Faculty Labs and Groups

  • Adaptive Systems and Control Group

    This group’s research is focused on designing resilient control systems capable of maintaining desired performance in the presence of uncertain system faults such as actuator failures, structural damage and sensor failures, with applications in aircraft systems and robotic systems for resilient and autonomous control.

    Director: Gang Tao, Professor of Electrical & Computer Engineering

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    Adaptive Systems and Control Group
  • Aerospace Research Laboratory

    This lab conducts basic and applied research in advanced aerospace technologies. Its experience derives from 30 years of projects including the National Aero-Space Plane (NASP) and the National Center for Hypersonic Combined Cycle Propulsion (NCHCCP). Ongoing work includes high-speed mixing and combustion, aerobreakup of liquids, and hypersonic rarefied gas jet interactions.

    Director: Christopher P. Goyne, Associate Professor of Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering

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    Aerospace Research Laboratory
  • Agnew Research Group

    The Agnew Research Group studies plasticity of metals, alloys and intermetallic compounds that advance both energy conservation through light weighting (Al, Mg & Ti) and energy production via nuclear technology (e.g., Zr and U). Plasticity is a field that supports manufacturing (forming and machining) and service of metals and alloys, since avoiding plasticity is the basis of achieving high strength, and understanding plasticity is a means to prevent or predict failure in applications that promote creep, fatigue or fracture.

    Director: Sean Agnew, Professor of Materials Science & Engineering

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    Agnew Research Group
  • Benson Research Group

    The work of Dean Craig H. Benson's lab broadly falls into the field of geoenvironmental engineering, spanning several focus areas, including: municipal solid waste, hazardous waste, coal combustion residuals, mixed radioactive waste, and mining and mineral processing wastes. The impact of our work harnesses natural processes to prevent landfills from leaking pollutants into groundwater, balancing the need to keep the natural world clean and healthy with society's goals of economic growth and robust industries.

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    Benson Research Group
  • Bio-Inspired Engineering Research (BIER) Laboratory

    Current research teams are engaged in a broad array of issues related to reverse engineering of biological systems, including central pattern generator control, active tensegrity structures with integrated actuation, electro-active polymers (artificial skin/muscle), and hydrodynamics.

    Director: Hilary Bart-Smith, Professor of Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering

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    Bio-Inspired Engineering Research (BIER) Laboratory
  • Burns Research Group

    This group works at the intersection of metallurgy, solid mechanics and chemistry, which is currently at the forefront of several important engineering challenges. Those challenges include: prognosis of environmentally degraded airframe and ship components; design of the maintenance protocol for storage and distribution of metal embrittling H2 for the hydrogen energy economy, material embrittlement and fatigue issues in the resurgent nuclear power field; and alloy selection and life prediction for bio-medical engineering.

    Director: James T. Burns, Assistant Professor of Materials Science & Engineering

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    Burns Research Group
  • Caliari Lab

    This lab is based in the Departments of Chemical Engineering and Biomedical Engineering, and the lab engineers biomaterials to explore the dynamic interplay between cells and their microenvironment. Researchers apply these platforms to address fundamental human health challenges including treatment of diseases such as fibrosis and cancer, repair and replacement of tissues and organs and improved understanding of how cells transduce microenvironmental signals.

    Director: Steven Caliari, Assistant Professor of Chemical Engineering and Biomedical Engineering

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    Caliari Lab
  • Capillary Micro Mechatronics Research Group

    Research efforts are underway to better understand the electrowetting of conductive liquids on insulated electrodes and to optimize materials and geometry to enhance electrowetting performance. In addition, we are investigating how capillary forces might be harnessed to provide powerful actuators for micro electromechanical systems (MEMS).

    Director: Carl Knospe, Associate Professor of Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering

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    Capillary Micro Mechatronics Research Group
  • Cardiac Biomechanics Group

    The Cardiac Biomechanics Group focuses on the interactions between mechanics, function, and growth and remodeling in the heart. The mechanical properties of normal and diseased myocardium are important determinants of overall heart function. These mechanical properties change during growth, remodeling or disease, often in part as a response to changes in the mechanical environment. Our group studies this interplay between mechanical environment, tissue response, and heart function, not only to better understand the basis for heart disease but also to identify new opportunities to intervene.

