magazine for their paper “Locating the Nodes: Cooperative localization in wireless sensor networks.”
Boroyevich chosen as President-elect of Power Electronics Society
Dushan Boroyevich, American Electric Power Professor of Electrical Engineering, has been chosen as President-elect of the IEEE Power Electronics Society. He will serve as the society's president in 2011 and 2012.
January-February 2010
Hou publishes book on cognitive radio networks
Y. Thomas Hou recently co-authored the textbook “Cognitive Radio Communications and Networks: Principles and Practice.” See all textbooks published by ECE faculty.
ECE student wins Golden Key engineering scholarship
Seungmoon Song, a graduate student in ECE, has been awarded a $10,000 FORD engineering scholarship from the Golden Key international honor society. This scholarship is one of only four awarded worldwide.
New computing simulation tool nets best paper award
An ECE team that demonstrated greatly increased simulation speeds using a graphics chip designed for general purpose computing has won the best paper award at ASP-DAC. Sandeep Shukla led the team with Mahesh Nanjundappa (pictured), Bijoy A. Jose, and Ph.D. alumnus Hiren D. Patel. They performed the experiments using an NVIDIA Tesla 870.
NanoVT launches website
The multidisciplinary NanoVT student organization has launched its new website. NanoVT promotes nanotechnology research among undergraduate and graduate students. ECE's Masoud Agah serves as the faculty advisor.
Stilwell Featured in Virginia Tech Magazine
ECE's Dan Stilwell is featured in the Virginia Tech Magazine for his work on low-cost miniature autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs). Stilwell's laboratory, the Autonomous Systems and Controls Laboratory (ASCL) is part of the Virginia Center for Autonomous Systems.
Paolo Mattavelli joins ECE faculty
Paolo Mattavelli has joined the ECE faculty this month as a professor in the electronics area. Mattavelli is an expert in power electronics, and will be working with the Center for Power Electronics Systems.
Summer 2010 Undergrad Research in Cognitive Communications
The NSF research experience site at Virginia Tech is now accepting applications for its summer 2010 session in the field of cognitive communications. Ten undergraduates will be accepted to the program. Tech faculty will guide and instruct the students in researching communications problems over the 10 week session. Applications are due March 10, 2010.
November-December 2009
Shukla to attend NAE-Humboldt engineering symposium
ECE's Sandeep Shukla is one of 60 engineers invited to the 2010 German-American Frontiers of Engineering Symposium. The symposium is jointly sponsored by the National Academy of Engineering and the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation.
$200 prize for original projects using ANDY/Spartan boards
Eta Kappa Nu (HKN) and the ECE department are sponsoring a competition to encourage original projects using the ANDY or Spartan boards. The contest is open to all ECE undergraduate and graduate students. The deadline has been extended until March 22nd.
Ultra-affordable laptop orchestra debuts
ECE's Tom Martin has been collaborating with Ivica Bukvic of the Music department to create the Linux Laptop Orchestra. L2Ork's affordable home-made speakers are fashioned from wood salad bowls. The orchestra's debut performance is Friday evening at 7 pm.
Researchers quantifying fingerprint images
Lynn Abbott and Michael Hsiao are on a team developing ways to measure and quantify the information contained in fingerprint images. The team has received a $854,907 award from the National Institute of Justice.
ECE team's small UWB antenna featured
ECE's antenna team is featured in Virginia Tech's Spotlight on Innovation. The small ultra-wideband antenna is designed to transmit lots of data at a short range, with high energy efficiency.
ECE student strikes it big with iPhone app
Senior computer engineering student Paul Pilone's iHomework application for the Apple iPhone is now used by over 22,000 people worldwide. Pilone has made over $15,000. Read more in the Collegiate Times, which profiled Pilone and his work.
ECE technology to help smart grid grow smarter
An ECE team led by Arun Phadke is working with Dominion Virginia Power to push power grid monitoring from “X-ray quality to MRI-quality.” The $1.5 million project, funded by the DoE, involves synchrophasor technology first built at Virginia Tech.
