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(7)
Ph.D., 2025
|
Dr. Zhuoran Han, 
Ph.D. Thesis: Diamond Power Electronics for the Next Generation Electric Grid(May, 2025)
Awards: TOP DOWNLOADED ARTICLE (IEEE EDL x 2) ; National Hall of Fame Collegiate Inventors Competition Silver Medalist; Andrew T. Yang Research and Entrepreneurship Award in ECE ; ECE Distinguished Research Fellowship ; Promise of Excellence Fellowship.
Post-PhD Appointment: Display Technology Engineer, Apple Inc., CA, USA
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(6)
Ph.D., 2025
M.S., 2022
|
Dr. Yu-Chieh Chiu,
Ph.D. Thesis: Scaling to Submicron for III-Nitride Optoelectronics Devices: Applications in Micro Light Emitting Diodes and Resonant Tunneling Diodes (May, 2025)
M.S. Thesis: Absolute Internal Quantum Efficiency of Indium-Gallium Nitride Based Light Emitting Diodes (Dec., 2022)
Awards: UIUC ECE Nick and Katherine Holonyak, Jr. Outstanding Research Awardee ; Applied Physics Letters Editor’s Pick 2022 ; Redbull Paper Wings US Champion ; UIUC ECE 443 LEDs and Solar Cells Crosslight Best Project Awardee.
Post-PhD Appointment: Panel Process Integration Engineer, Apple Inc., CA, USA
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(5)
Ph.D., 2025
|
Dr. Jaekwon Lee,
Ph.D. Thesis: Cubic III-nitrides for photonics: Physics, Materials, and Devices (May, 2025)
Awards: UIUC Graduate College Conference Travel Grant; Stanford Energy Postdoctoral Fellow ; TOP DOWNLOADED ARTICLE (JOSA B, IEEE EDL, IEEE TED) ; National Hall of Fame Collegiate Inventors Competition Silver Medalist; SPIE Optics and Photonics Scholarship ; Mavis Future Faculty Fellow ; Siegman School on Lasers Travel Grant ; UIUC ECE Nick and Katherine Holonyak, Jr. Outstanding Research Awardee ; Applied Physics Letters Cover Article ; Applied Physics Letters Editor’s Pick 2024 ; Journal of the Optical Society of America B Editor’s Pick 2023 ; Applied Physics Letters Editor’s Pick 2022 ; UIUC ECE 443 LEDs and Solar Cells Crosslight Best Project Awardee ; Promise of Excellence Fellowship.
Post-PhD Appointment: Stanford Energy Postdoctoral Fellow, Stanford University, CA, USA
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(4)
Ph.D., 2022
|
Dr. Yi-Chia Tsai,
Ph.D. Thesis: Theoretical Exploration of Efficiency Droop Mechanisms in III-nitride Visible Light Emitting Diodes (May, 2022)
Awards: Campus Nominee for CGS/ProQuest Distinguished Dissertation Award Competition , UIUC ECE Nick and Katherine Holonyak, Jr. Outstanding Research Awardee , Honorable Mention in the Lighting R&D Student Poster Competition, Shun Lien Chuang Memorial Award for Excellence in Graduate Education , ACS Omega Front Cover Article , UIUC ECE 443 LEDs and Solar Cells Crosslight Best Project Awardee.
Post-PhD Appointment: Senior Software Algorithm Engineer, ASML Corporation, CA, USA
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(3)
Ph.D., 2020
M.S., 2017
|
Dr. Richard Daniel,
Ph.D. Thesis: Cubic Phase Gallium Nitride Photonics Integrated on Silicon(100) for Next Generation Solid State Lighting (Aug., 2020)
M.S. Thesis: Structural and Optical Properties of Phase Transition Cubic Phase Gallium Nitride for Photonic Devices (Dec., 2017)
Awards: Lemelson-MIT Student Prize Graduate Finalist , National Hall of Fame Collegiate Inventors Competition Finalist , SPIE Optics and Photonics Education Scholar , UIUC Graduate College Image of Research Semi-finalist , UIUC Graduate College Travel Grantee for Dissertation Research , UIUC College of Engineering Yunni & Maxine Pao Memorial Fellow , UIUC ECE Nick and Katherine Holonyak, Jr. Outstanding Research Awardee , CS MANTECH Best Student Paper Awardee , CS MANTECH Travel Awardee , NSF Graduate Research Fellow , NASA Space Technology Research Fellow.
Current Appointment: Section Manager – Electronic Materials and Devices, Aerospace Corporation, CA, USA
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(2)
Ph.D., 2020
|
Dr. Kihoon Park,
Ph.D. Thesis: Investigation of Generation, Dissipation, and Transport of Heat in GaN Materials for Advanced High-Power Devices (May, 2020)
Awards: UIUC ECE Gregory Stillman Semiconductor Research Awardee , List of Teachers Ranked as Excellent by Their Students (2019 Fall, ECE 444, TA, 2019 Spring, ECE 443, TA, 2018 Fall, ECE 444, TA, 2018 Spring, ECE 443, TA).
