• Center for Infrastructure Trustworthiness in Energy Systems
• Center for Power Optimization of Electro-Thermal Systems
• GRid-connected Advanced Power Electronic Systems
• High Density Electronics Center
• National Center for Reliable Electric Power Transmission
The Department of Electrical Engineering has the highest research production and the largest graduate program in the College of Engineering at the University of Arkansas. It is also home to world-class expertise and facilities in power electronics, electronic packaging, imaging technology and optoelectronics.
29 percent of electrical engineering students are first generation students.
29%
2021-2022
Welcome From the Department Head
Dear alumni and friends of the department,
Welcome to the fall 2022 Highlights issue of the department of Electrical Engineering at the University of Arkansas – Fayetteville. Faculty, staff and students had a successful year filled with many activities and accomplishments. This issue highlights some of them.
The department faculty was awarded a record of $26.18M in new research funding with research expenditures also reaching a record of $12.39M. The five department research centers are highly productive enabling faculty to secure large grants. For example, Drs. Alan Mantooth, Zhong Chen, Greg Salamo and Shannon Davis received $17.87M from the National Science Foundation to build and operate a national silicon carbide research and fabrication facility that will be accessible to researchers from other universities as well as industry. Dr. Fisher Yu and collaborators from the Physics Department received an $4.4M award from the U.S. Office of Naval Research to develop the next generation of infrared sensors used in night vision technology based on SiGeSn. Other faculty members were also successful in attracting new funding; for example, in wireless communication. Then, it is not surprising that the department graduate program now has 122 full-time students with only 16 faculty members.
Students were also busy as we returned to a new normal after the pandemic. The capstone design project based on companies contributing real-world projects is a highly rewarding experience for our graduating seniors where they are able to apply their gained knowledge. With food insecurity an issue for some students, our student societies have collaborated with the University food pantry to establish a pantry in our student lounge.
Please, enjoy the reading about our department activities during the last year.
Best regards,
Juan Carlos Balda University Professor and Head of Department
Arkansas Leads the Way with Silicon Carbide Fabrication Facility
The University of Arkansas is doing their part to minimize the demand of silicon carbide in the industry by building the only openly accessible fabrication facility in the U.S. In addition to offering commercial product to industry, the new Multi-User Silicon Carbide Research and Fabrication Facility (MUSiC) will be open to researchers and position itself as a teaching facility to train the next generation of semiconductor researchers and engineers.
In 2020-21, MUSiC received nearly $18 million from the National Science Foundation and $5.4 million from the Army Research Laboratory, most of which will be used to procure the needed equipment for this one-of-a-kind research, teaching and fabrication facility. The facility will enable the fabrication of circuits and devices on 6-inch semiconductor wafers for educational, commercial and military entities.
The unique and open-access facility at the U of A will fill a void in U.S. production of integrated circuits made with silicon carbide, a powerful semiconductor well suited for higher temperature environments. Silicon carbide has been studied for a long time, but until recently efforts to use it as a fully developed semiconductor have been stunted by the unavailability of high-quality silicon carbide wafers. Currently, all silicon carbide fabrication facilities in the U.S. are for internal use only, and U.S. research and development of silicon carbide integrated circuits relies on international fabrication.
Semiconductors are everywhere and in everything: automobiles, home appliances, high-power equipment, health care, communications, electric railways, cell phones, laptops, etc. While the United States was the pioneer that invented circuits and technologies, we are no longer as well positioned as we once were. Currently, only one in five semiconductors is produced in the U.S.
“In a world of semiconductor shortages, we are in the perfect position to help others while helping ourselves.” said Alan Mantooth, Distinguished Professor of electrical engineering and Executive Director of MUSiC, “We plan to lead the effort in commercializing silicon carbide semiconductors.”
Combining cutting-edge equipment and infrastructure with a core of research experts focused on silicon carbide semiconductor devices, sensors and integrated circuits, the fabrication facility will develop new electronics to address areas of national defense. Researchers will fabricate superior integrated circuits for compact and robust electronic devices for branches of the U.S. military. Silicon carbide semiconductors are currently being used in hybrid electric bulldozers, which reduces fuel costs by 25% and helps with physical health as the machinery is more fluid in movement and easier to operate. Additionally, the Federal Aviation Administration is currently qualifying a UA-designed and built electric drive that contains silicon carbide semiconductors for Ampaire, which is producing twin engine hybrid planes – electric engine up front, gas engine in the back.
New MUSiC Program Manager
John Ransom is the program manager of the newly established Multi-User Silicon Carbide Research and Fabrication Facility. Ransom joins the U of A from X-FAB Texas where he was formerly the Director of SiC Technology. He has more than 35 years’ experience in the semiconductor industry.
“We are looking forward to the many contributions John will offer the University of Arkansas during the construction and operation of the MUSiC facility,” said Alan Mantooth, executive director of MUSiC and Distinguished Professor of electrical engineering. “He is well-known in the SiC semiconductor field and is an instant impact on our team.”
While silicon semiconductors are used in many things, they cannot be used in high temperature applications. However, silicon carbide is heat resistant beyond 500 degree Celsius. The devices will also be more energy efficient and heat resistant.
In addition to a lack of semiconductor production in the U.S., we have a workforce problem due to the current lack of electrical engineers. MUSiC plans to train the next generation of semiconductor researchers and engineers who can work in both the silicon and silicon carbide semiconductor industries. Students at all degree levels will be given research opportunities and be exposed to a high-need area of science and technology. The research will engage underrepresented students in this new and burgeoning area of electronics.
