Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering

Join us in welcoming more than 50 new faculty to the Fulton Schools. These talented professionals bring skills and insights from leading laboratories and industry innovators across the nation and the world.

ASU Engineering introduces new faculty for 2024–25 The Fulton Schools is continually growing its teaching and research enterprise to increase the scope and impact of its educational programs and research initiatives.

Professor Xuesong Zhou leads an NSF-funded team developing an open-source system to help cities make equitable and sustainable multimodal mobility updates to transportation infrastructure.

Tackling traffic with open-source mobility solutions Research team’s open-source system helps cities make timely transportation and infrastructure updates to meet needs in equitable and sustainable ways.

📢 Attention all current students and alumni! 🎓 The Fulton Schools Career Fairs are just around the corner. This is your chance to connect with top employers in the industry. Whether you're looking to launch your career or take it to the next level, don’t miss this opportunity to network, explore job opportunities, and make valuable connections. See you there, Sept. 17-19 and Oct. 2! 🚀

We recently spoke with engineering students at the start of this new year to find out what they’re looking forward to the most. This is what aeronautical management technology major Alexander Flores had to say:

“I am looking forward to diving deeper into my major now that I am getting close to graduating in a year, as well as working alongside my professors, which will be beneficial for mentoring, opportunities and much more. Some of the goals I'm excited to pursue this year include internships to gain real-world experiences in the career I want to study, more social opportunities with the strong social network I have, and focusing on career exploration to have a better understanding of my professional interests and potential career paths with my major.”

Materials make the phone, computer and other daily products you cherish!

Yet, despite spending a significant amount of time, money and effort, materials scientists still have a limited fundamental understanding of materials' properties. Mainly because studying materials' properties is tedious and requires a great deal of intelligence that’s beyond most people.

Assistant Professor Qijun Hong received the 2024 CALPHAD Young Leader award for advancing autonomous materials research.

Hong uses CALculation of PHAse Diagrams, or CALPHAD, quantum mechanics and machine learning to autonomously predict materials’ properties years ahead of time.

“In 2015, I predicted a material with the highest melting temperature and it was later confirmed in 2020 through a lab experiment,” Hong says. “Using this material we can build more resilient engines for airplanes, rockets and other systems that work under extremely high-temperature environments.”

Discovering novel materials autonomously ASU researcher Qijun Hong is the third person ever to receive the CALPHAD Young Leader Award for advancing the discovery process of new materials.

Desert WAVE, an all-female robotics team, won first place in the Autonomy Challenge at the RoboSub international competition in Irvine, California. They were up against 41 teams from eight countries and earned their top spot by taking an innovative approach to the challenge.

The team won the competition using two robots in tandem to complete the required tasks. Those robots, Dragon and Baby Dragon, worked together to complete the missions. The team was one of few teams to risk adding another robot to its entry and it paid off as they scored nearly 70% higher than the next team in the final phase of the competition.

The team is a partnership between Arizona State University and the Si Se Puede Foundation. Its mission is to provide a supportive and engaging environment in which female engineering students can come together to advance their skills and accomplish amazing things. Congratulations to the team on their big win!

To learn more about Desert WAVE, please visit: https://www.desertwave.us/

Teamwork among students and robots wins international competition Desert WAVE, an all-female robotics team, wins international RoboSub competition using two robots in tandem.

Faculty members in the School of Computing and Augmented Intelligence, part of , are exploring applications of artificial intelligence, or AI, in the medical sector. They have received multiple grants, including from the National Science Foundation, to develop tech tools that create better treatment options for women.

The team in the IMPACT Lab seeks to combat bias in cardiovascular care, addressing the issue that when women need help for heart conditions, they often receive treatment based on studies conducted on men. The IMPACT Lab is also using AI to develop an automated insulin delivery system for Type 1 diabetic women who are pregnant.

“Our goal is to create health care smart systems that can benefit understudied populations,” says Sandeep Gupta, a professor of computer science and engineering in the Fulton Schools and head of the IMPACT Lab.

Using AI can improve health outcomes for women Team of ASU researchers receive multiple grants to develop tech tools to improve treatment options for women.

Endoscopes save many lives but have resolution and flexibility issues that hinder surgeons from operating effectively.

Sui Yang and Hamid Marvi, both researchers, received the 2024 ABRC New Investigator Award to apply their expertise in equipping surgeons with innovative tools.