    Director: Dr. Jeffrey W. Holmes, Professor of Biomedical Engineering and Medicine

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    Cardiac Biomechanics Group
  • Cardiac Systems Biology Lab

    Heart function and failure are controlled by complex signaling and transcriptional networks that are just beginning to be mapped. This lab combines computational modeling and high-throughput experiments to discover molecular networks and drugs that control cardiac remodeling and regeneration. Experimental approaches include high-throughput microscopy and -omic profiling of primary and induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC)-derived cardiomyocytes. Computational approaches include large-scale regulatory network modeling and bioinformatic analysis of -omic data.

    Director: Jeff Saucerman, Associate Professor of Biomedical Engineering

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    Cardiac Systems Biology Lab
  • Carta Group: Bioseparations Engineering at UVA

    This research group employs experimental and theoretical engineering approaches to investigate chromatographic separation problems and develop new materials and processes for bioseparation applications. Researchers are especially interested in studying the relationship between adsorbent characteristics, biomolecular structure, and mass transfer and in the optimization of process chromatography for the recovery, separation, and purification of biomolecules.

    Director: Giorgio Carta, Lawrence R. Quarles Professor of Chemical Engineering

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    Carta Group: Bioseparations Engineering at UVA
  • Cell-Signaling Bioanalysis Laboratory

    Changes in cellular behavior underlie development, disease, and tissue homeostasis. The response of cells to external factors depends upon posttranslational signals and changes in gene expression. These biomolecules are wired together in cells to form networks. Intracellular signaling and gene-expression networks are highly interconnected and time dependent, making them difficult to study and even harder to understand at the systems level. This lab designs new experimental and computational approaches for analyzing such networks. Researchers draw from engineering principles to inspire new techniques that can be applied to network-level questions about signal transduction and gene expression. The lab is particularly interested in using these methods for problems in cancer biology, where the molecular “signal processing” has gone awry and cellular responses are inappropriate.

    Director: Kevin Janes, Associate Professor of Biomedical Engineering

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    Cell-Signaling Bioanalysis Laboratory
  • Cell Signaling Engineering Lab

    Cell signaling is the biochemical process cells use to make decisions about virtually everything they do – migrate, differentiate, survive, die, and more. While proper signaling is critical to normal development and health, aberrant signaling leads to numerous diseases, including cancer. Thus, the ability to engineer signaling processes or intervene effectively in aberrant signaling has huge medical implications. This lab integrates experimental and computational methods to study fundamental aspects of cell signaling regulation and applied aspects of cell signaling including the efficacy of therapeutics that target particular signaling pathways in cancer.

    Director: Matthew J. Lazzara, Associate Professor of Chemical Engineering

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    Cell Signaling Engineering Lab
  • Choi Laboratory for Optoelectric Nanomaterials

    This research group aims to advance the fundamental understanding of relationships between the structure of semiconductor nanomaterials and their optical, electrical and magnetic properties. New insights obtained from our research enable development of novel semiconductor nanomaterials with tailored properties for next-generation solar cells, light-emitting diodes, medical imaging agents and spintronics.

    Director: Joshua Choi, Assistant Professor of Chemical Engineering

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    Choi Laboratory for Optoelectric Nanomaterials
  • Civelek Lab

    This laboratory’s goal is to understand the genetic mechanisms that lead to increased susceptibility to cardiovascular and metabolic diseases. The interactions among hundreds of genes and gene networks along with environmental factors such as diet affect our health status. This lab uses systems genetics to uncover this complexity.

    Director: Mete Civelek, Assistant Professor of Biomedical Engineering

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    Civelek Lab
  • Computational Materials Group

    This group’s research interests include computational materials science, development of multiple length and time-scale computational methods for materials modeling, theoretical and numerical analysis of the dynamic non-equilibrium processes in materials undergoing processing by short laser pulses, investigation of the microscopic mechanisms of phase transformations, and properties of nanostructured and non-crystalline materials.

    Director: Leonid V. Zhigilei, Professor of Materials Science & Engineering

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    Computational Materials Group
  • Computational Systems Biology Laboratory

    Understanding biochemical networks will lead to revolutionary advances in medicine and biotechnology. This lab uses computational and experimental approaches to characterize biological systems relevant to human disease. In particular, we reconstruct integrated cellular networks and develop tools to analyze their properties. The analysis of these networks requires sophisticated computing capabilities and advanced experimental and mathematical techniques.