Current Appointment: Software Engineer, Intel, Hillsboro, OR, USA
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(1)
Ph.D., 2020
|
Dr. Hsuan-Ping Lee,
Ph.D. Thesis: Al2O3-passivated AlGaN/GaN High Electron Mobility Transistors on Si(111) Towards Reliable Terahertz Electronics (May, 2020)
Awards: UIUC ECE Gregory Stillman Semiconductor Research Awardee , List of Teachers Ranked as Excellent by Their Students (2019 Fall, ECE 444, TA, 2019 Spring, ECE 443, TA, 2018 Spring, ECE 443, TA), UIUC ECE Ernest A. Reid Fellow , CS MANTECH Travel Awardee , UIUC Graduate College Conference Travel Grant
Current Appointment: Staff Data Scientist, Intel, Hillsboro, OR, USA
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(20)
Undergraduate
Researcher
B.S., 2026
|
Jason Li,
B.S. in: Engineering Physics & Electrical Engineering
Awards: NSF Graduate Research Fellow ; Knights of St. Patrick ; IEEE Electron Devices Society Undergraduate Student Scholarship ; Undergraduate Research Symposium Oral Presentation Honorable Mention ; Astronaut Scholarship Foundation Scholarship ; NSF REU Recipient ; Samsung Technology Track Scholarship ; UIUC Office of Undergraduate Research Research Support Grantee ; GCOE Engineering Visionary Scholarship (x2); GCOE Illinois Engineering Outstanding Scholarship (x2); Kevin Allwin Shrote Scholarship.
Post-graduation Appointment: Ph. D. Candidate, University of California Santa Barbara, CA, USA
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(19)
Undergraduate
Researcher
B.S., 2026
|
Dhruv Dilbaghi,
B.S. in: Electrical Engineering
Awards: Floyd E. Lundgren Scholarship in Electrical Engineering ; Ellery B. Paine Award ; Samsung Technology Track Scholarship ; O. Thomas and Martha S. Purl Scholarship ; John and Sheila Woythal Scholarship ; Nick and Katherine Holonyak, Jr. Rising Senior Scholarship ; Ellery B. Paine Outstanding Junior Award.
Post-graduation Appointment: Ph. D. Candidate, University of California Berkeley, CA, USA
|
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(18)
Undergraduate
Researcher
B.S., 2026
|
Sarah Wilson,
B.S. in: Electrical Engineering
Awards: The Grainger College of Engineering Illinois Scholars Undergraduate Research (ISUR) Program ; Sandia National Laboratories Center for Integrated Nanotechnologies Summer Research Program.
Post-graduation Appointment: Early Commissioning Agent, WSP Global Inc. , NY, USA
|
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(17)
Undergraduate
Researcher
B.S., 2025
|
Matthew Wang,
B.S. in: Electrical Engineering
Awards: UIUC ECE 443 LEDs and Solar Cells Crosslight Best Project Awardee; Samsung Technology Track Scholarship.
Post-graduation Appointment: Ph. D. Candidate, University of California Los Angeles, CA, USA
|
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(16)
Undergraduate
Researcher
B.S., 2024
|
Phuvit Thirasuntrakul,
B.S. in: Electrical Engineering
Awards: IEEE Electron Devices Society Undergraduate Student Scholar ; Gulf Coast Undergraduate Research Symposium Travel Awardee ; Omron Electrical Engineering Scholar ; Samsung Technology Track Scholar ; Dr. Milton Feng Scholar ; O. Thomas and Martha S. Purl Scholar.
Post-graduation Appointment: Manufacturing Engineer, Analog Devices, Thailand
|
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(15)
Undergraduate
Researcher
B.S., 2024
|
Aleksai Herrera,
B.S. in: Electrical Engineering
City, Country (of Origin): IL, USA
|
|
(14)
Undergraduate
Researcher
B.S., 2024
|
Colin Shan,
B.S. in: Materials Science and Engineering (Minor in Electrical Engineering)
Awards: Gulf Coast Undergraduate Research Symposium Travel Awardee ; REU Recipient ; UIUC Office of Undergraduate Research Conference Travel Awardee ; Earl J. Eckel Scholar.
Post-graduation Appointment: Ph.D. Candidate, Stanford University, CA, USA
|
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(13)
Undergraduate
Researcher
B.S., 2023
|
Patrick Sear,
B.S. in: Electrical Engineering
Post-graduation Appointment: M.S. Candidate, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, IL, USA
|
|
(12)
Undergraduate
Researcher
B.S., 2022
|
Alkesh Sumant,
B.S. in: Electrical Engineering
Senior Thesis: Hydrogen-terminated Diamond MOSFETs for Power Electronics (May, 2022)
Current Appointment: Ph. D. Candidate, University of California Santa Barbara, CA, USA
|
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(11)
Undergraduate
Researcher
B.S., 2021
|
Anna Miller,
B.S. in: Electrical Engineering
Awards: NSF Graduate Research Honorable Mention ; NSF REU Recipient.
