Graduate School Bulletin

Facilities of Electrical and Computer Engineering Department

The department operates laboratories for both teaching and research:

The Advanced Power Electronics Laboratory supports research and education efforts in the field of power electronics and energy conversion systems for various application ranging from solar power to aircraft propulsion. The lab is working on design of high-density and high-efficiency converters based on wide bandgap semiconductors as well as advanced power module packaging and high-density filtering solutions. Lab research interests include design of the basic converter topologies and controls, converter system modeling/control, electro-magnetic modeling, and power module packaging architecture/process development.

The Computer-Aided Design Laboratory offers access to large assortment of software tools used to analyze, model, simulate, and better understand various engineering concepts. The lab comprises 40 Dell PC's, that are networked via switched Ethernet to a Dell file server.

The Computer Vision Laboratory has a network of PC’s, digital imaging hardware, and custom-built Computer Vision Systems for experimental research in 3D vision and digital image processing.

The COSINE Laboratory supports the research efforts of faculty members and graduate and undergraduate students in the areas of signal processing, communications, and networking. Current and recent research projects involve Bayesian signal processing, inference, Monte Carlo signal processing, signal modeling, machine learning, deep networks, signal processing over networks, graph signal processing, sensor signal processing, positioning and navigation, biomedical signal processing, wireless networks, radio-frequency identification, the Internet of Things, computer networking, data transmission, multiple-access systems, scheduling, network performance evaluation, grid computing, information theory, and image processing.

The Digital Signal Processing Laboratory is involved in digital signal processing architectures and hardware and software research. The laboratory has extensive list of relevant software and hardware tools.

The Electric Power and Energy Systems Laboratory is dedicated to enabling innovations for different layers of grid infrastructures that will transform today’s power grids into tomorrow’s autonomic networks and flexible services towards self-configuration, self-healing, self-optimization, and self-protection against grid changes, renewable power injections, faults, disastrous events and cyber-attacks. Our lab conducts cutting edge research in Quantum Grid (QGrid), Smart Programmable Microgrids (SPM), networked microgrids with a focus on learning-based control and stability, formal methods and reachability analysis, software-defined smart grid, cyber-physical resilience of power grid, power system stability and control, and real-time electromagnetic transient analysis.

The Fiber Optic Sensors Laboratory (FOSL) - Research emphasis is on the development and fabrication of novel fiber optic systems for very diverse applications ranging from aerospace to biomedical. Research work has been supported by NSF, NASA, NIH and various state and industrial partners.  Some of the current research projects include development of capillary waveguide based biosensors for detection of pathogens in a marine environment, laser debridement, cavity sensors for flight control surfaces, and photonic power conversion for mobile platforms. The laboratory is equipped with various capabilities for optical and electronic diagnosis. These include a fiber optic fusion splicer, fiber polisher, diamond saw, optical microscope, optical spectral analyzer, single photon-counting systems, a high speed digital autocorrelator and various laser sources. Additionally, the laboratory has the facilities for designing and fabricating printed circuit boards and fabricating optical and electronic sub-systems.

The Fluorescence Detection Laboratory is involved in the design and development as well as implementation and testing of various instruments for Life Sciences. Research areas include laser induced fluorescence detection, single photon counting techniques, fast data acquisition and transfer, design and development of analog and digital integrated circuits, signal processing, capillary electrophoresis phenomena, DNA sequencing, and microfluidics.

The Graduate Computing Laboratory has extensive computational capabilities to support student’s research and studies. Industry standard packages such as Cadence tools, Synopsys, Matlab, and many others are available.

The Hardware Generation and Optimization (HGO) Laboratory is dedicated to the design and optimization of digital systems, with a focus on field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs). The lab is equipped with FPGA development systems (furnished in part through donations from Xilinx, Altera, and Intel), with all related tools.

The High-Performance Computing and Networking Research Laboratory is equipped to conduct research in the broad area of networking and parallel/distributed computing with emphasis on wireless/mobile networks, cloud computing, data center networks, optical networks, high-speed networks, interconnection networks and multicast communication.

The Integrated Microsystems Laboratory focuses on advancing the performance of CMOS IC at analog sensor interfaces. We investigate design of miniature, low-power, highly accurate sensing microsystems, that have a significant and pervasive impact on a large number of applications, ranging from new generation of biomedical devices for personal health monitors, hearing aids or implantable neural prostheses to communication devices and radiation detectors.

The Nanoscale Circuits and Systems (NanoCAS) Laboratory focuses on developing design methodologies for high performance as well as energy efficient integrated circuits with a variety of applications ranging from future processors to ultra-low power Internet-of-things (IoT) based devices. The NanoCAS Lab is equipped with a high performance processing and storage server, workstations, and all necessary EDA tools for modeling, design, and analysis.

The Mixed-Domain Embedded System Laboratory is equipped for research in the broad area of electronic system design and design automation. Current research projects involve design automation for mixed analog-digital systems and embedded systems for multimedia, sensor network applications and emerging technologies.

The Mobile Computing and Applications Laboratory conducts research in mobile computing systems, especially those using sensing devices for various applications in location based services, Internet-of-Things, and healthcare. The laboratory has various latest mobile and embedded devices, and access to a cloud computing facility.

The Mobile Systems Design Laboratory conducts research in the broad areas of VLSI system designs for signal processing, communication, and heterogeneous mobile sensors. The laboratory is equipped for design and simulation of complex hardware and software systems.

The Optoelectronics Laboratory possesses the infrastructure for molecular beam epitaxial semiconductor heterostructure growth, advanced material characterization as well as fabrication (clean room) and sophisticated characterization and modeling of optoelectronics devices. The recent research projects include design and development of the novel infrared lasers, light emitting diodes, photodetectors and modulators. The laboratory is actively working on metamorphic epitaxial growth techniques to develop the new class of narrow and ultra-low bandgap alloys and superlattices for long-wave infrared photodetector and other applications.

Spellman Power Electronics Lab is an engineering teaching lab designed to accelerate research and educational programs in alternative energy and power conversion systems.

The Ultra-High-Speed Computing Laboratory conducts research in high performance energy-efficient flux quantum computing and cybersecurity. It is equipped with powerful computing, networking, and storage facilities and advanced CAD tools for superconductor circuit design.

The Wireless and Networking Systems Laboratory conducts research in the area of wireless networking and mobile computing. The lab has extensive computing capabilities, a set of Crossbow sensors, professional sensor test bed development kit, and other equipment for network and system research.

The Wireless Sensor and RFID Network (WSRN) Laboratory focuses on network design and performance analysis for wireless sensor networks and RFID networks. The laboratory is equipped with state-of-art computing equipment, wireless sensor nodes by Crossbow Technologies, Inc. and MotelV (now Sentilla), and RFID equipment. Current projects include novel RFID Tag Identification algorithms, RFID anti-collision algorithms and Consensus protocols.

The Wireless Sensing and AUTO ID Laboratory (WSAID) - The research at the laboratory focuses on Radio Frequency Identification (RFID), wireless sensor networks, and indoor localization. The lab contains facilities and equipment to carry out cutting edge research and small-scale prototyping and evaluation of technologies in real world scenarios. Current projects at the laboratory include development of a novel UHF RFID system for enhanced performance, development of indoor localization systems based on technologies such as RFID, WiFi and Zigbee, and development of customized RFID systems for use in healthcare settings.