ECE alumni elected officers of Power and Energy Society
Noel N. Schulz (BSEE 1988, MSEE 1990) was elected president-elect of the IEEE Power and Energy Society, and Miroslav M. Begovic (Ph.D. EE 1989) was elected treasurer. The Virginia Tech alumni will begin their terms January 1, 2010.
National Instruments CEO delivers Bradley Lecture
National Instruments CEO and co-inventor of LabVIEW James Truchard delivered the Bradley Distinguished lecture on Nov. 6. He discussed Graphical Systems Design: Innovative Technologies for Engineers and Scientists.
7th graders visit ECE in preparation for First LEGO League
MagLev technology developed in ECE's labs attracted a team of middle school LEGO League researchers to visit Virginia Tech last week. The theme for their competition is alternative transportation.
Engineering ed software awards announced; Tront co-leads decade-old program
A game-based "virtual" software environment and software for team management in engineering courses won 2009 Premier Awards for Excellence in Engineering Education Courseware. ECE's Joseph Tront is editor of the competition, which aims to enhance engineering education.
September-October 2009
Mantu Hudait joins ECE faculty
Mantu Hudait joined the ECE faculty in September as an associate professor. An expert in materials science and microelectronics, Hudait is investigating new materials and device structures for energy-efficient nanoelectronics and alternative energy sources.
Dominion Power smart grid equipment installed in ECE lab
Smart-grid equipment donated by Dominion Virginia Power has been installed in the ECE power engineering lab. The equipment, worth more than $400,000, is being used in research on the U.S. power infrastructure.
Reed, Bose, Amanna to head $1 million+ Intelligence Community Center of Academic Excellence
An ECE team is partnering with Howard University to establish an Intelligence Community Center (ICC) Center for Academic Excellence. The initial award is $1 million, with an optional extension. Jeff Reed heads the effort and Tamal Bose and Ashwin Amanna are on the leadership team.
ECE leads $1.25 million Smart Grid Information Clearinghouse project
Saifur Rahman, Joseph R. Loring Professor of Engineering, is the principal investigator on a $1.25 million five-year contract awarded to Virginia Tech by the Department of Energy (DOE) to develop, manage, and maintain a public Smart Grid Information Clearinghouse (SGIC) web portal.
ECE team receives $3.2 million Solar Award Grant
ECE's Jason Lai and Kathleen Meehan have received a $3.2 million Solar Award Grant from the Department of Energy to investigate power conditioner technology for cost-effective approaches with high-penetration photovoltaic systems. The award uses funds made available by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.
Senior EE team wins national TI competition for subwoofer design
A team of ECE students took first place in a nationwide Texas Instruments competition, winning the 2009 Engibous Prize for their senior design project — a 200 W Class D subwoofer amplifier. The prize is awarded to the student engineering team who demonstrates the highest level of engineering analysis, originality, quality, and creativity in designs featuring TI analog integrated circuits.
Scales to study rocket-launched noctilucent cloud
A NASA rocket to be launched this week aims to create artificial noctilucent clouds and ECE's Wayne Scales will be using his models to study the physics of the dust cloud. MSNBC has featured Scales' work in an article on the mission.
James Thorp honored with emeritus status
James Thorp, the head of the ECE department from 2004 to 2009, has received the title of “Hugh P. and Ethel C. Kelly Professor Emeritus” from the Board of Visitors. Thorp is a preeminent scholar in electrical power, and his research won him and ECE's Arun Phadke the prestigious Benjamin Franklin Medal in 2008.
ECE's Wang awarded Grant Dove Professorship
Yue (Joseph) Wang has been appointed the Grant A. Dove Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering in recognition of his pioneering research accomplishments in the field of bioinformatics, medical imaging, and statistical signal processing.
Thorp, Phadke lead nation's efforts to protect power grid
Thorp and Arun Phadke are strongly involved in projects that amount to more than 50 percent of the available US Department of Energy stimulus awards to modernize the electric grid and to improve the security and reliability of the energy infrastructure.
