Dr. Muhammad Adeel Ahmed Pasha’s work revolves around implementation of novel computer architectures on VLSI systems, including efficient deployment of machine learning algorithms. This is a beautiful merging together of algorithm and hardware. The hardware design also follows a highly technical algorithm. Such systems are at the lower edge of miniaturized devices and foray into the realm of post-Moore electronic architectures. It is important that these systems remain reconfigurable, parallelizable, draw minimal power and are robust and fault tolerant.

His work focuses on these very aspects. Besides, Dr. Adeel has considered several notable applications for these devices, e.g., in smart energy grids and internet-of-things (IoT) technologies. Therefore, the research output straddles from architecture to applications, from concept to devices---truly outstanding. 

His research in embedded systems, very-large-scale-integration (VLSI) systems and low-power architectures, has been termed as “revolutionary” and “ground-breaking”. With eighteen journal publications (including about four submitted articles) in the world’s topmost journals associated with the ACM and IEEE and two book chapters, notably one published in the Lecture Notes for Computer Science series, Dr. Adeel’s work is inspiring.

Dr. Adeel Pasha’s striking characteristic is his ability to teach both theory and laboratory courses, especially computer architectures, embedded systems and digital systems design. He has excelled in teaching too and was recipient of the Department's Distinguished Teacher Award. At the moment, he is also leading the EE Department's efforts in industrial liaison and partnerships.

When did machines start learning? Well, from the moment you start scrolling Facebook, to the umpteenth selfie that still doesn’t look right – the sophisticated electronic highways inside your modern smart devices and computers are busy creating sense from patterns. Machine learning is the great filter through which we get precise search results that are no longer limited to text queries but have expanded to pictures and videos. Couple data science with chipsets that are getting exponentially complex, and we have a recipe for some mind-blowing results!

Enter EE 212: Mathematical Foundations for Machine Learning and Data Science – a course offered for Fall 2021 by Dr. Zubair Khalid from the Department of Electrical Engineering at SBASSE. This exciting course reveals the elegant fabric of technology, knitted by strong mathematical and statistical skills and fundamental computing training. There are limited slots to fill and a lot of exciting, scenic routes on this technological journey; a highway to machine learning and data science.

Complete course details (including course outline) here: EE212 Mathematical Foundations for Machine Learning and Data Science 2021 (zubairkhalid.org)

Don’t wait, apply today!

 

Taught by complex series of numbers, words, and symbols (aka coding) and powered by millions of tiny electrical impulses, each a decision unto itself, robots can finally rise from their digital crypts and simply, move!

This course, instructed by Dr. Abubakr Muhammad and Dr. Talha Manzoor, is a sinuous tour that follows deep grooves of motion planning algorithms, mathematical modelling, kinematic and dynamic capabilities of robot systems and the role of sensors, actuators, computation, and control in building an autonomous robot. This course attempts to bridge the theoretical gap between low-level regulatory control and high-level AI in robots – you cannot miss it!

Register for the course here: https://bit.ly/3l6kDKC

Find more courses here: https://sbasse.lums.edu.pk/course-advertisements

Like sunlight for plants, our technology lives off the electrons flowing in and out of a well charged battery, eager to supply power into miniature electronic circuits, bringing the silicon to life! Batteries – this course is all about batteries!

Join this course to learn how this wonderful invention breathes life into tech. Take a panoramic view of battery operations, modelling and ageing. We will start with the electric equivalent circuit model followed by physics based models. We will then cover the battery dynamics and state space models. Battery Management Systems will be introduced. The reliability and degradation analysis of batteries and how we can estimate the health and useful life of the battery will be discussed. Finally, we will study important use cases of battery energy storage systems and how the batteries are integrated in the practical systems. Explore ways to supercharge battery tech to enable better, more efficient performance.

Your guides for this journey will be Dr. Naveed Ul Hassan and Dr. Ijaz Haider Naqvi.