    Director: Jason Papin, Professor of Biomedical Engineering

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    Computational Systems Biology Laboratory
  • Computing Hardware Research Lab

    The Computing Hardware Research Lab (CHRL) is led by Prof. Nikhil Shukla. The lab is dedicated to research in the areas of microelectronic devices and circuits and the development of new computing approaches to enable energy-efficient computation.

    Research Group
  • Davis Lab Group

    This lab is interested in developing new or improved catalytic materials by studying how the structure of a catalyst affects its performance in a chemical reaction. Heterogeneous catalysts prepared in the Davis laboratory are often composed of small metal particles supported on an oxide carrier. Since the metal particles expose a significant fraction of their atoms to the surface, the interface between the underlying support and the particle is expected to contribute to the overall rate and selectivity of a catalytic reaction.

    Director: Robert Davis, Earnest Jackson Oglesby Professor of Chemical Engineering

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    Davis Lab Group
  • Energy Science and Nanotechnology Lab

    This lab focuses on designing materials with altered thermal and electrical properties and new hybrid energy conversion devices. The main applications are in thermal management, semiconductor devices and energy conversion technologies, such as thermoelectrics.

    Director: Mona Zebarjadi, Assistant Professor, Electrical & Computer Engineering and Materials Science & Engineering

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    Energy Science and Nanotechnology Lab
  • Experiments and Simulations in Thermal Engineering (ExSiTE) Group

    The research for the ExSiTE group focuses on energy transport, charge flow, and photonic interactions with condensed matter, soft materials, liquids, vapors and their interfaces.

    Director: Patrick E. Hopkins, Associate Professor of Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering

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    Experiments and Simulations in Thermal Engineering (ExSiTE) Group
  • Floro Research Group

    This group’s research emphasizes synthesis and structural characterization of electronic materials and materials that self-assemble on the nanoscale. Researchers seek to grow novel materials, often metastable, that might exhibit unusual and beneficial functionalities for logic, magnetic, and thermoelectric applications.

    Director: Jerry Floro, Professor of Materials Science & Engineering

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    Floro Research Group
  • Flow Simulations Research Group

    The Flow Simulation Research Group focuses on understanding the physics of complex flows of flying and swimming in nature by combining state-of-the-art computational methods, experimental tools, and theoretical fluid dynamics research. Research is driven by the quests to answer questions both from fundamental fluid dynamics problems and from practical applications.

    Director: Haibo Dong, Associate Professor of Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering

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    Flow Simulations Research Group
  • Fluids Research & Innovation Laboratory

    The Fluids Research and Innovation Lab projects focus on unsteady fluid dynamics including micro- and nano-texturing coatings for self-cleaning, fluid dynamics and heat transfer of energy-storage systems, inlet aerodynamics of supersonic aircraft and inlet particle separators of helicopters, and bio-inspired morphing wind turbines to reduce offshore cost of energy.

    Director: Eric Loth, Chair, Department of Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering, Rolls-Royce Commonwealth Professor

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    Fluids Research & Innovation Laboratory
  • Ford Group

    This lab’s research focuses on the application of chemical engineering principles to problems in microbial ecology. The aim is to develop a fundamental understanding of mechanisms underlying microbial behavior, which will provide insights for future technological innovation. Research areas include biofilms, bioremediation, thermophiles and modeling tools.

    Director: Roseanne Ford, Professor of Chemical Engineering

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    Ford Group
  • Game Design Research Group

    This group focuses on the development and study of games that might provide solutions to broad societal issues. These issues vary widely and can include such things as enhancing education, raising awareness of cultural issues, crowdsourcing solutions to large-scale problems, or collecting data on how people collaborate.

    Director: Mark Sherriff, Associate Professor of Computer Science

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    Game Design Research Group
  • Geise Group

    The Geise research group seeks to develop structure/property/processing relationships to guide polymeric materials design for membrane-based liquid separation and energy applications by understanding the influence of nano- and molecular-scale interactions and phenomena on mass transfer and system-level performance.