ECE's Agah investigates insect secrets
ECE's Masoud Agah is on a multidisciplinary team investigating the internal fluid flow mechanisms of ground beetles, grasshoppers, and silk moths, hoping to improve microengineering by taking cues from nature. Agah is replicating the insectile fluid control with silicon fabrication techniques. The NSF's Science360 website is featuring their effort.
Bostian, Rondeau publish book on AI for wireless communication
Charles Bostian, alumni distinguished professor, has coauthored a new book, Artificial Intelligence in Wireless Communications, with ECE Ph.D. alumnus Tom Rondeau. See all textbooks published by ECE faculty.
July-August 2009
NSF Awards Space@VT $2 million to Improve Space Weather Understanding
A Space@VT research team is receiving a $2.0 million grant from the National Science Foundation to build a chain of space weather instrument stations in Antarctica.
ECE ranked 14th in country
ECE is ranked 14th in the country for undergraduate programs in electrical and computer engineering by the U.S. News & World Report survey -- "America’s Best Colleges 2010." The College of Engineering is also ranked 14th.
Midkiff Begins as ECE Head
Professor Scott Midkiff begins as ECE Department Head effective August 10. Midkiff joined ECE in 1986 and has been on assignment at the NSF as a program director since 2006. He succeeds James S. Thorp, who has retired and continues his research work in power engineering.
First graduate from VT-MENA ECE Ph.D. program
Mustafa Elnainay has received the first Ph.D. in ECE from the VT-MENA program. VT-MENA enrolls graduate students from the Middle East and North Africa. The Arab Academy for Science and Technology in Alexandria, Egypt, sponsored Elnainay's studies.
May-June 2009
Scott Bailey promoted to Associate Professor
Congratulations to ECE faculty member Scott Bailey who has been tenured and promoted to the rank of Associate Professor.
Steven Ellingson promoted to Associate Professor
Congratulations to ECE faculty member Steven Ellingson who has been tenured and promoted to the rank of Associate Professor.
Kathleen Meehan promoted to Associate Professor
Congratulations to ECE faculty member Kathleen Meehan who has been tenured and promoted to the rank of Associate Professor.
Cameron Patterson receives tenure
Congratulations to ECE faculty member Cameron Patterson who has been tenured at his currently-held rank of Associate Professor.
Jung-Min Park promoted to Associate Professor
Congratulations to ECE faculty member Jung-Min Park who has been tenured and promoted to the rank of Associate Professor.
Sanjay Raman promoted to Professor
Congratulations to Sanjay Raman who has been promoted to full professor. Rahman is currently serving as a Program Manager in the Microsystems Technology Office of the Defense Advanced Research Project Agency (DARPA).
ECE grad student helps Tech radio station reach beyond Blacksburg
New equipment, donations, and years of hard work will return WUVT, the Virginia Tech student radio station, to the airwaves beyond Blacksburg. The 6,500 watt broadcast from Price Mountain begins transmission in July (Roanoke Times).
Student engineering team to compete in Smart Radio Challenge
For the third year, Virginia Tech's team has been selected to compete in The Software Defined Radio (SDR) Forum's Smart Radio Challenge. This year, Wireless@VT’s team will collaborate with the University of California at Irvine.
Alumnus Joe May inducted into the Academy of Engineering Excellence
Joe May (EE ’62) has been inducted into Virginia Tech’s College of Engineering Academy of Engineering Excellence.
Alumnus Joseph Vipperman, Jr. inducted into the Academy of Engineering Excellence
Joseph Vipperman (EE ’62) has been inducted into Virginia Tech’s College of Engineering Academy of Engineering Excellence.
March-April 2009
College of Engineering's Torgersen Award winners announced
Several graduating ECE students were honored at the College of Engineering's annual Paul E. Torgersen Graduate Student Research Excellence Awards.
Overcoming ignorance of terrain for predicting signal strength
Terrain affects communications signals and other electromagnetic waves, but topographical maps are not precise enough in many cases, according to ECE’s Gary Brown. His team has developed a quick, memory-efficient solution to this terrain-ignorance problem.
Extreme Voltage Scaling
ECE’s Leyla Nazhandali hopes to cut the energy consumption of some embedded systems by more than 90 percent with an extreme version of a well-known power-saving mode that is currently used in many digital devices including laptops.