Register for the course by following this link: https://bit.ly/3l6kDKC

Find more courses here: https://sbasse.lums.edu.pk/course-advertisements

Enhanced Thermal and Moisture Stability of the Emerging PVs while using Discotic Liquid Crystals

Supervisor: Dr. Ammar Ahmed Khan at the Department of Physics 

Energizing solar cell technology 

How strange does ‘flowing crystals’ sound? It seems at the heart of key scientific discoveries lie nature’s most well-kept secrets, tied up nicely with a bow of non-intuition; such is the existence of DLC i.e., discotic liquid crystals. Supervised by Dr. Ammar Ahmed Khan, Ms. Qurat ul Ain has worked with a next generation of materials that are more potent in catching and harnessing light to be converted into electricity, compared to contemporary technology. This leap of faith can be summed up into three words: perovskite solar cells.

 

Investigating the Role of Proteins in Disease and their Treatment with Drugs

Supervisor: Dr. Safee Ullah Chaudhry at the Department of Biology 

Uncovering protein structures

Trillions of cells need a multi-trillion economy of well-kept proteins, safe metabolic environments, and reliable understanding of their complex interactions with drugs. Ms. Kanzal Iman, under supervision of Dr. Safee Ullah Chaudhry, proposes to uncover the structure of these important proteins, through developing better computer programs that do the heavy lifting by bypassing less efficient ways current software applications have in place. In other words, her project aims to develop software that works smarter, rather than harder. This will potentially unlock ways in understanding disease prevalence and eventually the drug interactions involved in treatment.

 

Designing the Cellular Core for Ultra-Low Latency Communication-based Applications

Supervisor: Dr. Zafar Ayyub Qazi at the Department of Computer Science 

Cellular without speed limits 

Can research rid the world of lag in communication technology? Mukhtiar Ahmad may have an answer! Supervised by Dr. Zafar Ayyub Qazi, Mr. Mukhtiar is working on thinking about cellular network systems from the ground up that can provide extremely low latency, enabling wide scale prevalence of mind-blowing technologies that may have a groundbreaking impact on many fields, ranging from medical science to online gaming. These applications require higher reliability and ultra-low latency, in the order of 10 ms. Mr. Mukhtiar Ahmad aims to re-design the cellular networks to support low latency communication-based applications.

 

Noninvasive Blood Glucose Monitoring System using Single Wavelength NIR Spectrometry

Supervisor: Dr. Wala Saadeh at the Department of Electrical Engineering 

The future of monitoring diabetes

Imagine measuring blood sugar levels without pricking any part of the skin. Ms. Aminah Hina’s project is all about developing a non-invasive blood glucose monitoring system. Although the product idea itself isn’t new. The market is saturated with portable gluco-meters and few companies even offer wireless blood glucose monitoring support. However, the caviat is their price – these devices are expensive! Ms. Aminah Hina, along with Dr. Wala Saadeh, propose a cheaper alternate. Pakistan is amongst the list of countries with highest prevalence of diabetes. Approximately 19 million Pakistanis have been diagnosed with diabetes in the year 2020. The research project of Ms. Aminah is poised to address this large fraction of Pakistani adults as well as some fraction of the Pakistani youth that suffers from both sub-types of the disease. 

 

Evaluation of Protective Immune Response Induced by Pneumococcal Conjugate Vaccines (PCV-10) in Individuals with Type 2 diabetes

Supervisor: Dr. Shaper Mirza at the Department of Biology 

Easy breathing for diabetics 

Diabetes is bad enough. Patients suffering this terrible illness have an additional risk of running into frequent respiratory tract infections. Since the immune response of the body is already attenuated in diabetics, the risk posed by additional infections is much greater than in healthy individuals. This is exactly where Mr. Izaz Ahmad’s proposal sprouts hope. Izaz Ahmad is studying the effects of a potent vaccine made for the bacterial culprit responsible for such respiratory disease – bacteria Streptococcus pneumoniae. His study will measure impact of the body’s immune response to PCV10 (the vaccine under investigation) in individuals with type 2-diabetes and figure out whether these responses are comparable between individuals with and without type 2-diabetes. The study will be the first to demonstrate efficacy and immunogenicity of pneumococcal conjugate vaccine in those with type 2-daibetes in Pakistani population. 

 

Read more about these awards here: https://sbasse.lums.edu.pk/syed-babar-ali-research-awards-sbasse#link-d

 

New students from the Department of Electrical Engineering’s Masters program attended an orientation session, which was a meet and greet between students and faculty members. The event also welcomed ten NECOP Fellows.

