Graduation

The Pilawa Group is proud to celebrate the graduation of Sahana Krishnan, Rod Bayliss III, and Francesca Giardine, who have each earned their Doctor of Philosophy degree in Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences from UC Berkeley.

Advised by Professor Robert Pilawa-Podgurski, all three researchers made significant contributions to the field of power electronics and presented impactful dissertation defenses during the Spring 2026 semester.

Sahana Krishnan successfully defended her dissertation, “Power Dense DC-DC Converters for Electric Transportation: Design Optimization and Practical Considerations,” on April 29, 2026. Her research focused on the design and implementation of advanced converter architectures for transportation electrification, addressing practical challenges associated with achieving high power density and efficiency.

Rod Bayliss III defended his dissertation, “Dynamical Modeling and Control Design for the Flying Capacitor Multilevel Converter in High-Density, High-Efficiency AC/DC and DC/AC Applications,” on April 22, 2026. His work advanced the understanding and control of flying capacitor multilevel converters for next-generation high-performance power conversion systems.

Francesca Giardine defended their dissertation, “Analysis and Operation of Flying Capacitor Multilevel Converters: Single-Phase Applications and Fundamental EMI Scaling,” on April 24, 2026. Their research provided new insights into the operation of flying capacitor multilevel converters and the scaling of electromagnetic interference in these systems.

Throughout their time at Berkeley, Sahana, Rod, and Francesca were valued members of both the Pilawa Group and the broader BPEC community, contributing not only through their research accomplishments but also through mentorship, collaboration, and service to fellow students.

Following graduation, Sahana will join Rivian & Volkswagen Group Technologies, Rod will join NVIDIA, and Francesca will continue advancing their research as a postdoctoral scholar in the Pilawa Group.

We congratulate Sahana, Rod, and Francesca on this important milestone and look forward to their continued contributions to the fields of power electronics and energy conversion.

Graduate student Rahul Iyer received his Doctor of Philosophy degree in Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences on May 24th, 2025. His dissertation was titled “Dynamical Modeling and Control of the Flying Capacitor Multilevel Converter.” Post-graduation, Rahul will begin working at Tesla, Inc. on the Power Electronics Controls for Energy Products team. Congratulations!

Graduate student Yicheng Zhu received his Doctor of Philosophy degree in Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences on May 18th, 2024. His dissertation was titled “High-Performance Hybrid Switched-Capacitor Power Converters: Circuit Topologies, Control Techniques, and Analytical Models.” Congratulations!

Graduate student Rose Abramson received her Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences on May 18th, 2024. Her dissertation was titled “Split-Phase and Multi-Resonant Operation of Hybrid Switched-Capacitor Converters.”

Graduate student Sahana Krishnan received her Master of Science degree on May 14th, 2024. Her master’s thesis is titled “An EMI-Compliant and Automotive-Rated 48 V to Point-of-Load Dickson-Based Hybrid Switched-Capacitor DC-DC Converter.” Congratulations!

Graduate students Kelly Fernandez and Maggie Blackwell successfully delivered their dissertation talks and graduated this December. Kelly’s talk was titled “High-Performance Grid-Tied Single-Phase Power Converter Design with Applications in Electric Vehicle Charging and Residential Photovoltaic Systems”, and Maggie’s talk was titled “Switching Strategies for Hybrid Switched-Capacitor DC-DC Power Converters.” Congratulations to our BPEC graduates!