Research
What POWER Stands For
Conversion
Transfer
Devices
Machines
& Integration
Building efficient, sustainable, and resilient electric energy conversion through the seamless integration of power converters, light-based power delivery, WBG semiconductors, electric machines, and reliability engineering.
Our work spans the full electric energy conversion chain for transportation electrification, aerospace, distributed energy resources, and AI data centers. Sponsors include NSF (CAREER), DOE ARPA-E (IGNIITE), DOE VTO, USDA NRCS, US Army DEVCOM GVSC, NASA, the SCMC Hub, and industry partners including BorgWarner, Hyundai Motors, and General Motors.
Explore Our Research
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Neutral-Point-Less (NPL) Multilevel Inverters
Our NPL inverter family (H-type and X-type) achieves three-level operation with a single DC-link capacitor, eliminating the neutral point entirely - improving efficiency and power quality without split-capacitor balancing.
Single-Stage Matrix Converters for DC Fast Charging & V2G
Direct AC-DC conversion without a bulky intermediate DC link enables compact, efficient DC fast chargers and vehicle-to-grid interfaces built on dual-gate bidirectional switches.
Wide-Bandgap Devices & Gate Drives
From GaN and SiC to UWBG and diamond electronics, we characterize emerging power devices and build the gate-drive technology to use them - including series-connected medium-voltage SiC stacks.
Rare-Earth-Free Electric Machines
High-power density wound-field synchronous and flux-switching machines that eliminate rare-earth magnets without sacrificing performance, supported by the NSF CAREER award and a broader circular-economy vision.
Multiphase & Fault-Tolerant Drives
Six-phase and dual three-phase machines and drives that keep spinning through open- and short-circuit failures - for aircraft, defense, and traction applications where failure is not an option.
Optical Power Transfer & OPUS Generators
Delivering power across isolation barriers and onto spinning rotors with light. Under ARPA-E IGNIITE (with a 2026 Director's Award plus-up), we develop Optically Powered Ultra-high-Speed wound-field synchronous generators and optically powered gate drives.
Partial Discharge & EMI in WBG Motor Drives
Fast-switching WBG inverters stress machine insulation with high dv/dt pulses. We develop measurement techniques, high-frequency models, and mitigation strategies - work recognized with the IEEE IAS Industrial Drives Committee Transactions First Paper Award.
Energy Systems & Applications
Our technologies reach the field: solar microinverters that soft-start irrigation pumps, electric drones and urban air mobility, power delivery for AI data centers, and second-life battery energy storage.