The U of A facility will provide domestic opportunities for prototyping, proof-of-principle demonstrations and device design. It will be the only openly accessible fabrication facility of its kind in the U.S., meaning its facilities and services will be available to external researchers.The University of Arkansas is the perfect choice to lead the effort in commercializing silicon carbide semiconductors. It has built a program that includes four centers of excellence (GRAPES, POETS, SEEDS, CITES), 16 faculty across four departments, 110 graduate students, nine full-time staff (and growing), four NSF CAREER Award winners since 2018, three established facilities (NANO, HiDEC, NCREPT), hundreds of journal and conference papers, and numerous awards to faculty, students, and staff.
The MUSiC facility will:
• Train students and produce the next generation of well-trained leaders in the semiconductor community.
• Attract excellent faculty to the University of Arkansas.
• Attract new industry to Arkansas.
• Produce new technology that becomes a source for start-up companies.
• Serve as a bridge between traditional university research and high-volume manufacturing of SiC circuits, thus filling a vital gap in U.S. semiconductor manufacturing for universities, national labs and businesses of all sizes that need low-volume prototyping.
To watch the presentation, go to our webpage uapower.group/uapg-newsletters and click on newsletter “June 2021-February 2022” to look for the link.
John Ransom
Pictured, left to right, are Zhong Chen, Greg Salamo, Shannon Davis and Alan Mantooth.
Welcome Two New Faculty
The Department of Electrical Engineering is pleased to welcome two new faculty members – Xiaoqing Song and Wei Du – to the University of Arkansas.
Xiaoqing Song is an assistant professor whose research includes power electronics and power packaging. In his work with wide bandgap semiconductors, he proposed a hybrid power switch concept using conventional silicon (Si) and the newer silicon carbide (SiC) together which taps into SiC’s ability to operate at higher voltages temperatures, and frequencies but still utilizes Si’s cost effective functions.
Before joining the U of A, Dr. Song was the Principal Scientist with ABB. Inc where he was leading multi-discipline research and R&D projects in the field of solid state and hybrid circuit breakers, protection coordination in low voltage and medium voltage DC distribution systems. He received the B.S. and M.S. degrees with Beijing Institute of Technology, China, in 2009 and 2012, respectively, and received the Ph.D. degree with North Carolina State University in 2017, all in electrical engineering. He is the recipient of 2016 Outstanding Young European Power Electronics (EPE) Association Member Award, 2020 ABB Inventor of the Year Award and 2021 ABB Publisher of the Year Award.
Wei Du is an associate professor whose research includes photonics integrated circuits (PICs) and Nanotechnology. In his work, he is developing the group-IV based photonic components including lasers, waveguides, and photodetectors operating in near- and mid-infrared wavelengths. Moreover, he proposed the SiC-graphene based surface plasmon resonance (SPR) sensors for bio- and chemical-sensing applications. Such sensors can be integrated in PICs.
Du joins the U of A from Wilkes University. During his time at Wilkes University, he won the Outstanding New Faculty Award in 2019, the President’s Award for Excellence in Scholarship in 2020, and the Outstanding Advisor Award in 2022. He earned his Bachelor of Science in Physics from Peking University and his Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from the Chinese Academy of Sciences, both in Beijing, China. Du was a postdoctoral scholar at the U of A from 2013-2015. We are excited to have him return to our campus.
$10.3 Million Grant Will Establish New Energy Frontier Research Center
A team of researchers led by Shui-Qing “Fisher” Yu, electrical engineering professor at the University of Arkansas, will receive $10.35 million from the U.S. Department of Energy to establish an Energy Frontier Research Center.
The grant will establish the Center for Manipulation of Atomic Ordering for Manufacturing Semiconductors, the first Energy Frontier Research Center in Arkansas. The center will be dedicated to investigating the formation of atomic orders in semiconductor alloys and their effects on various physical properties.
This research program will enable reliable, cost-effective and transformative manufacturing of semiconductors, the essential material used in computers and other electric devices.
In addition to Yu, the team comprises four colleagues in the Department Physics — Distinguished Professor Greg Salamo, assistant professor Jin Hu, associate professor Hugh Churchill and assistant professor Hiro Nakamura — and several researchers at other institutions.
The four-year grant is part of the Energy Department’s $540 million in research funding to universities and national laboratories focused
on clean energy technologies. The ultimate goal is to create and develop low-carbon manufacturing processes that will reduce greenhouse-gas emissions.
The award is based on the multi-institutional team’s recent discovery that atoms in the alloy silicon germanium tin, a semiconducting material, demonstrate a short-range order in a periodic lattice. Short-range order refers to the regular and predictable arrangement of atoms over a short distance, usually only one or two atom spacings. This discovery had a significant effect on the energy band gap and led to the exciting hypothesis that material properties in semiconductor alloys could be designed and fabricated by manipulating the order of atoms.
“We particularly thank the institutional support from U of A, which played a critical role in proposal completion and will assist center operation,” Yu said.
The U of A will lead researchers from Arizona State University, George Washington University, Stanford University, University of California Berkeley, Dartmouth College, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, University of Arkansas Pine Bluff, University of Delaware and Sandia National Laboratory.
From left: Greg Salamo, Hiro Nakamura, Shui-Qing "Fisher" Yu, Hugh Churchill and Jin Hu, U of A.