    Director: Geoffrey Geise, Assistant Professor of Chemical Engineering

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    Geise Group
  • Gerling Touch Lab

    This lab’s two research areas are related to the fields of haptics, human-machine interaction, and computational neuroscience. Researchers are using computational models and artificial sensor correlates to understand the neural basis of touch and capture the neural behavior of the skin-receptor interaction. In addition, the work to understand the science of tactile perception is applied in the design of simulators. We are working with a group of clinicians and medical and nursing educators to create human-machine interfaces to train health care practitioners.

    Director: Gregory Gerling, Associate Professor, Systems Engineering

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    Gerling Touch Lab
  • Giri Group

    The Giri research group is focused on studying the fundamental processes (thermodynamic, kinetic, mechanical and optical) that lead to different organic molecule and metal organic framework morphologies, and utilizing this knowledge to create innovative methods of controlling microstructure and phase for pharmaceutical and energy applications. Microfluidics and X-ray diffraction analysis methods feature strongly in our program to study organic molecule packing and morphology.

    Director: Gaurav Giri, Assistant Professor of Chemical Engineering

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    Giri Group
  • Global Hydrology and Water Resources Group

    This research group focuses on analyses and solutions for problems in global hydrology and water resources using modeling and observations (both from in-situ and remote sensing). These problems include (but are not limited to) floods, droughts, permafrost, landslides and water supply. We use standard hydrological models and advanced techniques such as AI/ML.

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    Global Hydrology and Water Resources Group
  • Green Group

    The primary mission of the Green Research Group is to lead in the formulation of advanced nanocomposite materials. It is simpler and more cost effective to create new materials from existing components assembled in innovative systems. These new materials have the potential to exhibit enhanced mechanical, optical, thermal, or electrical properties depending on their formulation. Future applications of this research include the automotive, aerospace, product packaging or medical industries.

    Director: David Green, Associate Professor of Chemical Engineering

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  • Gupta Group

    Research is carried out in the area of high power laser applications for solar cell manufacturing, thermal solar, thermophotovoltaics, quantum dots based solar concentrators, laser microtexturing of surfaces etc. An NSF supported Industry/University Cooperative Research Center for an application of lasers in manufacturing was established in 2002.

    Director: Mool C. Gupta, Langley Distinguished Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering

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    Gupta Group
  • High-Performance Low-Power Lab

    This lab is dedicated to research in the area of very large-scale integrated circuit design. Ongoing research ranges from power-, temperature- and reliability-aware CMOS circuit design to explorations in spintronics and nanoelectronics.

    Director: Mircea R. Stan, Professor of Electrical & Computer Engineering

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    High-Performance Low-Power Lab
  • Hossack Lab

    This is a group seeking to develop and advance ultrasound as a platform for imaging and therapy. The group investigates microbubbles, cardiac imaging, bone imaging, intravascular ultrasound, microfluidics, photoacoustics and molecular imaging.

    Director: John Hossack, Professor of Biomedical Engineering

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    Hossack Lab
  • Human-Centric Data Mining Group

    This group uses data-driven techniques to model and understand the human-generated big data. Researchers are engaged in cutting-edge research of user behavior analysis and modeling, generative modeling of user-generated data, and online interactive learning with users.

    Director: Hongning Wang, Assistant Professor of Computer Science

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    Human-Centric Data Mining Group
  • Hydroinformatics Group

    This group’s research aims to address some of society’s most challenging water resources problems by understanding, analyzing, and managing water systems as cyber-physical systems. Current research focuses on designing and building next-generation flood warning systems, real-time adaptive control of smart stormwater systems, and river basin-scale water quality modeling and monitoring. We are part of the interdisciplinary Link Lab, a center of excellence in cyber-physical systems housed within the Engineering School at the University of Virginia.

    Director: Jonathan Goodall, Associate Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering

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    Hydroinformatics Group
  • Infrastructure Simulation, Sensing and Evaluation Laboratory

    Led by Devin Harris, the Infrastructure Simulation, Sensing and Evaluation Lab (I-S2EE) focuses on characterizing the performance and condition state of the built environment using techniques from both civil engineering and systems engineering. I-S2EE research has explored the domains of transportation infrastructure, smart and connected communities, cyber-physical systems, crowd-sourcing, and smart/high-performance materials.