 

 

An informal discussion session on the basics of thesis writing preceded refreshments and the subsequent demonstration of a blood glucose measuring device that worked without pricking the skin, a joint project of LUMS and University of Glasgow. 

This event took place on Friday, 29th October 2021 at SBASSE.

“And then, there was light”. A vital component in peering through the deepest secrets of the universe we live in, light has been at the forefront and background of much of 20th century’s biggest discoveries. The research work around light has given many bright minds of our times the accolades we have come to know and love them for. A worthy mention here would be Dr. Albert Einstein’s Nobel prize, which was awarded for his breakthrough explanation for the photoelectric effect.

The keyword here is photonics. It is a hybrid between physics and engineering and deals with the generation, propagation, manipulation, control, and detection of light within the ‘optical’ region of the electromagnetic spectrum. This course provides a comprehensive introduction into this important field, from Maxwell’s equations to the level of photonic components and building blocks such as lasers, amplifiers, modulators, waveguides, and detectors. This course is divided into two parts: Fundamentals and applications. The fundamentals include Maxwell’s equations and wave propagation. The applications include nonlinear optics, electro-optics, and acousto-optics.

This course is offered together by the Department of Physics and Electrical Engineering at SBASSE, LUMS.

This course teaches scientists and engineers that clarity of mind about a research project enables effective verbal and written communication. This will help students to become effective scientific writers and communicators. Topics include, Clear science thinking, reading and reviewing a research paper, conducting an effective literature review, writing effective abstract, introduction, and conclusion sections of a paper/thesis. This course is being taught by Dr. Imran Cheema who is associated with the Department of Electrical Engineering at SBASSE, LUMS.

 

Objectives of the course: 

This course aims to teach graduate students essential elements of conducting research that includes developing a clear student's thinking about a research problem, reading and reviewing a research paper, and conducting an effective literature review. Also, techniques for clear and persuasive writing of a research paper/thesis will be taught.

Check the course listings for all offered courses.

How frequently has the human race created turning points for itself in recorded history? Agriculture is one of them – technology is another. Your entire digital existence and conundrums rest on the microscopic highways inside an integrated circuit. A capturing graphic, an important email, a memorable video – all is made possible by the inner workings of a tiny, tiny integrated circuit (IC). The School of Science and Engineering at LUMS hosted a a one-day roundtable, “IC Design in Pakistan” on Friday, December 24, 2021, to discuss and reflect on the future of this magnificent invention.

Micro-processors (that are the brains of all computing systems, e.g., desktops, laptops, cell phones, etc.), image processing circuits (that power the display systems, e.g., computer monitors, overhead projectors, television sets, cinema screens, etc.), and the sensors that are used in wearable and implanted medical devices, all of these rely on the function of IC. These microelectronic devices also enable the mounting use of artificial intelligence (AI) that is reaching new horizons in applications such as autonomous vehicles, machine vision, industrial automation, and natural language processing. 

Notable people from the realms of academia as well as the industry in Pakistan participated in the roundtable as panelists and brainstormed on the future and feasibility of strengthening the IC Design education and research in Pakistan. The discussion was led by Prof. Asad Ali Abidi who is the Distinguished Chancellor’s Professor at UCLA and Abdus Salam Chair at the Syed Babar Ali School of Science and Engineering (SBASSE). This roundtable also provided a unique opportunity for different stakeholders in IC Design Discipline in Pakistan to interact with each other to come up with a workable solution to manage the sub-critical mass problem in IC Design Education in Pakistan.



Dr. Sajid Baloch, Director General National Electronics Complex (NECOP), Pakistan; Dr. Naveed Sherwani,  CEO RapidSilicon; Dr. Bilal Zafar, Founder and CEO 10xEngineers; Dr. Yasir Qadri, GM NECOP, and Mr. Ashraf Nisar, GM RapidSilicon were among the industrial panelists. Similarly, Dr. Rashad Ramzan, FAST-NUCES, Islamabad; Dr. Arsalan Jawed, PAF-KIET, Karachi (over Zoom); Dr. Hammad Cheema, RIMMS, NUST, Islamabad, and Dr. Muhammad Tahir, UET, Lahore, were among the panelists from academia. LUMS had the largest IC Design faculty share in the roundtable with Dr. Shahid Masud, Dr. Wasif Tanveer Khan, Dr. Wala Saadeh, Dr. Awaib Bin Altaf and Dr. Adeel Pasha. 

