2023 News Archive : News & Events : Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering : University of Rochester

Longtime ECE Adjunct Faculty Member- Vic Derefinko

December 11, 2023

Victor Vincent Derefinko, better known to all who knew and loved him as Vic, passed away peacefully after a life well lived at his home in Brockport, NY surrounded by family and friends on December 1, 2023.

Professor Stephen Wu’s Research Published in Nature Electronics

December 5, 2023

Stephen Wu looking at camera and smiling

A team of Hajim School researchers developed a new form of computing memory that is fast, dense, and low-power by strategically straining materials that are as thin as a single layer of atoms. These new hybrid resistive switches developed in the lab of Stephen M. Wu, an assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering and of physics, are outlined in a study published in Nature Electronics.

ECE Facutly Recieve GIDS Seed Funding

November 27, 2023

Top row left to right: Matthew McCall, Yuhao Zhu, Zhiyao Duan, Pablo Postigo, and Benjamin Miller. Bottom row left to right: Michael Huang, Tong Geng, Kaave Hosseini, Daniel Stefankovic, and Anson Kahng

The Goergen Institute for Data Science (GIDS) announced seed funding awards for seven collaborative projects for the 2023-2024 year. The goal is to support projects that could eventually attract major external funding, with a particular focus on work aligned with data science research priorities.

Hajim Alumni and Faculty Member Among This Year's Luminate NY Winners

October 11, 2023

Group of Awardees looking at camera — Alumni Juniyali Nauriyal ’18 MS, ’22 PhD, far left, and Brandon Zimmerman ’09, ’12 MS, ’15 PhD, center, were among the winners of this year’s Luminate NY optics, photonics, and imaging startup accelerator competition. Winners were announced by Governor Kathy Hochul in September. (Photo by Luminate)

There was a strong Hajim presence amongst the winners of this year’s Luminate NY optics, photonics, and imaging startup accelerator competition.

You (Neil) Zhang receives a National Institute of Justice Fellowship

October 3, 2023

Congratulations to ECE PhD student, Neil Zhang on being awarded a National Institute of Justice (NIJ) Fellowship. This was awarded based for his proposal on “Audio Deepfake Detection for Forensics and Security.” He is among the 24 awardees this year nationwide.

Grand Challenges Scholar Spotlight: Hesham Elshafey '25

September 25, 2023

Hesham building rover — Hesham Elshafey ’25, pictured here working on the MATE ROV, will speak at an information session about the Grand Challenges Scholars Program from 7 to 8:30 p.m. on Wednesday, September 27 in the iZone.

As a reminder, the Grand Challenges Scholars Program (GCSP) will host an info session from 7 to 8:30 p.m. on Wednesday, September 27 in the iZone. Emma Derisi, director of GCSP, will do a brief presentation on the program, and three current GCSP students will discuss their projects. One of those students is Hesham Elshafey ’25, an electrical and computer engineering student whose project seeks to engineer the tools for scientific discovery.

Congratulation to ECE Alumni, Raiyan Baten!

September 21, 2023

A group of three people standing and smiling at the camera with Raiyan Baten holding an award certificate.

Raiyan Abdul Baten (ECE PhD 2022 and a postdoc in URCS) won the Outstanding PhD Dissertation Award by the Association for the Advancement of Affective Computing (AAAC), announced at the Affective Computing and Intelligent Interaction (AAAC) conference at MIT today.

Marvin Doyley Featured in ‘Diversity in Action’ Magazine

September 6, 2023

Marvin Doyley looking at camera — Marvin Doyley, the Wilson Professor of Electronic Imaging and chair of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering (Photograph: J. Adam Fenster)

The latest edition of Diversity in Action highlights Rochester as a campus focused on diversifying STEM student populations. They spoke with Marvin Doyley, the Wilson Professor of Electronic Imaging and chair of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, about how the University stays ahead of the curve when it comes to developing medical and engineering courses.

REU for Imaging in Medicine and Biology for Underrepresented MInorities

August 15, 2023

group looking at camera smiling — Professor Marvin Doyley, top right, with the 11 students who participated this summer in the NSF-funded REU focused on imaging in medicine and biology for underrepresented minorities.

This summer we were delighted to welcome yet another cohort of students for the National Science Foundation-funded Research Experience for Undergraduates focused on imaging in medicine and biology for underrepresented minorities. With support from the Kearns Center, 11 students from institutions across the country including Princeton University, Spelman College, and others, worked on research projects with nine University of Rochester faculty.

EE Professors Provide Insights on Sustainability Gaps in Engineering Education

August 7, 2023

According to the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), an additional 85 million jobs related to the energy transition and the goal of limiting global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius are expected to be created by 2030.

