ECE Researchers Represented on Three 2020 MURI Awards

Electrical and computer engineering (ECE) researchers are members of three highly competitive 2020 Multidisciplinary University Research Initiative (MURI) awards. The Department of Defense (DoD) announced it will issue 26 awards totaling $185 million to academic institutions to perform multidisciplinary basic research. The University of Maryland tied with the University of Illinois for the highest university representation on the list.

The MURI program complements other DoD basic research efforts that support traditional, single-investigator university research grants. By supporting multidisciplinary teams with larger and longer awards in carefully chosen and timely research topics identified for their long-term importance, DoD and the military services enhance the potential for significant and sustained advancement of the research in critical areas.

The ECE researchers represented on the 2020 grants are:

Professor Mohammad Hafezi (ECE/PHY/IREAP/JQI/QTC) is a member of the team that will investigate “Photonic High Order Topological Insulators.” This effort, sponsored by the Office of Naval Research (ONR), is led by Gaurav Bahl at the University of Illinois.

Distinguished University Professor Tom Antonsen (PHY/ECE/IREAP) and Professor Phil Sprangle (PHY/ECE/IREAP) are members of a team that will investigate “Fundamental Limits of Controllable Waveform Diversity at High Power.” This effort, sponsored by the Air Force Office of Scientific Research (AFOSR), is led by Edl Schamiloglu at the University of New Mexico.

Distinguished University Professor Rama Chellappa (ECE/UMIACS/CS) and Tom Goldstein (CS/UMIACS/ECE) are members of the team that will explore “Mathematical Methods for Deep Learning.” This effort, sponsored by the ONR, is led by Richard Baraniuk at Rice University.

Over the past 30 years, DoD’s MURI program resulted in significant capabilities for our military forces and opened up entirely new lines of research.

Published March 2, 2020