    I-S2EE
  • Integrated Electromagnetics, Circuits and Systems Lab

    This lab’s research focus is on mm-wave and THz integrated systems, with applications in biomedical imaging, security and communication. Current research interests include holistic integration of high-frequency analog circuits, advanced digital circuits, and novel electromagnetic structures to enable the next generation of mm-wave applications, including adaptive mm-wave circuits as well as mm-wave power generation and radiation.

    Director: Steven Bowers, Assistant Professor, Electrical & Computer Engineering

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    Integrated Electromagnetics, Circuits and Systems Lab
  • Jefferson’s Wheel Security Research Group

    This group’s research seeks to empower individuals and organizations to control how their data is used. Researchers use techniques from cryptography, programming languages, machine learning, operating systems, and other areas to both understand and improve the security of computing as practiced today, and as envisioned in the future.

    Director: David Evans, Professor of Computer Science

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    Jefferson’s Wheel Security Research Group
  • Kelly Lab at UVA (Kim Kelly)

    The Kelly Laboratory is interested in analyzing how the various biological scales such as molecules, proteins, cells, and structures interact in both normal and abnormal states. We utilize a multidisciplinary approach with expertise in chemical biology, physiology, proteomics, molecular imaging, and nanotechnology to make fundamental discoveries that are linked to the diagnosis and treatment of disease.

    Director: Kimberly Kelly, Professor of Biomedical Engineering

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    Kelly Lab at UVA
  • Kelly Research Group (Rob Kelly)

    This group’s work includes studies of the electrochemical and chemical conditions inside localized corrosion sites in various alloy systems, corrosion in aging aircraft, atomistic and continuum modeling of electrochemical processes, development of embeddable corrosion microinstruments, as well as the use of microfabrication methods to probe the fundamentals of localized corrosion.

    Director: Robert G. Kelly, AT&T Professor of Engineering

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    Kelly Research Group
  • Koenig Research Group

    The Koenig Research Group investigates the design of new materials and material chemistries. This research involves the synthesis, characterization and evaluation of materials properties using a variety of techniques. The primary area of application that we focus on is rechargeable battery electrode materials.

    Director: Gary Koenig, Assistant Professor of Chemical Engineering

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    Koenig Research Group
  • Laboratory of Regenerative Therapeutics

    This is an interdisciplinary, translational research enterprise. The lab’s mission is to leverage cross-University collaborations to develop novel and more efficacious regenerative medicine/tissue engineering technologies for unmet medical needs. In particular, researchers are developing a technology platform for the treatment of volumetric muscle loss (VML) injuries. Researchers also endeavor to develop new biomaterials for enhanced muscle regeneration and neural innervation. The lab’s translational research efforts are enhanced by close integration/interaction with clinicians, most notably, the UVA Dept. of Orthopaedic Surgery.

    Director: George J. Christ, Professor of Biomedical Engineering and Orthopaedic Surgery, Mary Muilenburg Stamp Professor of Orthopaedic Research, Director of Basic and Translational Research in Orthopaedic Surgery

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    Laboratory of Regenerative Therapeutics
  • Lampe Biomaterials Group

    The Lampe Group develops biomaterials for neural tissue engineering. Researchers are interested in the big questions surrounding diseases and injuries of the central nervous system (CNS), performing highly interdisciplinary work at the interfaces of biology, chemistry, engineering, and neuroscience.

    Director: Kyle Lampe, Assistant Professor of Chemical Engineering

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    Lampe Biomaterials Group
  • The Lawrence Lab

    Understanding cell adhesive interactions in inflammation and coagulation will lead to improvements in diagnostic and therapeutic technologies. The Lawrence Lab has developed several model flow systems to examine the dynamics of blood cell interactions with the vessel wall. The lab also is developing applications of molecular mechanics to the challenges of targeted drug and gene delivery.

    Director: Michael B. Lawrence, Associate Professor of Biomedical Engineering

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    The Lawrence Lab
  • Machine Learning and Biomedicine Group

    This group's research is focused on developing novel machine-learning techniques on important challenges in biomedicine, especially those dealing with enormous data sets. Researchers strive toward building and sharing benchmarked datasets and open-source releases of research prototypes.