Cognitive Radio Goes Jammin’
From jamming radio-triggered explosives to building the country’s first-of-its-kind cognitive radio testbed, Tamal Bose is applying signal processing technology to business demands of today and to the needs of tomorrow’s technology.
CPT selected as member of Center of Excellence
The Center for Photonics Technology (CPT) has been designated as one of the five members of the Pratt & Whitney Center of Excellence at Virginia Tech. CPT’s objective is to develop single-crystal sapphire fiber based sensors for multiplexed measurement of high temperatures at multiple locations.
Virginia Tech physicists and engineers search for new dimension
The universe as we currently know it is made up of three dimensions of space and one of time, but researchers in the Department of Physics and the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Virginia Tech are exploring the possibility of an extra dimension.
Midkiff Appointed ECE Head
Professor Scott Midkiff has been appointed ECE Department Head effective August 10. Midkiff joined ECE in 1986 and has been on assignment at the NSF as a program director since 2006.
Global MANIACs compete in futuristic wireless network
With inspiration ranging from information theory to mongoose behavior, university teams from seven countries and three continents tested network cooperation — and noncooperation — strategies in March at a competition organized by a group from ECE.
Modeling antiestrogen resistance in breast cancer
Jason Xuan and Joseph Wang have received a two-year $350,000 grant from NIH, jointly with Georgetown University School of Medicine for "Network-based Prediction of Antiestrogen Resistance in Breast Cancer." They are constructing computational models of antiestrogen resistance to identify new therapeutic targets for drug discovery.
December 2008-February 2009
Noise model overturns accepted RNA notions
By modeling the effects of noise on a system, a team of biologists and engineers, including ECE's Bill Baumann, discovered an inconsistency in two commonly accepted notions of RNA. Their results were published this spring in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
Yue Wang invited to contribute to Encyclopedia of Sports Medicine
The International Olympic Committee has invited Professor Yue (Joseph) Wang to contribute to a volume on "Genetic and Molecular Aspects of Sports Performance" for the Encyclopedia of Sports Medicine.
Novel IP process speeds CPES technology transfer
The Center for Power Electronics Systems (CPES) has developed an intellectual property process that is almost as fast as industry's and may be adaptable for other university research groups, according to CPES director Fred Lee.
ECE alum wins national dissertation award
Tom Rondeau was awarded one of two distinguished dissertation awards by the national Council of Graduate Schools for his 2007 Ph.D. dissertation on “Application of Artificial Intelligence to Wireless Communications.” This is the nation's most prestigious honor for doctoral dissertations.
Rahman appointed to committee that reviews NSF investments
ECE's Saifur Rahman, director of the Advanced Research Institute, has been appointed by the NSF to serve a one-year term on its Advisory Committee for GPRA Performance Assessment to determine whether NSF-sponsored programs are meeting the foundation's strategic outcome goals.
ECE prof heads $6 million grant to build space weather radar units
Mike Ruohoniemi is the lead principal investigator on a new $6 million NSF grant to build 8 new radar units to study space weather. The units will be part of the international SuperDARN network. Other participants on the project are Dartmouth College, University of Alaska at Fairbanks, and the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory. $2 million of the grant will go to Virginia Tech's Space@VT Group
Lab-in-a-box to go online
Kathleen Meehan is lead investigator on an NSF grant to expand ECE's Lab-in--box program online. She is joined by Bob Hendricks (MSE/ECE) and Peter Doolittle of the Department of Learning Sciences and Technology, as well as Richard Clark, head of the engineering program at Virginia Western Community College.
October-November 2008
ECE students are two-time winners in Smart Radio Challenge
A team of ECE students took first prize for one of three problems at this year’s Smart Radio Challenge competition at the annual Software Defined Radio conference on October 27 in Washington, D.C. The team was last year’s grand prize winner in the competition, which was sponsored by the SDR Forum Public Safety Special Interest Group.
