News Highlights

A UVA Engineering Rising Star Recognized with International Conference Research Award

Jundong Li, a University of Virginia School of Engineering and Applied Science assistant professor who specializes in data mining and machine learning, has been honored with the Early Career Research Award at the 2023 Pacific-Asia Conference on Knowledge Discovery and Data Mining.

In its 27th year, the conference — known as PAKDD — is one of the longest-running and leading international forums for researchers and industry practitioners to share ideas, original research results and practical development experiences across knowledge discovery and data mining fields.

The Early Career Research Award recognizes excellence and promise in the awardee’s body of work over the first 10 years after receiving the Ph.D. degree.

Li received his Ph.D. in computer science at Arizona State University in 2019. His Ph.D. dissertation research focused on algorithms to make predictive models more accurate and productive.

He also holds a Master of Science in computer science from the University of Alberta, Canada, and a Bachelor of Engineering in software engineering from Zhejiang University in China.

Li joined UVA Engineering’s Charles L. Brown Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering as an assistant professor in the fall of 2019, with joint appointments in the Department of Computer Science and School of Data Science.

His recent research focus areas include causal inference — or finding cause-and-effect relationships in huge data sets — and algorithmic fairness. The latter aims to open the “black box” of algorithms that affect people’s lives — such as computer models that evaluate bank loan applications — to ensure equal treatment across demographics.

MSE Ph.D. Student Wins Prize for Presentation at Electronic Materials and Applications Conference

Samantha Jaszewski, a materials science and engineering Ph.D. student in associate professor Jon Ihlefeld’s multifunctional thin film research group, has won third place for Best Student Oral Presentation at EMA2023, The American Ceramic Society’s Electronic Materials and Applications conference.

Jaszewski spoke on her project, “Impact of Processing Parameters on Crystallization and Ferroelectric Behavior of Hafnium Oxide Thin Films,” which ultimately aims to save energy in computing by using a new material, ferroelectric hafnium oxide.

“This material will enable us to co-locate computing and memory elements in integrated circuits, a more efficient architecture that will result in energy savings,” Jaszewski said. “My research focuses on investigating the factors that stabilize ferroelectric hafnium oxide so that the semiconductor industry can control the material’s behavior and integrate it into devices.”

Jaszewski has been working with Ihlefeld, an associate professor of materials science and engineering and electrical and computer engineering, since joining his lab in 2018. Her research is funded by a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship, a highly competitive program that recognizes the recipient’s potential contributions to science, technology and education, as well as society and future needs of the nation.

EMA 2023 is an international conference focused on electroceramic materials and their applications in electronic, electrochemical, electromechanical, magnetic, dielectric and optical components, devices and systems. It is jointly programmed by the Electronics Division and Basic Science Division of The American Ceramic Society.

Bingtian Guo’s Endowed Graduate Fellowship Supports Research in Avalanche Photodiodes

Bingtian Guo, a Ph.D. student of electrical engineering, has earned a UVA Engineering endowed graduate fellowship to support his research focused on avalanche photodiodes (APDs) fabricated from two antimony-based quaternary materials, AlxIn1-xAsySb1-y and AlxGa1-xAsySb1-y.

Fourth-year Student Emily Parnell’s Theoretical Study Explains How to Perfectly Align Quantum Modes in Photonic Devices

Emily Parnell, a fourth-year student of computer engineering, presented her theoretical study in photonics at the 2022 Frontiers in Optics-Laser Sciences, a flagship conference convened by Optica, formerly the Optical Society of America.

Chengshuai Shi Earns Fellowship to Advance Machine Learning Research

Chengshuai Shi, a Ph.D. student of electrical engineering, has earned a UVA Engineering endowed graduate fellowship that supports his research in machine learning to benefit real-world communication systems.

Barry Johnson Pursues Passion for Technology Innovation in New National Science Foundation Directorate

Barry Johnson is taking on the challenge of accelerating the transitioning of technology from basic research into commercial markets. 

New Research Will Evaluate Impacts of Social Capital on Access to Safe Well Water

Jundong Li joins research effort funded by National Science Foundation's Strengthening American Infrastructure Program.

Ph.D. Student Md Golam Morshed Explores Alternative Approach for Next-gen Spintronics Memory

Md Golam Morshed, a Ph.D. student of electrical engineering, has joined the search for high-speed, high-density, low energy consumption memory technology.

New Faculty Member Caroline Crockett Brings EE and Engineering Education Research to UVA ECE

UVA ECE welcomes new faculty member Caroline Crockett, who brings engineering education research and electrical engineering expertise to the Department’s teaching faculty. Crockett earned her Ph.D. in electrical engineering from the University of Michigan in May 2022. It’s a homecoming for Crockett, who earned her Bachelor of Science in electrical engineering from UVA in 2015.

McVey Fellowship Recognizes Ph.D. Students Chengshuai Shi and Beichen Wang for Their Academic Excellence and Service

UVA ECE congratulates Ph.D. students Chengshuai Shi and Beichen Wang, who have earned a McVey Fellowship. The Department’s award honors Professor Eugene S. McVey’s seminal contributions to the field of electrical engineering and his dedication to teaching and mentoring UVA students and junior faculty.