    Director: Yanjun Qi, Assistant Professor of Computer Science

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    Machine Learning and Biomedicine Group
  • Molecular Biomechanics Lab

    This lab’s goal is to understand the molecular mechanisms by which cells move, with particular emphasis on muscle contraction. Researchers examine the mechanics of these processes at the level of individual molecules using laser traps, fluorescence microscopy, and reconstituted motile and adhesive systems. These allow us to better define the molecular underpinnings of many cell movements, and the molecular basis of many diseases.

    Director: Will Guilford, Associate Professor of Biomedical Engineering, Associate Dean for Online Innovation

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  • Multiscale Muscle Mechanophysiology Lab

    Researchers in this lab are fascinated by skeletal muscles, which are the motors for all the wide range of voluntary movements in the human body. Each muscle’s properties are beautifully tuned for a specific function in the body, which can be easily disrupted by diseases such as muscular dystrophy, cerebral palsy, or in aging populations. This lab seeks to gain new insights into the form, function, biology, and diseases of muscles. Our work has the ultimate goal of improving treatments and quality of life for individuals suffering from muscle-related clinical problems.

    Director: Silvia Blemker, Associate Professor of Biomedical Engineering and Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering

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    Multiscale Muscle Mechanophysiology Lab
  • Nanoscale Heat Transfer Laboratory

    Dedicated to developing new techniques to assist in measuring, understanding, and utilizing nanoscale thermal phenomena, this laboratory’s research is aimed at developing a fundamental understanding of energy transport on ultra-short time and length scales. The lab conducts a mixture of fundamental and applied research.

    Director: Pamela M. Norris, UVA Engineering Executive Associate Dean for Research and Frederick Tracy Morse Professor of Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering

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    Nanoscale Heat Transfer Laboratory
  • Opila Research Group for High-Temperature Materials

    This group focuses on materials exposed to high temperatures and extreme environments such as hypersonic vehicles, combustion engines, and solid-oxide fuel cells. With a focus primarily on cutting-edge ceramics, alloys, and coatings, the group aims to investigate the fundamental mechanisms operating at high temperatures through a combination of experimental and characterization techniques.

    Director: Elizabeth J. Opila, Associate Professor of Materials Science & Engineering

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    Opila Research Group for High-Temperature Materials
  • Optical Multiuser/Multichannel Communications Lab

    The appeal of the optical medium for communications, its tremendous bandwidth, is only fully exploitable through multiplexing of many signals, in time, wavelength, or other domain. Our research explores the use of signal processing, communication theory, and optical techniques in designing high capacity optical multiuser/multichannel systems and networks.

    Director: Maite Brandt-Pearce, UVA Engineering Executive Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and Professor of Electrical & Computer Engineering

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  • Optoelectronic Device Group

    This group is focused on photonic devices and integrated photonic technologies for optical communications, sensing and the emerging field of microwave photonics. Recent work includes the development of high-power, high-speed photodiodes for photonic microwave generation, radar transmit and receive applications, and optical communications. Other projects are focused on design, fabrication, and characterization of InP-based photonic integrated circuits on a silicon photonic-electronic platform.

    Director: Andreas Beling, Assistant Professor of Electrical & Computer Engineering

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    Optoelectronic Device Group
  • Peirce-Cottler Laboratory

    Nearly every tissue in the body needs a blood supply, and that demand is met by a network of interconnected blood vessels called the microcirculation. The microcirculation is a highly adaptable system of small blood vessels that are a tenth of the diameter of a human hair–-you need a microscope to see them–-and there are over a million microvessels in a single gram of tissue. Microvascular growth and remodeling are important processes in nearly every major disease, including diabetes, heart disease, peripheral vascular disease, stroke, neurodegenerative diseases, and cancer. In the Peirce-Cottler Laboratory, researchers develop and use experimental and computational techniques to study and design new approaches for growing and regenerating injured and diseased tissues by manipulating the structure and composition of the microvasculature.

    Director: Shayn Peirce-Cottler, Professor of Biomedical Engineering

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    Peirce-Cottler Laboratory
  • Pervasive Communications Laboratory

    The research work in this lab focuses on cloud computing and datacenters, cyber-physical systems and the Internet of Things, big data, information retrieval, content delivery networks, mobile computing, wireless sensor networks, high-performance computing and social networks.