One of the major highlights of the roundtable were live interviews with the leading experts in IC Design who soughed the seeds of IC Design revolution in India, Iran and Egypt. These globally renowned experts were Dr. Venu Gopinathan, ex-Director of Kilby Labs, Texas Instruments, Bangalore; Prof. Ali Fotowat, Sharif University, Tehran, and Prof. Emad Hegazi, Ain-Shams University and founder, SysDSoft (acquired by Intel), Cairo.

Dr. Abubakr Muhammad (Chair, Department of Electrical Engineering), Dr. Sabieh Anwar (Dean, School of Science and Engineering) and Dr. Tariq Jadoon (Acting Provost) also graced the occasion with their presence. Dr. Adeel Pasha was the principal organizer of the event. 

 

Receiving a Distinguished Teaching Award or Outstanding Service Award is one of the highest recognitions for faculty at any academic department. The Department of Electrical Engineering at LUMS congratulates Dr. Ijaz Naqvi and Dr. Muhammad Tahir for receiving respectively the Outstanding Service and Distinguished Teaching awards for the period 2018-2021.

In the several nominations received by colleagues this year for Dr. Ijaz Naqvi, some have fondly called him the 'godfather' and the 'guardian angel' of our graduate programs. MS and Ph.D. programs at EE started in 2012 with Dr. Naqvi's involvement from conception to launch. Some years later, he assumed the leadership role of the Graduate Program Coordinator (GPC), which he holds until today. The graduate programs went from strength to strength under Dr. Naqvi's leadership, with the growth of our student body, courses, and graduate streams. From day-to-day issues of the graduate students regarding enrollment and course selection to advisement and well-being, he has dedicated himself to lending unbounded services to MS and Ph.D. students. COVID has brought bigger and newer challenges for the students spanning health, accessibility, academics, and financial issues. Dr. Ijaz and his GPC colleagues have dedicated countless hours to resolving individual cases and helped them sail through this difficult period. He has been active on many fronts at the school- and university-level graduate program initiatives. Together with Dr. Naveed-ul-Hassan, he spearheaded a year-long effort in 2021 from which have emerged several proposals for new MS programs for the department and the school. Dr. Naqvi is an internationally recognized researcher in advanced communication systems and a brilliant teacher. His last offering on battery management systems is a window into the brave new world of electric vehicles, renewables, IoT's and complex engineering design. A silent contributor and an extremely humble person, Dr. Ijaz dedicates his achievements to all of his colleagues at EE DGPC and to the hardworking EE staff.

Dr. Muhammad Tahir is someone who is truly, as they say, 'a sage on the stage' and 'a guide on the side' for our undergraduate and graduate students. In addition to brilliant classroom teaching, Dr. Tahir is being recognized for his extraordinary mentorship to both graduate and undergraduate students. The summer research training that he voluntarily organizes every year is a brilliant demonstration of how to blend undergraduate teaching and mentorship with cutting-edge research. Cultivating active student engagement both inside and outside of the classroom, he is a popular instructor who remains the go-to person that the department's undergraduate students turn to for advice. Dr. Tahir is a brilliant researcher in the hot areas of decision theory and statistical inference. He applies his mathematical and engineering skills to urban planning, transportation, biomedical systems, and acoustics. He has been a leader in offering outstanding services to the university, most visibly as the convener of our department's undergraduate program committee. Whether one wants to conduct a survey, organize a student orientation session, track a student’s parents in an emergency or convey a message, Tahir’s office is usually the chair’s first stop before ringing any other office. Like Dr. Ijaz, Dr. Tahir is a role model for excellence in academic scholarship, innovative teaching, and selfless service. He is an avid reader of philosophy, science, and Urdu poetry.  

The department would like to thank our colleagues from the two awards committees, both led by Dr. Jahangir Ikram. The teaching award nomination has been made with the help of Dr. Momin Uppal, Dr. Adeel Pasha, and Dr. Zubair Khalid. The service award nomination has been made with the help of previous awardees Dr. Nadeem Khan and Dr. Wasif Tanveer Khan.