The "Center for High Frequency Electronics & Circuits for Communication Systems" (CHECCS)
A National Science Foundation IUCRC
The Center for High Frequency Electronics & Circuits for Communication Systems (CHECCS) is a National Science Foundation (NSF) Industry-University Cooperative Research Center (IUCRC) that is comprised of three sites. The University of Arkansas serves as the lead site with the University of Tennessee Knoxville and Florida International University as partner sites.
The mission of CHECCS is to develop long-term partnerships among industry, academe and government, which will contribute to the nation’s research infrastructure base. This mission encompasses a vision to expand the innovation capacity of our nation’s competitive workforce through partnerships between industries and universities.
There is a national need for qualified engineers and scientists with deep expertise in the various technically-challenging areas supporting high-frequency communications, including semiconductor devices; analog, digital, active and passive circuits; signal and image processing; electromagnetics; antennas; wave propagations; photonics; sensing; systems; and even more.
High-frequency communication systems and the derivative and integrative technologies that make up these systems have penetrated almost all aspects of our daily life with applications ranging from autonomous cars, personalized medicine and monitored healthcare, agricultural sensing, and merchandise inventory, and a plethora of vertical market applications, services,
and products. Therefore, the technical area of high-frequency devices, circuits and communication systems, broadly defined, is critically important to U.S. industry, economy and national security. These technologies are an integral part of the future connectivity to integrated products, artificial intelligence applications, and much more. It is hard to imagine an innovative application or a modern organization in any area that does not need advanced highfrequency/high-speed telecommunications in its operation.
To help move the mission of CHECCS forward, center director, Samir El-Ghazaly & associate center director, Uche Wejinya, recently hired Mark Lanoue as the managing director. Lanoue will work directly with the site directors from the partner universities as well as industry members to work toward the common mission and vision.
“The future of advanced communications’, devices, and integrated applications looks bright and innovation, such as those envisioned by CHECCS and its collective members,” says Lanoue, “will serve as a tool for bringing together the interdisciplinary nature of research & development that works toward a common goal to improve life & technology for all.”
In July 2022, CHECCS entered its second year and will be hosting its semiannual industry advisory board meeting October 31-November 1, 2022. This meeting will highlight the accomplishments of the center, its research industry partners,
students, and faculty from the first year and look towards the future to move the needle for research & development into the second year.
The center provides a unique and dynamic team that has both academic and industry research experience. The PI's combined technical background embodies the necessary depth and breadth required to address diverse industrial needs and successfully carry out multidisciplinary projects. Collectively, the CHECCS team has an impressive experience, sustained research productivity, and respectable track record in electronic materials, RF devices, circuits, modeling, monolithic microwave integrated circuits (MMIC) design, electromagnetic wave propagation, accurate RF modeling and simulations based on electromagnetics, communication networking architecture, wireless communications, signal processing, antenna design, phased arrays, digital/analog circuits up to THz frequency, RF/microwave systems security, and wireless systems prototyping. Within the three participating universities, CHECCS has access to a broad and diverse pool of researchers capable of supporting various research projects within the center.
The CHECCS center will:
• Train a new breed of engineers equipped with the knowledge needed to work on increasingly complex products in high frequency communications.
• Increase industry collaborations and partnerships.
• Accelerate technology transfer of CHECC’s research into commercially viable products.
• Stimulate spin-offs and startups.
• Form long-term partnerships with organizations of various sizes and functions.
• Leverage support from industry, the National Science Foundation, the Department of Defense, and the Department of Energy.
CHECCS Hires New Managing Director
The University of Arkansas College of Engineering is proud to announce that Mark Lanoue has joined CHECCS as the Managing Director of the newly established Center for High Frequency Electronics & Circuits for Communication Systems. Lanoue joined the University of Arkansas, 3 ½ years ago, as the Technology Manager (related to intellectual property review, protection & management) for Technology Ventures under the Division of Economic Development. An inductee to the NASA “Space Technology of Fame”, a former Scientist, innovator & program director for The Institute of Technology Development/NASA Stennis, and a CEO/CTO for several hightechnology businesses, Lanoue comes with 26 years of experience related to international product & business development in the imaging, RF, aerospace & defense industries.
Cynthia Sides, assistant vice chancellor for research and innovation stated, “The Division of Research and Innovation is excited to work closely with CHECCS leadership, affiliated faculty, and industry members. Mark Lanoue not only brings broad expertise and skills that are ideal for the managing director position, but his dedication to creating successful university-industry partnerships will also contribute to the mission and success of CHECCS.”
To learn more about CHECCS, visit us at, checcs.uark.edu
To learn about our facilities and equipment, checcs.uark.edu/research.
Mark Lanoue
Dedication in Waves
El-Shenawee enjoys working with the students in her lab to solve challenges that arise during the research process.
Breast cancer is the second most common cancer for women in the U.S., and many women find themselves facing recurrence of the disease over time. Magda El-Shenawee is working to reduce this threat through new imaging technologies that help surgeons make more precise decisions about cancerous tissue during lumpectomies.
“When the surgeon takes the tumor out, what remains?” ElShenawee queried. “It’s hard to determine where the cancer ends and healthy tissue begins. If the surgeon doesn’t remove enough, the cancer comes back. And if too much healthy tissue is removed, the patient risks having a mastectomy. Preventing it from metastasizing is the key, and the margins we examine help ensure the correct amount is being removed.”