    Director: Haiying Shen, Associate Professor of Computer Science, Systems & Information Engineering and Electrical & Computer Engineering

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    Pervasive Communications Laboratory
  • Photonic Devices Group

    This group focuses on developing novel optoelectronic devices with emphasis on photodetectors. The research projects tend to fall into two broad areas: high-sensitivity photodetectors, e.g., avalanche photodiodes and high-power photodiodes.

    Director: Joseph Campbell, Lucien Carr III Professor of Electrical & Computer Engineering

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    Photonic Devices Group
  • Predictive Technology Laboratory

    Members of the Predictive Technology Laboratory design, implement and evaluate algorithms that predict future outcomes of interest based on historical data patterns.

    Director: Donald Brown, W.S. Calcott Professor, Systems & Information Engineering

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  • The Price Lab

    The Price Lab has two major areas of research interest: the use of image-guided focused ultrasound for targeted drug and gene delivery, and vascular biomechanics. The lab’s research is highly collaborative. Researchers work closely with UVA investigators in Radiology, the Human Immunotherapy Center, Neuro-oncology, and Cardiovascular Medicine, and the lab has a long-standing collaboration with investigators in the Johns Hopkins Center for Nanomedicine.

    Director: Richard J. Price, Professor of Biomedical Engineering, Radiology and Radiation Oncology

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    The Price Lab
  • Reacting Flow Lab

    Our primary research interests are in the area of theoretical and experimental combustion, with emphasis on understanding the fundamental interactions between fluid dynamics and finite-rate chemistry. Some of the current research projects include fuel coking in gas turbine engines and hypersonic engines, exploring new catalysts to mitigate coke formation, understanding soot formation mechanisms at high pressure, fundamentals of flame stabilization mechanisms in high-speed flows using recirculation regions, modeling chemical vapor infiltration process in SiC synthesis.

    Director: Harsha Chelliah, Professor

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    Reacting Flow Lab
  • Reinke Nanomaterials Group

    This research group is interested in a wide range of materials, including the wonderful 2-D materials graphene and MoS2, the classic Si-surfaces as templates for nanostructures, and the curious, and novel nanospheres which form when fullerenes are heated on a metal surface. This last project is part of the investigation of catalytically active W-carbide materials (currently funded by NSF-DMR ceramics).

    Director: Petra Reinke, Heinz and Doris Wilsdorf Distinguished Research Associate Professor of Materials Science & Engineering

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    Reinke Group for Materials Science at Surfaces
  • Robust Low Power VLSI Design Group

    This group investigates research topics related to modern VLSI design. Among the many challenges facing circuit designers in deep sub-micron technologies, power and variation are perhaps the most critical. Our group's focus is to confront these problems in a range of applications and different regions of the design space. Our specific research interests include low power digital circuit design, sub-threshold digital circuits, SRAM design for end-of-the-roadmap silicon, variation tolerant circuit design methodologies, and medical applications for low energy electronics.

    Director: Benton Calhoun, Professor of Electrical & Computer Engineering

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    Robust Low Power VLSI Design Group
  • Rotating Machinery and Controls Laboratory (ROMAC)

    The Rotating Machinery and Controls Laboratory (ROMAC) is an industrial research consortium that performs state-of-the-art research on turbomachinery design and performance. The Rotating Machinery and Controls Industrial Program supports cooperative research efforts conducted by faculty, staff, and students in various departments in the School of Engineering and Applied Science at the University of Virginia.

    Director: Houston Wood, Professor of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering

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    ROMAC Lab
  • ShiftLab

    In today’s society, data-centric computation is disrupting all aspects of our lives. With the rising volumes of data, systems must be able to store, analyze, and transform massive amount of data for useful computation. Unfortunately, computation today is bottlenecked by data storage and movement. The goal of ShiftLab is to design new systems to initiate a paradigm shift with a primary focus on rethinking and redesigning the current data and computation model and designing applications, systems and hardware in a holistic manner.