Yang is developing a novel cardiac endoscope lens based on metamaterials; while Marvi is developing a robotic technology that will be a supporting hand to the endoscope during an endoscopic submucosal dissection operation.

Yang and Marvi's technologies have the potential to improve the well-being of Arizonans and beyond.

New technology developments to help surgeons save lives Sui Yang and Hamid Marvi receive the 2024 ABRC New Investigator Award to leverage their expertise in creating innovative tools to empower endoscopic surgeons.

Congratulations to Desert WAVE, or Women in Autonomous Vehicle Engineering, on taking first place in the 2024 international RoboSub competition.

The all-women autonomous underwater vehicle team competed against 41 other teams from eight countries.

Desert WAVE was one of the few teams to enter two robots that work in tandem: Dragon and Baby Dragon. They earned $6,000 for their efforts and are already planning for next year's event!

The team is a partnership between the Si Se Puede Foundation and Arizona State University. Its mission is to provide a supportive and engaging environment in which female engineering students can come together to grow and accomplish amazing things.

To learn more about Desert WAVE, visit their website: desertwave.us

The underlying technology of microelectronics and what it's like to work in this international industry is a mystery to many. As Arizona seeks to develop infrastructure and talent pipelines to strengthen the domestic microelectronics industry, this understanding is vital to its growth. is bridging this gap in many ways, including with a new faculty-led study abroad experience to help students connect with the field at a deeper level.

Over the summer, 14 Fulton Schools students experienced firsthand the technology, people and culture of the thriving microelectronics industry in Taiwan. The students saw how the Taiwanese capital, Taipei, leverages its place in the microelectronics industry, which includes one of the most advanced semiconductor companies, TSMC. The company is currently building fabrication facilities in the Phoenix metropolitan area.

A related course will also be offered at the ASU Tempe campus in spring 2025. As the industry continues to evolve in Arizona and the U.S., instructor Robert Monahan says his course will help students better understand what is happening and how it will affect their studies.

“My goal is for students to know that working in the microelectronics industry is not just an in-demand career path with good pay, but is critical for humans to thrive in the modern world,” Monahan says. “If they know this, I think they’ll be more likely to pursue it with confidence and excitement.”

ASU cybersecurity researchers are busy crafting a reverse engineering solution that will secure existing cyberphysical systems in as little as a month. Satellites, HVAC systems, smart irrigation systems and even the Amazon Echo are examples of cyberphysical technology and concern is growing that these systems are vulnerable to attack.

To secure these systems, a team led by Assistant Professor Tiffany Bao in the School of Computing and Augmented Intelligence, part of , has been awarded a $15 million grant from the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, or DARPA, under the Faithful Integration, Reverse-engineering, and Emulation, or FIRE, program.

“There’s a lot of equipment in use that was not built with cybersecurity in mind,” says Bao, who notes that aging technology is deployed in many scenarios. “Being able to secure those cyberphysical systems, and to do that as soon as possible, is an important aspect of keeping us all safe.”

The team includes Associate Professors Adam Doupé, Yan Shosh*taishvili and Fish Wang, as well as Assistant Professors Zilin Jiang and Giulia Pedrielli, all faculty members in the Fulton Schools. The project is also supported by the Global Security Initiative, or GSI. Bao is an associate director in GSI’s Center for Cybersecurity and Trusted Foundations.

ASU team creates fast tools to secure cyberphysical systems Cyberphysical systems, like satellites and drones, are everywhere. ASU faculty members are working to secure them — quickly.

As data storage needs skyrocket, ensuring the accuracy and security of cloud data becomes increasingly critical.

Krishnendu Chakrabarty, the Fulton Professor of Microelectronics at ASU's Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering, is at the forefront of addressing a hidden challenge in cloud computing: silent data corruption, or SDC. This phenomenon can lead to undetectable errors and data loss in cloud data centers, which house countless servers and process enormous amounts of information.

In tackling this problem, Chakrabarty and his team at the ASU Center for Semiconductor Microelectronics are pioneering the use of generative artificial intelligence, or AI, techniques for better quality control testing.

Supported by the Driving Innovation in SDC Mitigation Award from the Open Compute Project Foundation, the team will work to improve quality assurance testing and understand the source of SDCs to ensure data stays safe and sound.

Diagnosing data corruption ASU researcher awarded by the Open Compute Project to improve microchip quality assessments.