Mili awarded $2 million grant for sustainable power, communications infrastructure research
Lamine Mili has been awarded a $2 million NSF grant to investigate the Development of Complex Systems Theories and Methods for Resilient and Sustainable Electric Power and Communications Infrastructures. The team, which includes ECE's Sandeep Shukla and Yilu Liu, plans to extend the scope and applicability of the highly-optimized tolerance approach to modeling cascading events across interdependent electric power and communications infrastructures while optimally placing resources for managing the risk of blackouts due to equipment failures or extreme natural hazards.
August-September 2008
Ledvina, Cornell team demonstrate how GPS nav systems can be duped
ECE's Brent Ledvina and colleagues from Cornell have built a system demonstrating how GPS signals can be spoofed. The team believes that current U.S. government countermeasures would not guard against their system. By demonstrating the vulnerability, the team hopes to devise methods against such attacks.
ECE team develops world's smallest antenna for UWB
ECE researchers have developed an efficient compact ultra-wideband antenna (CUA) for a range of home, automotive, medical, and military applications. “To our best knowledge, our invented antenna is the world’s smallest with more than a 10:1 bandwidth. It has more than 95 percent efficiency for signal transmission, and a fairly constant omni-directional radiation pattern,” said inventor and Ph.D. student Taeyoung Yang. Professors Bill Davis and Warren Stutzman are co-inventers.
Space@VT grows quickly
Space sciences research (Space@VT) has attracted five new ECE faculty members, including the SuperDARN Radar Group. The quickly growing center is featured in Engineering Now and a Virginia Tech news release describing the attraction of space sciences.
Pie-a-Prof helps IEEE students win "Society of the Year"
The student branch of the IEEE won "Society of the Year" from the university's Student Engineering Council. The society's many efforts include a Hands-On Practical Electronics (HOPE) program that teaches electronics to students in any major, a new Women in Engineering group, a big-sister-little sister mentoring program, as well as popular get togethers and fund raising, such as last spring's Pie-a-Professor event. IEEE website.
Virginia Tech wireless advances highlighted
From early work characterizing the propagation environment to advances in cognitive radio, Virginia Tech's Engineering Now news story describes advances in communications technology that were developed in ECE laboratories. See the full article on wireless technologies.
CPE wins undergrad research scholarship
Adedamola Omotosho (CPE ’09) was awarded a Virginia Space Grant Consortium Scholarship for his undergraduate research proposal, "MEMS Microengineering Research: Microchips for Cancer Diagnosis." Omotosho is interning with Intel this summer, plus investigating a BioMEMS tool for use in his research this fall at Colorado State University.
Undergrad gains DSP experience
through BAE Systems program
Gary Wheelock, (EE '08) was honored with a $2,000 stipend from BAE Systems for his work in digital signal processing (DSP). Wheelock proposed and completed an independent research project using a DSP board to develop a BPSK (binary phase-shift keying) transmitter and receiver. The equipment and stipend were funded by BAE Systems to encourage undergraduate students to gain hands-on DSP experience.
May-July 2008
Wang featured by Think Arlington campaign
ECE's Yue (Joseph) Wang serves as the face of Virginia Tech's National Capital Region for Arlington Economic Development's "Think Arlington" campaign. Wang is based at the Northern Virginia campus and directs the department's Computational Bioinformatics and Bioimaging Laboratory.
Nazhandali wins NSF CAREER award
Leyla Nazhandali has received an NSF CAREER award for her proposal, “Overcoming Power Challenges in Embedded System Design with Subthreshold-Voltage Technology.” Her work will allow her to explore ways subthreshold voltage technology can improve lives, such as reducing energy consumption of handheld landmine detectors. She is the 15th ECE faculty member to earn this prestigious award.
CPES designing sustainable house of the future
The CPES Future Sustainable Home project is focused on researching, developing and demonstrating advanced technologies that would create self-sustained homes. Read the Virginia Business article and the annual report story.
Shukla Receives Humboldt Foundation Award
ECE's Sandeep Shukla has received a Friedrich Wilhelm Bessel Research Award from the Alexander Humboldt Foundation of Germany. The Bessel Award is available annually to no more than 25 scientists and scholars, internationally renowned in their field, who completed their doctorates less than 12 years ago.