Using a new imaging technique involving terahertz frequencies – a frequency range found between microwaves and infrared waves – El-Shenawee and her team can help surgeons more accurately determine the appropriate amount of cancerous tissue to remove by making it easier for them to clearly see tumor margins during lumpectomies.
El-Shenawee notes that the percentage of second surgeries is nearly 25%, adding stress to an already highly charged emotional experience. Imagine, she says, being a woman who has just undergone your initial surgery only to find out that the cancer has returned and another operation must be scheduled.
It’s a problem she’s not tackling alone; in fact, there’s an entire army of researchers across the country and the world who are trying to combat the disease. And El-Shenawee realizes that what she contributes to the research is an important part of the solution.
“It’s amazing the amount of work being done nationwide,” she says. “And yet, one out of eight women still gets breast cancer.”
Embracing Challenges and Tackling Life’s Landmines
El-Shenawee’s story began in Egypt, where she grew up knowing that she always wanted to be an engineer. Her father, who was a mechanical engineer, tried to dissuade her from this path and encouraged her to consider medical school instead. “Engineering is
hard for women,” he warned. “You will suffer.” El-Shanawee knew he wanted to protect her from the treatment she might receive as a woman in a predominantly male field, but she was undeterred. “It’s a very challenging position for women,” she said. “But I like a challenge, and I like being able to accomplish something and make a difference.”
She found her research focus as a post-doc at Northeastern University, where she worked on a project detecting landmines made of plastic, which – unknowingly – would launch a career focused on using imaging techniques to solve complicated realworld issues.
Enter terahertz radiation, which is unique in that it is non-ionizing –unlike x-rays, which can expose patients to additional cancer risks from exposure over time. El-Shenawee uses this technology to differentiate healthy breast tissue from cancerous tissue to help save lives.
Tissue, Tumors and Terahertz Technology
El-Shenawee’s new research centers on diversifying the way signals are sent and received through cancerous tumors – called wave polarization – and the different results they yield. She and her team produce many different images using the terahertz technology and layer them to get a better, fuller picture of the composition of the tumor in question. Their biggest breakthroughs come from imaging freshly excised tumors and comparing those results to the findings from a pathologist, who helps interpret the images. All this simulates what could eventually be done in an operating room, given the appropriate equipment, training and time, to help ensure all cancerous tissue is being removed and the maximum amount of healthy tissue remains.
Currently, more than 50% of the freshly excised tumor tissue examined can be differentiated, but El-Shenawee wants that total to increase to at least 90%.
“It’s exciting to get meaningful results,” she says. “We’re not doing this research to satisfy ourselves. We want to publish it and help other researchers.”
From Intrigue to Inspiration to Implementation
El-Shenawee was introduced to terahertz technology at a workshop and was immediately intrigued, though she had no equipment available for her research. Various grants have allowed her to purchase equipment and set up her own lab, working with her U of A students and collaborating with fellow faculty members along the way. The students who work in El-Shenawee’s lab are right by her side, gaining first-hand knowledge about problem solving and critical-thinking skills.
“The good students are everything,” she says. “I have the ideas, but they implement them. It takes some time to train them and they have to be self-motivated, but they have all found very good jobs in national labs, U.S. companies, or with other universities after they have moved on. They inspire me, and if they don’t, I inspire them.”
The terahertz technology used by El-Shenawee and her team is housed in a couple pieces of equipment: one that is designed to scan tumors and smaller cancer samples and another used for bigger applications. Grants provided the funding for her research instrumentation, and she continues to finesse its capabilities by determining what it is picking up on the scans and what it is not. It’s a continual process of trying, tweaking, and trying again.
“I tell students all the time that we don’t make jumps in research –we take small steps,” she says.
2022 Engineering Capstone Design Expo: A Spotlight On EE Seniors by Eric Halsell
A warm and sunny spring Thursday at Bud Walton Arena saw hundreds of engineering college seniors present their capstone projects – the culmination of many hours of research and preparation – to faculty, visitors, and industry judges. On April 28, 2022, seniors from the varied departments within the University of Arkansas College of Engineering competed with, and alongside, one another. The team members earning first- and second-place honors for their part in the joint-department projects were Ethan Burns, Jose Moreno, and Shaun Linkogel (first), and Alex Almeida, Benjamin Beason, Brandon Riesberg, Jack Meharg, and Gavin Tomlinson (second). We had a chance to chat with two of the Department of Electrical Engineering winners and one of the industry judges about this year’s Spring Expo.
Brandon Riesberg, one of our ’22 graduates, placed second with his team. They designed a coil-based linear motor applicable to maglev trains, or short-runway aircraft systems, among other uses. “The senior design project was really eye opening to the design process, learning how to start with an idea and then transform that idea into reality. Senior design was the culmination of four years of school combined into one class, and to see it all come together was incredible. Studying electrical engineering at the University of Arkansas will be one of the toughest but most rewarding decisions you ever make,” Riesberg told us. “The department of electrical engineering helped prepare me for a career in radio frequency engineering, having professors who pushed me beyond what I thought I was capable of achieving. In electromagnetics and antenna design, Dr. El-Shenawee pushed me extremely hard to fully understand the material. With her guidance I was able to design an antenna using HFSS and measure radiation patterns in an anechoic chamber. There isn’t a better place to study electrical engineering.”