The underlying technology of microelectronics and what it's like to work in this international industry is a mystery to many. As Arizona seeks to develop infrastructure and talent pipelines to strengthen the domestic microelectronics industry, this understanding is vital to its growth. is bridging this gap in many ways, including with a new faculty-led study abroad experience to help students connect with the field at a deeper level.

Over the summer, 14 Fulton Schools students experienced firsthand the technology, people and culture of the thriving microelectronics industry in Taiwan. The students saw how the Taiwanese capital, Taipei, leverages its place in the microelectronics industry, which includes one of the most advanced semiconductor companies, TSMC. The company is currently building fabrication facilities in the Phoenix metropolitan area.

A related course will also be offered at the ASU Tempe campus in spring 2025. As the industry continues to evolve in Arizona and the U.S., instructor Robert Monahan says his course will help students better understand what is happening and how it will affect their studies.

“My goal is for students to know that working in the microelectronics industry is not just an in-demand career path with good pay, but is critical for humans to thrive in the modern world,” Monahan says. “If they know this, I think they’ll be more likely to pursue it with confidence and excitement.”

Gaining a global microelectronics perspective ASU engineering students embarked on a new study abroad experience in Taiwan to gain a wider understanding of the history and technology of microelectronics.

More than 20 high schoolers recently got a hands-on preview of some of the advanced technological knowledge and skills that will soon be taught to students in the newest of ASU's Fulton Schools of Engineering.

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/eyeing-future-high-tech-ira-a-fulton-schools-of-engineeri-f3grc/

Climate change is an existential threat to humanity.

Associate Professor Matthew Green and Mani Modayil Korah, an postdoctoral fellow, were recently named semi-finalists in the competition for the Direct Air Capture Pre-Commercial Technology Prize from the U.S. Department of Energy!

The team won $100,000 in cash and $50,000 in technical assistance to support their commercialization efforts of a novel technology to remove carbon dioxide directly from the atmosphere!

“We were one of the seven teams selected out of 93 applicants, and are excited for the award because it brought a lot of traction to our research,” says Korah.

“This award validates the efficiency and scalability of our approach. It could be one of the solutions that helps save the planet,” Green adds.

ASU researchers develop new tech to help mitigate carbon emissions Mani Modayil Korah and Matthew Green receive support from the U.S. Department of Energy to curb climate change through innovative carbon capture technology.

Fulton Schools Associate Professor Chao Wang is developing a novel manufacturing method to revolutionize the production of ultrathin nanophotonic devices for researchers.

Traditional fabrication methods are often expensive and slow, but Wang’s team has developed a scalable approach using nanoimprint lithography and 3D scaffolding. This method allows for the rapid prototyping and production of complex metasurfaces, drastically cutting down the time and cost.

This breakthrough not only paves the way for advanced optical devices but also holds immense potential for various fields, from energy to medical devices. Wang’s research is poised to transform how we approach chip production, making it more accessible and scalable.

Scaling down manufacturing dimensions to scale up chip production ASU researcher Chao Wang developed an accessible manufacturing method for researchers to prototype and produce ultrathin nanophotonic devices.

Students in the School of Computing and Augmented Intelligence, part of , are turning old tech into new tunes.

Through ASU classes, rising computer science junior Aivery Onstott has discovered a passion for circuit bending.

“Many people think engineers aren’t creative,” Onstott says. “But really engineering is the perfect place for creativity. The field can be a great intersection of abilities. It’s a place where you can use your technical skills to make art."

The classes, taught by Seth Thorn, a clinical assistant professor in ASU's School of Arts Media and Engineering, teach students to bend, break and remake circuit boards, turning them into highly original musical instruments.

Thorn says circuit bending might be used to help attract new students to technical careers. Bending provides a fun way to connect with microelectronics and Thorn often finds that it can stimulate interest in electrical engineering.

“The class gives people permission to tinker and explore without being concerned about failure,” Thorn says. “Students do things by accident and get incredible results.”

Circuit bending connects computer science and creativity Through innovative analog music, students and faculty challenge the cliché that engineers aren’t creative.

