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Pilawa Research Group

Professor Robert Pilawa-Podgurski's Research Group at UC Berkeley

Nagesh Patle

Pilawa Group wins First Best Place Demo Award at ECCE!

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Graduate students Logan Horowitz, S. Tahmid Mahbub, Jiarui Zou, and Professor Robert Pilawa-Podgurski have received a First Best Place Demo Award at the recent 2024 IEEE Energy Conversion Congress & Expo. Their innovative thermal test vehicle design provides a dynamic platform that simulates the heat generation of high-performance GPUs and CPUs, allowing engineers to evaluate cutting-edge cooling technologies with greater precision. By improving the efficiency and effectiveness of data center cooling, the project will contribute to energy savings and sustainability for next-generation, hyper-efficient data centers.

BPEC Director Robert Pilawa-Podgurski Elevated to IEEE Fellow

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BPEC Director Robert Pilawa-Podgurski was elevated to IEEE fellow in the 2024 class, “For contributions to hybrid switched capacitor power converters”. IEEE Grade of Fellow is conferred by the Board of Directors upon a person with an extraordinary record of accomplishments in any of the IEEE fields of interest. The total number of fellows selected in any one year does not exceed one-tenth of one percent of the total voting Institute membership. Robert received his award at IEEE ECCE in Phoenix this past year. This is a great recognition of the all the hard work by past and present BPEC students!

Welcoming Our 2024 PhD Cohort: Emmi Wyttenbach, Shuyu Zhang, and Dennis Woo!

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Emmi (left), Shuyu (center), and Dennis (right)

We are pleased to introduce the newest members of our PhD cohort at the Pilawa Group: Emmi Wyttenbach, Dennis Woo, and Shuyu Zhang.

Emmi Wyttenbach joins us from Cornell University, where she earned her Bachelor’s degree in 2024. During her time at Cornell, she conducted power electronics research under Prof. Khurram Afridi, focusing on the development of active energy buffer solutions. Outside of her academic pursuits, Emmi is an avid soccer player and enjoys running and swimming.

Shuyu Zhang completed her Bachelor’s degree at Huazhong University of Science and Technology (HUST) in China in 2023, followed by Master’s studies at Stanford University before joining Berkeley. With a passion for Anime, comics, and games (ACG), Shuyu has been an active cosplayer at anime conventions since 2016. She also has a keen interest in photography.

Dennis Woo graduated from Stanford with a Bachelor’s degree in 2023 and a Master’s degree in 2024. His research background includes high-frequency power electronics and wide-bandgap semiconductor materials. Outside of work, Dennis enjoys exploring the outdoors,
and he spends his time with photography, soccer, volleyball, and climbing.

We look forward to supporting their growth and contributions to the group and are excited for the perspectives they bring!


EECS Grads win another IEEE COMPEL Best Paper Award

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EECS graduate students Yicheng Zhu and Jiarui Zou, and post-docs Ting Ge and Nathan Ellis have won the 2023 IEEE Control and Modeling for Power Electronics (COMPEL) Best Paper Award. Their paper, “A 48-V-to-1-V Switching Bus Converter for Ultra-High-Current Applications,” demonstrated a new dc-dc power converter topology and control technique for data center power delivery applications, capable of sourcing 1200 A of current at 1 V supply voltage. The hardware prototype used to validate the concept achieved the highest power density and efficiency combination of any prior work, academic or industrial. Next, the researchers are working with industry partners to transition this record-breaking concept to next-generation GPU/CPU computing platforms for AI and machine learning applications. IEEE COMPEL is the premier control and modeling conference for power electronics, having brought together world experts in the field for the last 24 years. Three best papers were selected this year from the total accepted 84 papers, based on originality, contribution to the field, and quality of presentation at the conference. 

Submitted by Matthew Santillan on September 26, 2023 – 11:34am

https://eecs.berkeley.edu/news/2023/09/eecs-grads-win-another-ieee-compel-best-paper-award

Welcoming Tahmid Mahbub to Our Research Group!

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We are delighted to introduce Tahmid Mahbub, who joins our research group at Cal after six years of invaluable industry experience at Apple. Tahmid’s journey from his undergraduate studies at Cornell University, where he was recognized as the Best Undergraduate Teaching Assistant, to his tenure at one of the world’s leading tech companies, underscores his passion for excellence and innovation.

Originating from Dhaka, Bangladesh, Tahmid’s early adventures in electronics, documented on his blog, reflect his innate curiosity and drive for exploration. Despite his demanding schedule, Tahmid finds joy in sports, particularly soccer (number 9), cricket, and tennis, as well as friendly competitions in games like Catan and FIFA.

Tahmid’s palate is as diverse as his interests, as he seeks out the best burrito spots in Berkeley and indulges in his love for Kacchi biryani. His affinity for the unconventional extends to his favorite getaway, Death Valley National Park, embodying his adventurous spirit and appreciation for the extraordinary.

As Tahmid embarks on this new chapter with us, we extend our warmest welcome and look forward to the exciting collaborations and discoveries that lie ahead. Please join us in welcoming Tahmid to our research family at Cal!