The Computer Systems Laboratory offers various research projects in hardware-software co-design of digital systems. Examples of target designs include Internet-of-Things (IoTs), wearable devices, wireless sensor networks (WSNs), satellite on-board computers, neural network (NN) accelerators, on-device Large Language Models (LLMs) and so on. Non-functional design concerns such as real-time, low-power, thermal behavior, security, or privacy are also important research topics studied in the Computer Systems Laboratory. The lab supports both graduate and undergraduate student research and has the following facilities to support student research: various FPGAs, MPSoC prototyping boards, GPU workstations (for NN training), and power monitoring tools.
Affiliated Faculty: Dr. Andy Wolfe and Dr. Hoeseok Yang
The Electromagnetics Lab hosts research in a range of topics related to applied EM theory, computational methods, RF design, and wireless applications. The laboratory serves as a shared workspace for students and faculty in this area, with emphasis on integration from theory to practice. The lab houses computational resources, fabrication facilities, and test equipment for transient and frequency-domain analysis of antennas, circuits, and systems up to 22 GHz. Ongoing research areas within the lab include: time-varying circuits and antennas for exotic performance characteristics, inverse design in electromagnetic systems, modal decomposition methods in computational antenna analysis, and formulation of fundamental bounds on radiating systems.
Affiliated Faculty: Dr. Kurt Schab
The Field Theory and RF Design Laboratory (FTRD) is dedicated to supporting analytical, computational, and applied studies in wave theory, microwave circuits, radio frequency (RF) wave phenomena, wakefields, and field-particle electrodynamics. Studied waves and systems span frequencies from hundreds of MHz to tens of THz. In addition to supporting research activities in this area, the lab supports student projects and teaching. The lab has high-precision LPKF prototyping capability for manufacturing of RF/microwave devices, equipment for measurement of power and S parameters, high-performance computational workstations with more than 50 processing cores and almost 1 TB of memory, with both commercial software packages and in-house codes for electromagnetic simulation and mathematical modeling. A typical project in this lab starts from theoretical analysis/modeling, then proceeds into computation or simulation, followed by fabrication (if applicable) and measurements.
Affiliated Faculty: Dr. Adham Naji
The Human-Machine Interaction & Innovation (HMI^2) Lab conducts cutting-edge research in the fields of Human-Robot Interaction (HRI), AI-powered Intelligent Systems, and Assistive Technologies. Through a blend of creativity, technical expertise, and human-centered design principles, the Human-Machine Interaction and Innovation Lab strives to revolutionize the way we interact with machines and pave the way for a more efficient, intuitive, accessible, and inclusive technological landscape. Supported by generous federal funding, the Human-Machine Interaction and Innovation Lab has the resources to undertake ambitious and transformative research projects that have the potential to shape the future of Human-Robot Interaction and Assistive Technologies and positively impact society.
Affiliated Faculty: Dr. Maria Kyrarini
The Latimer Energy Laboratory (LEL) supports a very wide range of activities relating to solar energy, more specifically photovoltaic (PV) and management of renewable energy sources, from K-12 outreach through graduate engineering. The laboratory focuses on two major directions: 1) measurement and characterization of different renewable energy sources; 2) integration of renewable energy into the electric grid. The laboratory includes instrumentation such as pyranometers, VIS-IR spectrometers, metallurgical microscopes, source meters, grid simulator software related computers, and state of the art hardware in the loop simulator.
Affiliated Faculty: Dr. Maryam Khanbaghi
The Networked Systems and Algorithms (NSA) Lab is focused on theory, modeling, and algorithm design for modern interconnected, data-driven systems. The lab advances fundamental theory and engineering practice through three thrusts: (i) networked and distributed control, developing methods to analyze stability and performance in large-scale dynamical systems; (ii) complex networks and learning, building models and optimization tools to study emergent behavior and support data-driven decision-making; and (iii) information theory, developing methods based on coding theory for reliable, secure, and privacy-preserving networking and distributed computation. Across these thrusts, the lab aims to improve the stability, robustness, efficiency, and, where relevant, security and privacy of networked systems in cyber-physical infrastructures, communication networks, and distributed computing platforms.
Affiliated Faculty: Dr. Maryam Khanbaghi, Dr. Anoosheh Heidarzadeh, Dr. Alex Stankovic, Dr. Dat Tran and Dr. Alex Zecevic
The Signal Processing, Learning, and Information Theory (SPLIT) Lab is focused on theory-driven modeling and algorithm design for modern data-centric systems. The lab advances both foundations and practice through two thrusts: (i) signal processing and learning, developing methods in digital and statistical signal processing, adaptive and nonlinear techniques, and machine learning, including deep learning and statistical learning; and (ii) information theory, developing coding-theoretic methods for privacy- and security-aware information retrieval and function computation, and for scalable and fault-tolerant distributed storage and computing. The lab’s work is motivated by applications in speech and audio, image and video, biological data and diagnostics, communication systems and networks, and cloud and distributed data platforms.
Affiliated Faculty: Dr. Sally Wood, Dr. Tokunbo Ogunfunmi, Dr. Anoosheh Heidarzadeh
The Soft Robotics and Control (SoftCON) Lab focuses on safe, uncertainty-aware control for soft and continuum robots and for multi-agent systems operating in real-world, dynamic environments. Our research spans three tightly linked efforts: (i) we develop control methods that combine formal guarantees with learning-based adaptation under model mismatch, disturbances, and limited sensing; (ii) we develop real-to-sim-to-real pipelines that leverage system identification and experimental data to tune simulation fidelity, reduce the sim-to-real gap, and enable reliable transfer of controllers and learned policies to hardware; and (iii) we validate these ideas on physical robotic systems through contact-rich soft and continuum manipulators, alongside new mechanisms and sensing technologies that improve observability and robustness. We also study distributed control and coordination, applying the same principles to teams of robots that must collaborate under shared constraints.
Affiliated Faculty: Dr. Burak Kurkcu
The Thermal and Electrical Nanoscale Transport (TENT) Laboratory provides teaching and research facilities for modeling, simulation, and characterization of devices and circuits in the nanoscale. Ongoing research topics include silicon heterostructures, thin dielectric, carbon nanostructures used as electrical interconnect and thermal interface materials, and compact modeling of transistors and interconnects for large-scale circuit simulation. This laboratory is part of the Center for Nanostructures and has materials synthesis equipment inside NASA Ames Research Center in Moffett Field, California, and was established to conduct, promote, and nurture nanoscale science and technology, interdisciplinary research, and education activities at the University.
Affiliated Faculty: Dr. Cary Yang
The Cybersecurity Laboratory provides various research projects in different aspects of cybersecurity including hardware, network, internet of things (IoT), mobile, etc. The Cybersecurity Laboratory supports both graduate and undergraduate student research. This lab has the following facilities for experiments, tests, and data collection and analysis: Oscilloscopes, Logic Analyzers, Thermal Chamber, FPGAs, microcontrollers, hacking tools, and more.
The IC Design and Technology Laboratory is dedicated to teaching and research topics on electronic materials and devices, integrated circuit design, and IC manufacturing technologies. Current research topics include modeling complex electronic devices using variational methodologies, materials and device characterizations, fabrication and experimental studies of photovoltaic devices, emission free smart infrastructure, and optimizing energy infrastructure.