The industry judges enjoyed the Expo a great deal as well, meeting and interacting with the inheritors of their trade. Jack Orlicek spent nearly 30 years in refineries and nuclear and clean-coal power plant engineering for ALCOA and Entergy, prior to 15 years as a nuclear power QA/QC consultant. When asked about his reaction to
the Spring Expo, Orlicek said, “The attitudes and communication skills of the students were impressive. They were very responsive, offering any degree of detail I wanted. The project teams had excellent displays and data to convey a great deal of information in a short amount of time. The teams were quick to help one another and allow room for one another to answer my questions, working together to relate their project goals to me. The students exuded confidence in their work. I was amazed at their acumen from a technical standpoint and at their personal confidence.”
The engineering veteran, who earned his BSME in 1970 at the University of Arkansas, also noted, “Far more than in my day, the opportunity to choose your own projects – across a wide array of combined technologies among a student’s particular interests – was truly impressive to me. It is obvious that the students at the U of A Engineering College are learning not only foundational processes, but how to acclimate to new technical processes. This is key to being attractive to real-world employers.”
Jack Orlicek
Shaun Linkogel was a member of the first-place team. He is a 2022 electrical engineering grad who now works for Stereotaxis, a “pioneer and global leader in innovative surgical robotics.” Linkogel’s team presented a multi-departmental designed system to alleviate pressure ulcers in non-verbal, wheelchair bound medical patients caused by improper weight distribution. “The Care-Mate was designed to output a visual pressure array onto an app on [a patient’s] phone so that [caregivers] can easily and properly reposition the patient. Our group worked with a patient at UAMS Northwest Regional Campus and his father to create a device that could help millions who struggle with this painful problem and their caregivers in and outside the medical industry.”
When asked about the Expo in particular, Linkogel beamed, “The Expo was my favorite part of my senior year. When we were assigned this project, I was so excited to take on this challenge along with my fellow engineers. I knew that the idea of the Care-Mate system was truly special and it could potentially change lives. Being able to work with other students in biomedical and computer science gave me a good idea of what it was like to work on a project in the work force. Being able to dedicate so much time to something that I grew to be so attached to helped me not only learn, but to grow as a student and a leader in my community.”
Concerning the department of electrical engineering, Linkogel said, “The first thing that I will tell you about the electrical engineering program at the U of A is that it will challenge you. There is no sugar coating the amount of work that you will put in, but all the teachers
truly want you to succeed and will spend the extra time and effort to help you get to where you want to go. I grew to love the process of learning something new and applying it to my designs. Working with the medical device industry helped me get into the field that I work in today. The course work that you are given will prepare you for what you need to know in the work force as an engineer that will help change the world.”
The 2022 Spring Expo marked the fifth year since the event’s original iteration, but the first since COVID-19 struck the campus and the nation. The department of electrical engineering is proud to lead the Spring and Fall Expo each year, and we look forward to seeing your project soon!
Engineering student group leaders Jeremiah Wimer, left, and Shirley Vega, right, led a project to establish a mini-pantry in Bell Engineering Center 3008.
University of Arkansas IEEE WIE and PELS Sponsor Mini Food Pantry
When is a peanut butter sandwich more than just a sandwich? When it is the difference between spending all day in class hungry, or having the energy and focus needed to take on longer, more advanced courses and labs.
The hub for electrical engineering students at the University of Arkansas is the student lounge in the Bell Engineering building, and at the beginning of Spring Semester 2022, students were returning to campus after the easing of COVID-19 restrictions. It was there that Jonesboro senior Shirley Vega, current President of the IEEE Women in Engineering Affinity Group at the UofA, noticed not all students had the same resources when it came to food and meals. “The electrical engineering department encouraged people to be in the student lounge to work together and study together,” Vega stated. “But not everyone has the ability to leave and go to lunch when they need to.” Vega realized that food insecurity can be a major stressor for some students, in addition to the stress commonly felt during the semester. “Food insecurity was bigger than I expected. I knew there was a need, but I didn’t see it every day,” said Vega.
Vega reached out to IEEE Power Electronics Society President Jeremiah Wimer to collaborate on a solution. Wimer, a senior from Fayetteville, described the challenges EE students face as they advance through their studies. “When you get to be a Junior or Senior, you find yourself faced by the ‘Big Four’,” Wimer stated. “These are back-to-back classes and labs that can last through the day. You don’t want to be hungry all that time.” With this in mind, Vega conceived the idea of providing students with a source of food and other basic needs and making it accessible to anyone who needs to utilize it.
Vega and Wimer, with assistance from the University’s Jane B Gearhart Full Circle Food Pantry, put their plan into action. A shelving unit was installed in the lounge and stocked with non-
perishable food items such as canned pastas and soup, ramen packs, and of course, peanut butter and jelly. Not only food, but personal care products such as feminine hygiene items were made available. It was important to Vega to make access to the items in the pantry easy and discreet. The student lounge was the perfect spot. Vega, Wimer, and others put up posters, posted on social media, and used word of mouth classroom conversations to get the message out about the food pantry. The response was immediate. Most of the food items stocked in the EE pantry come from the University food pantry, and the items are restocked every Friday. There have been donations made directly to the student pantry as well.
Because food insecurity is a sensitive subject, a QR code is available for students to privately and discreetly request specific items from the University food pantry. Those items can be picked up on site or delivered to the pantry in the EE student lounge during scheduled restocks.
While Wimer identifies Vega as the driving force behind this project, Vega is quick to credit both Wimer and the university food pantry for their collaboration. “This was not a 1-person project,” Vega stated. “A lot of people are working to make sure it works like it’s supposed to.”
