ECE is proud to welcome Dr. Clark Nguyen, professor and former EE chair in the Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences (EECS) Department at the University of California at Berkeley, for two seminars in two days. He’ll present a technical talk and a career talk.
“Nanometer-Gap MEMS-Based Frequency Control”
Thursday, April 3 at 2:00pm
NVIDIA Auditorium
1000 Malachowsky Hall
Add to Calendar
Abstract
The use of mechanics to set and shape signal frequency content is ever-present in applications that permeate society, from the oscillators that tell time and synchronize communications to the front-end filters that outright enable our smartphones. Microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) have played no small role in the advancement of these capabilities, and this technology continues to shape what’s to come. Specifically, MEMS-based oscillators using nano-scale transducer gaps have come a long way, from early days when smaller was simply deemed less stable, to today’s devices that sport frequency stabilities capable of challenging atomic clocks in certain application spaces. Since good frequency stability generally permits excellent sensors, it is not surprising that sensors have recently taken center stage for this technology. Here, nano-scale approaches to suppressing environmental interference, e.g., due to temperature changes, may soon enable leaps in capabilities, such as faster brake response and hydrogen tank health monitoring for future fuel cell vehicles, both of which benefit from sensors that can operate over wide temperature ranges. Meanwhile, on the signal processing front, mechanical circuit approaches employing periodic switching over nanometer-scale gaps have lowered communication dynamic range requirements to levels that now permit low-bit-rate all-mechanical radios that can listen continuously with no battery drain, only consuming power when valid bits arrive.
This talk will use examples like the above to chronicle how small-gapped MEMS-based frequency control technology has and continues to transform intelligent system capabilities.
“A Graduate Degree and Courage Make for a Fun Career”
Friday, April 4 at 11:00am
NVIDIA Auditorium
1000 Malachowsky Hall
Add to Calendar
Abstract
Why get a graduate degree? How many M.S. or Ph.D. graduates would have still chosen to do this had they known about the challenges and the enormous amount of work involved? Whatever the answer, it’s a good thing I did not know (and did not care) when I was starting. And if you feel the same way, you will probably have a fun career.
My career has taken me from my graduate degree to numerous enriching paths that allowed me to teach brilliant students, conduct research alongside them, start the company that ignited the MEMS timing industry, take on the presidency of an IEEE society, navigate a department chair position at UC Berkeley, and serve in Washington, DC for the benefit of my research community and the larger science and technology community.
Yes, lots of fun! Perhaps the most important takeaway for those just starting their own journey is that none of this was planned. It was all simply a product of conscientious work (that brought opportunities), then being brave enough to take opportunities when they presented themselves and having the faith and perseverance to make things work.
Using my own career as a backdrop, this presentation will try to convince you to ignore the fear of failure or of wasting time (which I believe never happens) and just go for it when facing what initially looks like a tough road ahead.
Biography
Prof. Clark Nguyen is a Professor in the Electrical Engineering and Computer Sciences (EECS) Department at the University of California at Berkeley, where he recently finished a term as the Electrical Engineering Chair of the EECS Department and is now returning to research on micromechanical signal processing. He is the Founder of Discera, the first company to commercialize MEMS-based timing, which was acquired in 2013 and whose products are still sold in volume by Microchip. Prof. Nguyen served from 2002 to 2005 as a Program Manager in DARPA/MTO, served from 2016-2017 as the President of the IEEE Ultrasonics, Ferroelectrics, and Frequency Control Society, and presently serves as the President of the IEEE MEMS Technical Community. He is an IEEE Fellow and recipient of the 2006 IEEE Cady Award, the 2017 IEEE Bosch MEMS Medal, and was a Distinguished Lecturer for the IEEE Solid-State Circuits Society from 2007-2009.