As the Center for Teaching Old Models New Tricks winds down, its team brings its open-source data dashboards and insights on changes in travel behavior, factors that impact travel demand and influence policy decisions to a new national center. 🚲 🚉 🚌 🚗

TOMNET builds a legacy of data, innovation and student success As federal funding for the TOMNET University Transportation Center ends, the team brings advanced data dashboards and policy insights to benefit the sector.

researcher Ying-Cheng Lai thrives on working with complicated data and understanding chaos to advance human goals. His research focuses on how to make computing systems more capable of dealing with dynamic data, or information that changes over time.

Lai is taking inspiration from human memory to develop a dynamic system of machine learning memory using reservoir computing. The system can take in data, recognize and store patterns, and then project out those patterns over time.

This approach can help solve new problems previously seen as impossible with traditional static approaches. Dynamic machine learning memory could help us better use information from the past to predict the future in cases such as electric grid failures or critical climate change tipping points.

Lai worked with an interdisciplinary team to use biological memory strategies that work for humans to test new, sophisticated machine learning strategies.

Human brains teach AI new skills ASU electrical engineering researcher Ying-Cheng Lai is using psychological principles of human memory to improve machine learning strategies for dynamic data.

Recent doctoral graduates Raha Moraffah and Zahra Zahedi are a testament to the determination in the School of Computing and Augmented Intelligence, part of , to foster excellence in its doctoral programs. This fall, Moraffah will assume a tenure-track faculty position at the Worcester Polytechnic Institute while Zahedi begins her career as a scientist at the Honda Research Institute.

“The program teaches you to be a leader,” Moraffah says.

Meanwhile, Rolando Garcia returns to the School of Computing and Augmented Intelligence to serve as the school’s ASU Presidential Postdoctoral Fellow. The past recipient of a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship and a Berkeley Chancellor’s Fellowship will continue his innovative machine learning research.

Doctoral students cruise into roles as computer engineering innovators Recent computer science doctoral students leave as leaders while past graduates carry on tradition of mentorship.

Gedeon Muhawenayo, a doctoral student in the School of Computing and Augmented Intelligence, part of the Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering at Arizona State University, is on the front lines of artificial intelligence, or AI, research, helping tackle the planet’s most pressing problems.

Muhawenayo recently attended Data Science Africa Summer School, held on the campus of Dedan Kimathi University of Technology in Nyeri, Kenya, where hundreds of students, industry professionals and academics from all over the world collaborated on the theme of "Data Science for Social Good in the Age of Generative AI."

At the event, Muhawenayo led a machine learning for remote sensing workshop, training fellow graduate students on how to deal with large sets of Earth observation data as part of efforts to promote food security.

"Many African countries are prone to a wide range of natural hazards that strain the most vulnerable communities, particularly smallholder farmers," he says. "Advancements in machine learning can support ways to increase harvests for these communities, especially in the face of challenges posed by climate change."

Emerging machine learning expert leads Kenya AI workshop ASU computer science student Gedeon Muhawenayo is on the front lines of AI research, helping tackle the planet’s most pressing problems.

At the spring 2024 student convocations, the School of Computing and Augmented Intelligence awarded 1,824 new degrees, celebrating one of the largest computer science graduating classes in the country and the largest in the history of the Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering at Arizona State University.

Director Ross Maciejewski is hard at work, plotting a future course to ensure that graduates remain in demand in the workforce, that the school continues its research mission and the dedicated faculty members are well-supported in their efforts.

ASU Regents Professor Douglas Montgomery, a thought leader in systems engineering who joined the Fulton Schools in 1987, remembers the past and looks forward to the future.

“While I am proud of all we have accomplished thus far,” Montgomery says, “I am excited to see what develops and I know Ross Maciejewski is the right choice to guide us to the next stage of our evolution.”

Computer science school celebrates record number of graduates The School of Computing and Augmented Intelligence works to ensure graduate success and program momentum.

Associate Professor Xiangyang D**g, is conducting research that seeks to develop next-generation lightweight materials, offering new design opportunities and providing flexibility in decentralizing energy storage to meet the increasing power demands of vehicle electrification.

Energizing the future of electric vehicle transportation ASU Associate Professor Xiangyang D**g’s research, supported by an NSF CAREER Award, investigates a process to manufacture carbon fibers into structural batteries.

"If all classrooms were designed like the ones in CAVC, innovation in teaching would happen at a much faster pace," says Professor Keith Hjelmstad in describing the appeal of the College Avenue Commons building, home of the School of Sustainable Engineering and the Built Environment, part of the Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering at ASU. CAVC’s attributes as a teaching and learning environment are among an array architectural, design and construction features that faculty members and students say CAVC contributes to their pedagogical pursuits.