Post-graduation Appointment: Ph.D. Candidate, Stanford University, CA, USA
|
|
(10)
Undergraduate
Researcher
B.S., 2020
|
Jarod Meyer,
B.S. in: Materials Science and Engineering
Awards: NSF Graduate Research Honorable Mention ; Gulf Coast Undergraduate Research Symposium Outstanding Presentation Trophy , Gulf Coast Undergraduate Research Symposium Travel Awardee , UIUC Office of Undergraduate Research Conference Travel Awardee , NSF REU Recipient.
Post-graduation Appointment: Ph.D. Candidate, Stanford University, CA, USA
|
|
(9)
Undergraduate
Researcher
B.S., 2019
|
Dennis Rich,
B.S. in: Electrical Engineering & Engineering Physics
Senior Thesis: Application of Controlled Spalling to Thin-film Lithium Niobate Transducers (Dec., 2018)
Awards: NSF Graduate Research Fellow ; SPIE BACUS Scholar , UIUC ECE Bardeen Undergraduate Awardee , University of Illinois Campus Churchill Scholarship Nominee , UIUC ECE Robert C. MacClinchie Scholar , UIUC Office of Undergraduate Research Research Support Grantee , Michael E. Napier Memorial Awardee , UIUC Campus Honors Program Summer Research Grantee , Goldwater Scholar.
Post-graduation Appointment: Ph.D. Candidate, Stanford University, CA, USA
|
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(8)
Undergraduate
Researcher
B.S., 2018
|
Josephine Melia,
B.S. in: Engineering Physics
Awards: UIUC Office of Undergraduate Research Research Support Grantee , IEEE Photonics Conference Women in Photonics Travel Grantee.
Current Appointment: Application Engineer, Applied Materials, CA, USA
|
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(7)
Undergraduate
Researcher
B.S., 2017
|
Josh Perozek,
B.S. in: Electrical Engineering (Minor in Materials Science and Engineering)
Senior Thesis: Thin-film GaN HEMTs For Flexible Electronics (May, 2017)
Awards: NSF Graduate Research Fellow , Gulf Coast Undergraduate Research Symposium Travel Awardee , UIUC Office of Undergraduate Research Conference Travel Awardee , UIUC College of Engineering Scholar , UIUC ECE A. R. “Buck” Knight Awardee , UIUC ECE Distinguished Research Fellow , UIUC Illinois Distinguished Fellow , NSF Graduate Research Honorable Mention.
Post-graduation Appointment: Ph.D. Candidate, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, MA, USA
|
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(6)
Undergraduate
Researcher
B.S., 2017
|
Ryan Grady,
B.S. in: Electrical Engineering
Senior Thesis: Simulation of Zinc-blende Gallium Nitride High Electron Mobility Transistors For Normally-off Operation (May, 2017)
Awards: UIUC ECE Robert C. MacClinchie Scholar , UIUC ECE A. R. “Buck” Knight Awardee , NSF Graduate Research Fellow.
Post-graduation Appointment: Ph.D. Candidate, Stanford University, CA, USA
|
|
(5)
Undergraduate
Researcher
B.S., 2017
|
Taiming Zhang,
B.S. in: Electrical Engineering
Post-graduation Appointment: M.S. Candidate, Stanford University, CA, USA
|
|
(4)
Undergraduate
Researcher
B.S., 2017
|
Estelle Kao,
B.S. in: Engineering Physics
Post-graduation Appointment: Product Development Engineer, Intel, Folsom, CA, USA
|
|
(3)
Undergraduate
Researcher
B.S., 2016
|
Kai Zhang,
B.S. in: Electrical Engineering
Current Appointment: Researcher, AMO GmbH, Aachen, Germany
|
|
(2)
Undergraduate
Researcher
B.S., 2016
|
Begum Kasap,
B.S. in: Electrical Engineering
Senior Thesis: Optimization of Off-State Breakdown Voltage in GaN High Electron Mobility Transistors (May, 2016)
Current Appointment: Ph.D. Candidate, University of California, Davis, CA, USA
|
|
(1)
Undergraduate
Researcher
B.S., 2016
|
Philip Tsai,
B.S. in: Electrical Engineering
Senior Thesis: Normally-off GaN Transistors (May, 2016)
Post-graduation Appointment: Process Engineer, Texas Instruments, Dallas, TX, USA
|
|
(1)
Postdoctoral Research Associate
2020-2022
|
Dr. Muhammad Ali Johar,
Project Title: Cubic Gallium Nitride on Silicon as a Scalable Platform for Advanced Energy Devices
Current Appointment: Manager V – Process Engineer, Applied Materials, Santa Clara, CA, USA
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