Qiang Lin's Team Advances Photonic Devices and Quantum Computing

July 11, 2023

graphic of laser process — A new system developed by Professor Qiang Lin’s research team allows them to conduct quantum simulations in a synthetic space that mimics the physical world by controlling the frequency, or color, of quantum entangled photons as time elapses. (University of Rochester illustration / Michael Osadciw)

A team of researchers led by Qiang Lin, a professor of electrical and computer engineering and optics, recently published impressive new advances in photonic devices and quantum computing.

Hajim Researchers Stand Out at Conference on Signal Processing in the AI Era

June 27, 2023

Zhiyao Duan and Neil Zhang looking at camera — Associate Professor Zhiyao Duan, left, and electrical and computer engineering PhD student You (Neil) Zhang, right, presenting at IEEE’s 2023 International Conference on Acoustics, Speech and Signal Processing (ICASSP).

A contingent of Hajim School faculty and students had a strong showing at IEEE’s 2023 International Conference on Acoustics, Speech and Signal Processing (ICASSP) in Rhodes Island, Greece.

ECE & AME Seniors Awarded the Donald M. Barnard Prize

May 26, 2023

Please also join the department in congratulating this year’s recipients of Hajim School student awards for outstanding achievement, Charbel El Haddad (ECE) and Sydney Haupt (AME). This recognition is well deserved!

Commencement 2023

May 13, 2023

Electrical and Computer Engineering

Mark Bocko named the Rochester Engineering Society’s 2022 Engineer of the Year

May 10, 2023

Mark Bocko, the Distinguished Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering and director of the Center for Emerging and Innovative Sciences (CEIS), was named the Rochester Engineering Society’s 2022 Engineer of the Year. The award recognizes outstanding achievement in and contributions to the profession by engineers in the Rochester region. The society named Bocko an Engineer of Distinction in 2021.

Better breast cancer diagnosis through machine-learning ultrasound

April 21, 2023

parker and o'connell looking at camera — INTERDISCIPLINARY PARTNERSHIP: Kevin Parker (left), a professor of electrical and computer engineering, and Avice O’Connell, a professor of imaging sciences, are working to improve breast cancer diagnostics.

Mammography is the gold standard for breast cancer diagnosis, but it’s not reliably accurate in all cases, especially in people with dense breasts. Avice O’Connell, a professor of imaging sciences, Kevin Parker, a professor of electrical and computer engineering, and Jihye Baek, a PhD student in electrical and computer engineering, have launched a research project incorporating ultrasound with machine learning for previously detected masses. The end result: nearly 98 percent accuracy in predicting breast cancer in these masses.

Edward Peck Curtis Award received by ECE PhD student, Steven Philbert

April 14, 2023

Steven Philbert looking at camera — Steven Philbert

Congratulation to Steven Philbert, one of the eleven University students who have been selected as recipients of the Edward Peck Curtis Award for Excellence in Teaching by a Graduate Student. This award was established by former life trustee Edward Peck Curtis in 1984 and recognizes graduate students who excel in advancing the teaching mission of the University by providing highly skilled and innovative instruction to Rochester’s undergraduates.

Tre DiPassio - Graduate Research Symposium Winner

March 30, 2023

Second Annual Graduate Research Symposium Winners - 2023

New Book Examines VLSI Systems

March 16, 2023

Eby and Rassul headshots — Eby Friedman, at left, and Rassul Bairamkulov connect pure math with practical product development in their new book about very large scale integrated (VLSI) systems.

Very large scale integrated (VLSI) systems consist of dozens of interconnected subsystems, hundreds of modules, and many billions of transistors and wires. Graph theory is crucial for managing and analyzing these pervasive systems.

In their new book, Graphs in VLSI (Springer International Publishing, 2023), Eby Friedman, Distinguished Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, and Eby’s former PhD student Rassul Bairamkulov, now at École Polytechique Fédérale de Lausanne, discuss VLSI system design from the perspective of graph theory, connecting pure mathematics with practical product development.

Their book not only provides a review of established graph theoretic practices, but also discusses the latest advancements in graph theory driving modern VLSI technologies, covering a wide range of design issues such as synchronization, power network models and analysis, and interconnect routing and synthesis. Learn more

Marvin Doyley Named Fellow of IEEE and AIUM

January 9, 2023

Marvin Doyley, the Wilson Professor of Electronic Imaging and chair of electrical and computer engineering, has been named a fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) and of the American Institute of Ultrasound in Medicine (AIUM) for his advancement of novel imaging techniques to detect and track diseases, including ultrasound elastography using inverse methods.