ECE Professors Collaborate on Cross-Disciplinary DARPA Project for Photonic Devices
Professors Houman Homayoun and Jeremy Munday in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering collaborate on an interdisciplinary project for faster, more effecient switchable photonic devices.
Marina Leite, a professor in the Department of Materials Science and Engineering, leads the effort, which received a $1 million investment from the U.S. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. The project explores how hybrid perovskites may solve the sluggish performance issues in switchable photonic devices — devices that are important for attaining information about the visible spectrum beyond primary colors, among other benefits.
To aid with identifying the optimal chemical compositions of the hybrid perovskites and to predict their specific optical performances, Homayoun will develop novel machine learning algorithms for Leite and her research group to use as needed, while Munday will provide his expertise in engineering the fundamental interactions between light and matter.
"Cross-disciplinary collaboration is critical for the success of our project," Leite said, "because we are proposing a solution to a longstanding problem in the field of photonics that requires knowledge in distinct areas, encompassing materials research, machine learning, light-matter interactions and device design."