Enhancing education through built environment and construction artistry Teachers and students credit the features of the College Avenue Commons building for enhancing their communal engineering education experiences.

Starting in fall 2024, a new professional doctorate degree program will be offered by The Polytechnic School to enable students to use their experience in the information technology field to advance their leadership skills.

The Doctor of Information Technology program is the first of its kind in Arizona and will help advance the industry. Studies to earn the degree can be completed in three years. Upon graduation, students will have the opportunity to advance in their careers as senior technology managers, consultants, researchers and chief information officers in fields like business, education, government and non-profit organizations.

ASU launching Doctor of Information Technology degree program in fall 2024 A new Doctor of Information Technology degree will provide students the opportunity to leverage industry experience for career advancement.

✈️ Starting in fall 2024, will offer a new graduate course where students will collaborate with Honeywell Aerospace Technologies to help solve current challenges in aerospace engineering.

At the end of the semester, if a team's solution is chosen, the members will have the opportunity to receive an extra 100 days with industry experts to further develop their solution and bring it to fruition.

"This experience is important for Honeywell Aerospace Technologies as much as it is to the students," says Andrea Cherman, a Fulton Schools assistant teaching professor of technology entrepreneurship and management. "Employees and students will learn from each other and grow."

The curriculum is designed to be interdisciplinary, drawing students from programs such as aerospace, mechanical, human systems and electrical engineering, information technology, data science, robotics and automation, and technological entrepreneurship and management, among others, with the goal of fostering a rich exchange of ideas and perspectives. Through a series of workshops and direct collaboration with industry professionals, students will not only develop technical solutions but also learn to navigate the complexities of bringing these innovations to market.

New 3D bone atlas: A pair of researchers at Arizona State University are combining the powers of software engineering and forensic science to tackle a difficult, growing problem: elder abuse.

Kevin Gary, an associate professor of software engineering in the School of Computing and Augmented Intelligence, part of the Ira A. Fulton Schools of Engineering at Arizona State University, and Katelyn Bolhofner, an assistant professor of forensic anthropology in ASU’s School of Interdisciplinary Forensics, have created software that will help experts tell the difference between accidental bone fractures and those that are the result of intentional harm or neglect.

The next step is to develop artificial intelligence tools to flag possible instances of abuse and spot patterns.

ASU team creates 3D bone atlas to stop elder abuse Researchers combine forensic and engineering expertise to create a tech tool to help identify bone fractures.

Starting in fall 2024, a new graduate course will be offered by where students will collaborate with Honeywell Aerospace Technologies to help solve current challenges. All parties involved are excited to see what solutions are developed over the course of the semester.

ASU students to learn industry skills firsthand in a new entrepreneurship course A new course launching in fall 2024 will provide students an opportunity to work directly with experts to determine new ways to work on industry challenges.

Researchers often need tech that doesn’t yet exist to make groundbreaking discoveries, and sometimes, they need to incorporate tools from other fields. Fulton Schools Associate Professor Yu Yao is redesigning the polarimetric microscope by making it smaller, faster and more user-friendly.

Yao's innovation holds potential for numerous fields — from medicine and manufacturing to agriculture and even space exploration! She’s seeking collaborators to push the boundaries further and tailor the technology for niche applications.

“There is so much we can do,” Yao says. “We just need to prove it.”

Quest for microscopy advances aims to boost high-tech capabilities ASU researcher You Yao is reimagining polarimetric microscopes to expand the use of the technology to more engineering and science pursuits.

ASU experts are endeavoring to inform the public about the dangerous rise in deepfakes. A group of interdisciplinary researchers, including Professor Subbarao Kambhampati, Professor of Practice Ajit Maan and Research Assistant Professor Michael Barlev, considers the future political and social ramifications of deepfakes.

Deepfakes — highly convincing but fake images, videos and voice recordings generated using artificial intelligence — are being used to scam workers out of millions of dollars, victimize teenagers by using phony pictures and even trick Katy Perry’s mother into believing that the singer attended the 2024 Met Gala. Meanwhile, the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency believes deepfakes may amplify risks to the country’s election infrastructure.

“The world is in a period of great change,” Kambhampati says.

ASU researchers discuss the implications of deepfakes An interdisciplinary group across three schools considers the future political and social ramifications of deepfakes.