News Archive
2019 News Releases
December 13, 2019UC San Diego launches Institute for Materials Discovery and Design
We are pleased to announce the formation of the San Diego Institute for Materials Discovery and Design, a joint initiative of the Jacobs School of Engineering and Division of Physical Sciences at the University of California San Diego. Our goal is to position UC San Diego as the recognized global academic leader in nanoscale and quantum materials design and discovery. The Institute’s unique approach will be to apply data analytics and machine learning together with rapid materials synthesis and multi-scale characterization in order to accelerate the discovery, design, synthesis and evaluation of novel functional materials. Full Story
December 5, 2019UC San Diego Engineering Dean Albert P. Pisano inducted into National Academy of Inventors
Albert P. Pisano, professor and dean of the UC San Diego Jacobs School of Engineering, has been named a 2019 fellow of the National Academy of Inventors (NAI). UC San Diego bioengineering faculty affiliate Paul Citron and electrical engineering alumna Mihri Ozkan (Ph.D. ECE ‘01) are also among the 168 new fellows inducted into National Academy of Inventors (NAI) Fellows in 2019. Full Story
November 18, 2019Thermodynamics could be the future of computing, researchers say
As Moore’s Law reaches its limits, thermodynamic computing might prove to be the future of the field, says a new report from an international team of 38 researchers led by UC San Diego professor of practice Todd Hylton, released this month. Full Story
November 14, 2019UC San Diego Alumni Power San Diego Robotics Ecosystem
From companies worth billions of dollars to startups employing a small number of people, UC San Diego engineering alumni are at the core of the robotics ecosystem here in San Diego County.This was clearly evident at the sixth annual robotics forum organized by the UC San Diego Contextual Robotics Institute Nov. 7. The forum focused exclusively on local companies this year and was dubbed the San Diego Robotics Forum for the occasion. The goal was to showcase the breadth and depth of the region’s robotics strengths, and solidify San Diego’s reputation as Robot Beach. Full Story
November 12, 2019New chip for waking up small wireless devices could extend battery life
A new power saving chip could significantly reduce or eliminate the need to replace batteries in Internet of Things (IoT) devices and wearables. The so-called wake-up receiver wakes up a device only when it needs to communicate and perform its function, saving on power use. Full Story
November 7, 2019The Race to Stay Ahead of Wildfires
As if to keep up with the growing frequency and intensity of wildfires throughout California, a network of wildfire-spotting cameras grew from 35 stations last year to more than 300 as of late October. The ALERTWildfire system co-developed by UC San Diego is one of several products created by the university that are improving the technological capability of western states to deal with wildfires now that the once-rare catastrophic events are becoming commonplace. Jacobs School researchers are also working on this effort, developing drones to spot wildfires before they get out of control. Full Story
October 23, 2019Study provides framework for 1 billion years of green plant evolution
An international consortium of nearly 200 plant scientists, including engineers at UC San Diego, has released gene sequences for more than 1100 plant species, the culmination of a nine-year research project. The advance was made possible in large part thanks to the development of new computational tools for sequence assembly and phylogenetic analysis. Full Story
October 1, 2019Three UC San Diego Researchers Receive Top Honors with NIH Director's Awards
Three UC San Diego researchers have received prestigious awards through the National Institutes of Health (NIH) High-Risk, High-Reward Research Program, including the Pioneer Award and the New Innovator Award. Full Story
August 12, 2019Thinnest optical waveguide channels light within just three layers of atoms
UC San Diego engineers have developed the thinnest optical device in the world—a waveguide that is three layers of atoms thin. The work is a proof of concept for scaling down optical devices to sizes that are orders of magnitude smaller than today’s devices. It could lead to the development of higher density, higher capacity photonic chips. Full Story
August 8, 2019Forum heralds arrival of first stage of commercial 5G
“It is here.” That was the message from Sanyogita Shamsunder, vice president of Technology Development at Verizon, and the overall theme of the 2019 5G and Beyond Forum hosted by the Center for Wireless Communications at UC San Diego. After years of planning, testing and innovating, 5G has arrived, though there are still challenges to overcome before it’s ubiquitous. Full Story
July 23, 2019New Award and Symposium Commemorate Professor Emeritus H. H. Wieder
A new award and symposium established through the UC San Diego Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering honor the late Herman “Harry” Wieder, professor emeritus of Applied Physics at UC San Diego. An expert in solid-state electronics, quantum wells and superlattice materials and devices, Wieder was a leader in his field and created a lasting legacy by mentoring the next generation of scientists. Full Story
July 15, 2019IEEE Honors Daniel Sievenpiper with Prestigious John Kraus Antenna Award
The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) recognized Daniel Sievenpiper, a professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at UC San Diego, with the 2019 John Kraus Antenna Award. The award is granted to those whose research contributes to significant advances in antenna technology. Full Story
July 3, 2019Three UC San Diego Engineering Professors Receive Presidential Early Career Awards
Three faculty members at the University of California San Diego Jacobs School of Engineering have been named recipients of the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers, the highest honor bestowed by the U.S. government on scientists and engineers in the early stages of their independent research careers. Full Story
July 1, 2019In memory of Robert Hecht-Nielsen, an influential neuroscientist, entrepreneur and UC San Diego professor
Robert Hecht-Nielsen was an influential neuroscientist, entrepreneur, and electrical engineering professor at the University of California San Diego. He passed away in his sleep on May 26, 2019 in Del Mar, Calif. He was 71 years old. A pioneer in the development of neural networks, Hecht-Nielsen authored the first textbook on the subject, Neurocomputing, in 1989. Full Story
June 27, 2019Students recognized for smart wheelchair research at CHI
A team of undergraduates from UC San Diego won third place in the student research competition at the Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems (CHI) in Glasgow, Scotland. Their research aimed to understand the needs of wheelchair users, and develop an affordable, smart wheelchair kit with multiple levels of autonomy. Full Story