As a senior quickly closing in on graduation, Vega hopes that future students, and especially whoever succeeds her as WIE president, will follow up with this project and keep the pantry going. As a nontraditional student returning to college after more than a decade, Vega is acutely aware of how stressful college can be, especially if there are challenges away from school that can interfere with studies. “If we can take one worry away, we want to do that,” said Vega.
Peanut butter and jelly to the rescue.
NSF Awards Grant to Study Use of AI to Improve Sustainable Energy Infrastructure Network
The National Science Foundation has awarded researchers from industrial engineering, electrical engineering and computer science at the U of A $1.45 million to investigate of the potential of artificial intelligence as a driving force for changes to critical infrastructures and industries.
Their ultimate goal is to establish a collaborative research and workforce development/education program. This fouryear multi-institution, multidisciplinary project, worth $6 million in total, will be led by North Dakota State University and the U of A, with other collaborators from University of NevadaLas Vegas and Nueta Hidatsa Sahnish College in New Town, North Dakota.
"We know firsthand that vulnerabilities in our energy grid can have serious consequences for our economy and society, so I'm proud of this multidisciplinary team investigating how artificial intelligence can help improve our energy infrastructure," said Kim Needy, dean of the College of Engineering. "We're grateful to the National Science Foundation for supporting work that will help ensure our energy infrastructure is protected against various catastrophic failures."
Led by professor Haitao Liao, the Arkansas team includes Ed Pohl, professor, and Xiao Liu, assistant professor of industrial engineering; Xintao Wu, professor of computer science and computer engineering; Roy McCann, professor, and Yue Zhao, associate professor of electrical engineering.
The multidisciplinary team will develop new AI models such as multi-layered network embedding and neural survival analysis and integrate them in the data-driven decision-making framework for responding to disruptions in the energy systems.
McCann noted the national energy infrastructure is rapidly expanding to provide a wider range of electricity sources such as from wind and solar. "As was seen from the cold weather-related blackouts and disruptions in Texas during February, it is imperative to build resilience into energy delivery systems. Because of the increasing complexity of energy networks and supply chains, developing AI into the equipment that controls energy production and delivery is a solution for meeting future reliability demands."
Zhao continued this point by saying the U of A is home to the NSF Center on GRid-connected Advanced Power Electronic Systems, also called GRAPES. "Over the past decade, extensive research and development work has been done in GRAPES to accelerate the adoption and insertion of power electronics into the electric grid in order to improve system stability, flexibility, robustness and economy. In this project, as GRAPES faculty members, professor McCann and I will contribute to the modeling and simulation for the power grid."
Collaborating with GRAPES members such as Southwest Power Pool will aid in developing power system models using synchrophasor measurements. These will be used to find ways to minimize the outages and speed the recovery from situations such as the February 2021 cold weather events that impacted ERCOT.
Haitao Liao
Xintao Wu
Roy McCann
Yue Zhao
Ed Pohl
Xiao Liu
An Interview with Charles “Mick” Mayfield
Can you tell us a little about your life, what you studied/majored in college, and what your career has been like?
CM: I lived in El Dorado, Arkansas until I went to college. I had a teacher, Ms. Cox, who taught chemistry and physics in the 11th and 12th grade. She believed that chemical engineering was the greatest profession in the world, followed by other engineers, then surgeons and physicians. She felt this way because when engineers do something important, they affect the whole world and do good things for many people. She had such an impact on her students that four of my friends are doctorates in chemical engineering, two other friends are civil engineers, and I'm an electrical engineer. I started my career with AT&T’s Interstate Company in Kansas City and moved with AT&T all around the U.S. from one coast to the other. I worked in several positions; Engineering, Operations, Marketing, Product Management, and Sales, before running a large marketing operation for Lucent, a spin off of AT&T. I also worked at Siemens Nokia where I retired as vice president of sales and marketing.
How did the University of Arkansas prepare you for your career?
CM: The U of A taught me how to lead, manage, study, and to use the scientific method. I had an academic background that I needed and felt confident. I also had a management and leadership background by participating in those kinds of activities the University of Arkansas offered everyone, if they would participate. I didn’t feel afraid because I felt I was able to handle anything.
What skills or knowledge did you learn throughout the program that you have found most useful in your career?
CM: Some of my guiding principles were formed at the University of Arkansas. "Trust by verify" is one guiding principle. You also have to listen to people. You can’t learn if your mouth is open. You’ve got to value people by valuing what they say and how they say it. You need diversity and most importantly you need to treat people with respect and have a positive attitude.
What was one of your favorite memories of your time at the college and why?
CM: I came to the University of Arkansas because my friends were coming to the U of A. I had never been to Fayetteville, Arkansas before coming to college. I didn’t know anyone, but no one else knew anyone either. I liked to play poker and was playing in a dorm next to my dorm. The resident advisor kicked me out of the dorm because I didn’t live there. Fifteen years later he turned up as my boss at AT&T.
Charles "Mick" Mayfield (left), and Dean Kim Needy (right)
An Interview with Temitola Okunoren
Can you tell us a little about your life, what you studied/majored in college, and what your career has been like?
TO: My undergraduate degree is in Electrical Engineering. I focused on Telecommunications Engineering for my Masters degree. I was recruited by then Alltel Wireless after graduation. The company was acquired by Verizon and I moved to Texas working in operations. I moved through different engineering roles within the company. I'm currently a DMTS (Distinguished Member Technical Staff) working in the Planning and Strategy organization at Verizon.