    Director: Samira Khan, Assistant Professor of Computer Science

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    ShiftLab
  • Signaling at the Nano/Bio Interface Lab

    The vision of biologically inspired systems has tremendously affected materials and sensing paradigms, but challenges remain towards independently localizing and tracking disparate nanoscale biochemical events. This lab specializes in applying pulsed (us-ns) and radio frequency (10 kHz – 100 MHz) electric fields within micro/nanofluidic devices for spatial manipulation and temporal analysis of biosystems.

    Director: Nathan Swami, Associate Professor and Graduate Program Director, Electrical & Computer Engineering

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    Signaling at the Nano/Bio Interface Lab
  • Skadron Lab

    Fundamental research focuses on foundations and applications of automata computing. The Automata Processor is a novel, massively parallel computational accelerator capable of 1-2 order-of-magnitude speedups within existing computer system form factors and power constraints. The work is aimed at accelerating solutions for big data challenges.

    Center for Automata Processing
  • Space Physics at UVA

    This group studies the physics and chemistry of energetic ion, electron and uv-photon interactions with surfaces and gases. The processes of interest are desorption and sputtering, the radiolysis and photolysis of surfaces, and atmospheric evolution. The motivation for these studies is to interpret observations in astronomy. Of particular interest is the coupling of the surfaces and atmospheres of the moons of Jupiter and Saturn with the trapped plasma in the planetary magnetospheres. Researchers also study photon and cosmic ray ion interactions with kuiper belt objects and with grains in the interstellar medium and in young stellar objects.

    Director: Robert E. Johnson, John Lloyd Newcomb Professor of Engineering Physics and Materials Science

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    Space Physics at UVA
  • Surface Materials Characterization for Devices

    This group is interested in synthesis and integration of materials for nanoelectronics and sustainable energy. Researchers seek to grow two dimensional, layered semiconductors with tunable properties designed to enhance, electronic, photovoltaic, and photocatalytic activity. They also study how these novel materials interface with insulators and metals since nano-device performance is often dominated by such interfaces.

    Director: Stephen J. McDonnell, Assistant Professor of Materials Science & Engineering

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    Surface Materials Characterization for Devices
  • Virginia Image & Video Analysis

    This lab concentrates on image analysis problems, with an emphasis on biological and biomedical image analysis. The research emphases of VIVA include tracking, segmentation, representation, retrieval, classification and enhancement.

    Director: Scott T. Acton, Professor of Electrical & Computer Engineering and Biomedical Engineering

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    Virginia Image & Video Analysis
  • Virginia Nano-Computing Group (VINO)

    This group’s focus is on understanding non-equilibrium properties of nano-scale material structures. The work applies a combined understanding of fundamental physics , chemistry, material science, and device engineering to explore novel device concepts. To address the challenges of extending today’s electronic devices to the next generation of devices, science can no longer work out of context to engineering, but rather both should work in tandem.

    Director: Avik Ghosh, Professor of Electrical & Computer Engineering

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    Virginia Nano-Computer Group
  • Wadley Research Group

    This group brings a fundamental materials perspective to the design and development of new high-performance materials. Researchers focus upon fundamental aspects of materials synthesis and processing, and the unraveling of linkages between the process created thermal, chemical and mechanical environment, the materials evolving 3-D structure and its eventual performance.

    Director: Haydn N. Wadley, University Professor and Edgar Starke Professor of Materials Science & Engineering

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    Wadley Research Group
  • Xu Research Group

    This group’s research is focused on mechanics in extreme manufacturing of functional materials, structures and devices, in particular nanoporous structures, solid-liquid functionalized materials, bioinspired flexible devices and structures and soft-hard material integration. The group has been actively working on nanomechanics at extreme conditions, including mechanics of liquids in nanoconfinements, nanofluidics in response to environments, and nanomechanical characterizations.

    Director: Baoxing Xu, Assistant Professor of Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering

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    Xu Research Group
  • Zangari Group

    Electrochemistry opens unique opportunities for materials synthesis and surface modification. Our group is developing the fundamental science and synthetic abilities necessary to tailor materials and device components to specification. Research efforts encompass the electrochemical deposition of metals, alloys and semiconductor materials, the formation of a variety of self-assembled nanostructures, as well as their integration in information storage, sensors and energy conversion devices.

    Director: Giovanni Zangari, Professor of Materials Science & Engineering

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    Zangari Group