Tront shares ed tools with scholars from India
Joseph Tront was a lead presenter at the 2008 Indo -- US Engineering Faculty Leadership Institute in Mysore, India in June.
Martin honored for career achievements
Harold Martin, a Ph.D. alumnus of ECE, was inducted into the College of Engineering Academy of Excellence in honor of his career accomplishments.
Xu named outstanding
new assistant professor
Yong Xu was named an outstanding new assistant professor by the College of Engineering in April. His research has earned major awards and more than 760 citations.
Hou named College of Engineering Fellow
Tom Hou was named a College of Engineering Faculty Fellow in April. The award carries a $5,000 stipend to be used for supporting the recipient's research.
Bell honored with teaching excellence award
Amy Bell received a 2008 Teaching Excellence Award by the College of Engineering in April.
Tront honored with
innovative teaching award
Joseph Tront was awarded the 2008 College of Engineering Pete White Award for Innovation in Teaching. His work with Tablet PCs has garnered international recognition.
January-April 2008
Phadke, Thorp awarded 2008 Franklin Medal. On April 17, Arun Phadke and Jim Thorp were awarded the 2008 Franklin Medal for Electrical Engineering for their work in protecting the power grid. View the Franklin Institute announcement and 3-minute video.
Jung-Min Park has been awarded an NSF CAREER Award to improve the security of cognitive radio networks. CAREER awards are NSF's most prestigious award for creative junior faculty members considered to be future leaders in their academic fields. Park is the 14th ECE faculty member to earn this prestigious award.
ECE's Masoud Agah has been awarded an NSF CAREER Award to develop a credit-card sized gas chromatography platform. The system is expected to enable in-the-field analysis of complex compounds within seconds. Agah is the 13th ECE faculty member to earn this prestigious award.
Arun Phadke has been honored by Eta Kappa Nu with the 2007 Vladimir Karapetoff Award for career accomplishment. Phadke and his colleague, Stanley H. Horowitz received the award for their technical contributions to the field of power system protection and control.
2007 News Items
ECE graduate students took top honors in the Inaugural Smart Radio Challenge at the 2007 Software Defined Radio Forum conference in November. Tech was the only school with 2 teams among the final 10 competitors.
Ph.d. student Ibrahim Chamas won 1st place in the student paper competition at the 2007 IEEE Topical Meeting on Silicon Monolithic Integrated Circuits in RF Systems. His paper: "A 5 GHz I/Q Phase-tunable CMOS LC Quadrature VCO (PT-QVCO) for Analog Phase Calibrated Receiver Architectures."
Gustina Collins was the first female African-American graduate student to earn a Ph.D. in ECE at Virginia Tech in December, while Stanley Atcitty was the first Native American male to earn an Ph.D. in ECE at Tech. Collins specialized in electronics and Atcitty in power.
With funding from the National Science Foundaton (NSF), Amy Bell is working with Engineering Education faculty to introduce freshman to the creative and beneficial aspects of ECE.
NASA rocket launches with VT ribbon logo
NASA launched a Pegasus rocket Wed., April 25 displaying the Virginia Tech ribbon logo in memory of the tragedy here last week. The rocket carried the AIM spacecraft, which began a two-year mission to study noctilucent (night-shining) clouds. ECE's Scott Bailey is deputy principal investigator of the mission. The mission's principal investigator is ECE grad James M. Russell III, a professor at Hampton University.
We Remember
ECE mourns the victims of the April 16 tragedy, including computer engineering student Henry Lee. We also wish a full and speedy recovery to all the injured.
Schaumont and Xu win NSF CAREER awards
Patrick Schaumont received a CAREER award for his work on protecting embedded systems from side-channel attacks.
Yong Xu received a CAREER award for his work on nanoprobe technology, including for optical imaging and measuring vacuum field fluctuations. Twelve current ECE faculty members are NSF CAREER Awardees.
Scholarship established in honor of magnetometer expert
Friends and colleagues of Donnie King (EE '69) are establishing a scholarship in his name to honor his drive, expertise, and ability to inspire others.