How did the University of Arkansas prepare you for your career?
TO: The course work and research in the Telecommunications program, helped me hit the ground running when I started at Alltel. Since I was already familiar with the different technologies, I was able to excel and quickly distinguish myself. I also took advantage of the Career Development Center at the UofA which helped me integrate smoothly into the workforce.
What skills or knowledge did you learn throughout the program that you have found most useful in your career?
TO: While at the UofA, I worked on research and had to study a lot of research papers and publications. This experience helped me with reading technical specifications and standard documentation, which is part of my work. Today, I work on a lot of white papers and design documents, and my education at the college of engineering provided a solid foundation to flourish.
Now that you’ve achieved so much in your career, what advice would you give to students?
TO: My advice is, keep moving forward, keep improving your skills and working on yourself. Technology changes rapidly and you need to be up to speed. There will always be challenges but as long as you don't give up and keep moving forward, you'll be successful.
What was one of your favorite memories of your time at the college and why?
TO: I was part of an organization ISCA and my fondest memories were hanging out with friends. We were like a family and they supported me through my time at UofA.
What has been one of the most interesting or exciting accomplishments for you in your career or life post-college?
TO: The most exciting accomplishments is my family life and raising my children.
What do you like to do during your time outside of work?
TO: I volunteer with different organizations mainly working with youth and children. Most of my weekends are spent attending my kid's soccer and basketball games.
What’s up next on the horizon for you?
TO: I recently completed a Masters program in Analytics and I'm looking forward to helping my company with data-driven decisions.
From left: Lauren Kegley chair of the COE Early Career Advisory Board (and ELEG alum), Temitola Okunoren, Dean Kim Needy
Arkansas Advances Radar Technology
The pace of innovation in the automotive, biomedical, and aerospace industries would hardly be possible without advances in radar technology. From measuring the respiratory rates of patients in real time to detecting the occupancy levels inside industrial warehouses; the application space for radar systems is vast and continues to increase as the performance of radar systems improves.
High frequency radar systems are particularly advantageous and have recently become feasible due to advances in millimeter wave technology. The fine range resolution offered by these systems allows the position of an object to be calculated more precisely. Additionally, some electromagnetic waves at some higher frequencies suffer less loss in rain and other environmental conditions, which allows objects to be detected more reliably or at greater distances. Lastly, high frequency systems are typically smaller in size which allows them to be deployed on smaller, mobile systems.
The K-Band agricultural radar fabricated in LowTemperature Cofired Ceramic (LTCC).
the surface when mounted on an airplane. Now, the University of Arkansas research group is proceeding to design a more advanced power supply for a similar radar system.
While the design of circuits and processing techniques continue to be critical to the advancement of radar technology, the substrate in which the radar systems are constructed is becoming increasingly significant. One material that has received significant interest for radar and other technology is Low Temperature Cofired Ceramic (LTCC). Its ability to remove heat quickly, contribute to low loss for high frequency signals, and keep out contaminants make this material a prime candidate for high frequency, high power radar systems. Additionally, the processing method for this material allows components to be embedded into the substrate which allows integrated, high-density systems to be constructed.
Almost seven years ago the University of Arkansas began a partnership with Honeywell Federal Manufacturing & Technologies to conduct research in radar technology alongside several other universities. Alan Mantooth, distinguished professor and Samir El-Ghazaly, distinguished professor, of electrical engineering lead the project. Since then, the University of Arkansas has proceeded to produce significant work relevant to radar technology while leveraging its LTCC fabrication facilities. One such project is the modification of a K-Band Agricultural radar for the LTCC substrate.
The transmission structures on the original structure are redesigned to address the change in material properties while other design changes are made to mitigate defects that arise during the fabrication process. At its conclusion, this final agricultural system is expected to detect objects at larger distances than the original system due to the advantages offered by the LTCC substrate.
The University of Arkansas has also leveraged its experience in high density electronics to design custom power supplies for high frequency radar systems. These power supplies dramatically reduce the size and weight of the radar systems which makes them a feasible payload for smaller aircraft systems with longer flights. Last year the University of Arkansas developed a power supply for a radar that measures depth and thickness of snow layers beneath
The University’s past work on LTCC interconnects has also proceeded with a focus on Aerosol Jet Printed (AJP) transmission structures. The complex transmission structures that this method is capable of creating can ultimately lead to performance improvements due to high power handling and lower impedance mismatch in the electrical circuit. One featured application of these interconnects is currently being developed by the group with the integration of the W-Band power amplifier die onto an automotive radar circuit board. At high frequencies like those in the W-Band, interconnect method is increasingly important as losses are magnified along with dissatisfactory influences from neighboring components. This work will also lead to the range extension of the radar system and its repurposing of applications beyond vehicle detection.
The Honeywell Radar Consortium continues to be a highlight of the research environment at the University of Arkansas by illustrating the necessity for university collaboration with industry and one another. In year seven, the University of Arkansas has had several graduate and undergraduate students intern with Honeywell. Some of those students have gone on to join the company full time. In addition to the technical training that students gain in the laboratory environment, students gain exposure to the inner workings of a research program that contains budgeting and reporting. Just this year students delivered a half day training presentation which provided a crash course in electronic packaging and power supply design to Honeywell employees. A clear example of the beneficial relationship between academia and industry, this served as a milestone in the professional development of student engineers while providing a massive transfer of knowledge from academia to industry. The student research team at the University of Arkansas currently consists of student members Nathanial Shetters, Roberto Quezada, and Latarence Butts.
