The center aims to advance the future of high-power, high-frequency technologies by combining semiconductor fabrication and characterization with the power of Artificial Intelligence. Our focus is on ultrawide bandgap (UWBG) semiconductors—materials designed to perform under extreme conditions of heat, radiation, and corrosion, while enabling next-generation devices with unprecedented speed and efficiency.
Beyond discovery, the center is building a pipeline of future technology leaders by training graduate students, undergraduates, and postdoctoral researchers. Within this decade, our goal is to establish our institution as a leader in UWBG semiconductor research.
The center is organized into three interconnected efforts:
1. Fabrication & Processing – creating novel UWBG heterointerfaces through advanced growth, doping, and processing strategies.
2. Characterization – pioneering scanning probe microscopy methods to probe UWBG materials at the nanoscale.
3. AI-Driven Modeling – developing material-aware AI models to accelerate understanding and design of UWBG heterostructures.
This research is supported through the NSF Centers of Research Excellence in Science and Technology (CREST) program, which strengthens institutional research capacity, and the Engineering Research Centers program, which fosters university–industry partnerships to drive innovation and workforce development with global impact.