A 3D rendering of The Long Range W-Band radar using power amplifier Monolithic Microwave Integrated Circuits (MMICs).
Electrical Engineering Student Team Wins Award at NSF Innovation Corps
After applying for and being selected to receive a $50k grant from the National Science Foundation, a group of graduate students in Electrical Engineering successfully completed the National Innovation Corps program. Organized and sponsored by the National Science Foundation (NSF I-Corps), the I- Corps program prepares student teams in commercializing their research by learning about topics such as customer discovery, value propositions, and revenue streams. From the University of Arkansas, 3D Copper included PhD students Mireille Sandjong and Fred Felizco as entrepreneurial leads, Roy McCann as the technical lead, and UA electrical engineering alum Dr. Wendyam Traore as the team’s mentor. 3D Copper is developing a new type of high torque electric motor and controller for robotic applications through the use of copper additive manufacturing (metallic 3D printing). A group of six instructors with the New York I-Corp Hub led 26 teams from research universities throughout the U.S. during the seven-week program starting in July and finishing in early September. Each team was required to interview at least 100 industry professionals related to all aspects of commercialization, such as customer discovery, suppliers, pricing and intellectual property. After an initial week-long workshop, the 26 teams met weekly to present their results and develop their commercialization plans.
At the conclusion of the I-Corps program, 3D Copper was awarded the New York I-Corps Hub Spirit – Team Award in recognition of their effort and commitment to the NSF Innovation Corps Teams Program. 3D Copper is planning to move forward in commercialization by exploring other funding opportunities such as the NSF Partnerships for Innovation.
Fred Felizco
Roy McCann
Mireille Sandjong
Wendyam Traore
Electrical Engineering Department
University of Arkansas
3217 Bell Engineering Center
1 University of Arkansas Fayetteville, AR 72701
Student Awards
Xia Du APEC 2022, March 20-24, 2022, Best Presentation, “A Four-Level Active Gate Driver with Continuously Adjustable Intermediate Gate Voltages”, (Xia Du, Yuqi Wei, Andrea Stratta, Liyang Du, Venkata Samhitha Machireddy, H. Alan Mantooth)
Soheil Nouri IEEE Microwave Theory and Techniques Society, International Microwave Symposium, June 2021, Best ThreeMinute Thesis, “Global Modeling of Millimeter-Wave Transistors: Analysis of Wave-Propagation-Effects” (Soheil Nouri)
IEEE Texas Symposium on Wireless and Microwave Circuits and Systems, April 19-20, 2022, Honorable Mention, Student Research Competition
Quang Le, Imam Al Razi, Tristan Evans PELS ECCE 2021, October 14, 2021, 1st Place Student Demonstration Software Competition, “PowerSynth an MCPMs Layout Optimization Tool”, (Quang Le, Iman Al Razi, Tristan Evans, H. Alan Mantooth, Yarui Peng)
Xiaoling Li APEC 2022, March 20-24, 2022, Best Presentation, “High Voltage SiC Power Module Optimized for Low Parasitics and Compatible System Interface” (Xiaoling Li, Yuxiang Chen, Yuheng Wu, Hao Chen, William Weber, Adel Nasiri, Robert Cuzner, Yue Zhao, H. Alan Mantooth)
Aireen Amir Jalal Doctoral Academy Fellowship Award, Spring 2022
Nan Lin APEC 2022, March 20-24, 2022, Best Presentation, “A Close-loop Current Balancing Method for High Power Silicon Carbide Inverter with Paralleled Power Modules” (Nan Lin, Yue Zhao, H. Alan Mantooth)
Solomon Ojo International Society for Optics and Photonics, June 2022, Optics and Photonics Scholarship for Ojo’s potential contributions to the field of optics, photonics, and related field (The society awarded $293,000 in education scholarships to 78 SPIE student members in 2022.)
Justin Rudie SMART Scholar Award, April 2022, Department of Defense’s Science Mathematics and Research for Transformation (SMART) Fellowship Award (award covers full tuition for five years and awardee has opportunity to work summers at Naval Support Activity Crane in Bloomington, Indiana. SMART scholars are required to work in the summer at one of DoD’s agencies or labs.)
Zahra Saadatizadeh ECCE 2022 WiE Attendance Grant
Yuqi Wei APEC 2022, March 20-24, 2022, Best Presentation, “Multiport Resonant DC-DC Converter using Actively-Controlled Inductors for Hybrid Energy Storage System Integration” (Yuqi Wei, Thiago Pereria, Yonna Pascal, Marco Liserre)
APEC 2021, June 14-17, 2021, Best Presentation, “A Fast and Accurate Simulation Tool for LLC Converters” (Yuqi Wei, Zhiqing Wang, Quanming Luo, H. Alan Mantooth)
2021 IEEE International Future Energy Electronics Conference (IFEEC) Best Conference Paper, November, 2021. “A Wireless Power Transfer based Gate Driver Design for Medium Voltage SiC MOSFETs,” (Authors: Yuqi Wei, Liyang DU, Xia Du, Venkata Samhitha Machireddy, H. Alan Mantooth)
Dereje Woldegiorgis APEC 2021, June 14-17, 2021, Best Presentation, “Simple Carrier Based Capacitor Voltage Balancing Technique for Three-Level Voltage Source Inverters”, (Dereje Woldegiorgis, Yuqi Wei, H. Alan Mantooth)
