Department of Electrical Engineering
- Chair
Sharad Malik
- Associate Chair
Claire F. Gmachl
- Departmental Representative
James C. Sturm
- Director of Graduate Studies
Naveen Verma
- Professor
Ravindra N. Bhatt
Stephen Y. Chou
Jason W. Fleischer
Claire F. Gmachl
Andrew A. Houck
Niraj K. Jha
Antoine Kahn
Sanjeev R. Kulkarni
Sun-Yuan Kung
Ruby B. Lee
Stephen A. Lyon
Sharad Malik
H. Vincent Poor
Paul R. Prucnal
Peter J. Ramadge
Mansour Shayegan
James C. Sturm
Sergio Verdú
- Associate Professor
Emmanuel A. Abbe, also Program in Applied Computational Mathematics
Hakan Tureci
Naveen Verma
David Wentzlaff
Gerard Wysocki
- Assistant Professor
Minjie Chen, also Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment
Yuxin Chen
Nathalie P. de Leon
Prateek Mittal
Barry P. Rand, also Andlinger Center for Energy and the Environment
Alejandro W. Rodriguez
Kaushik Sengupta
Jeffrey Thompson
- Associated Faculty
Craig B. Arnold, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering
David I. August, Computer Science
Gillat Kol, Computer Science
Kai Li, Computer Science
Lynn Loo, Chemical and Biological Engineering
Margaret R. Martonosi, Computer Science
Jason R. Petta, Physics
Warren B. Powell, Operations Research and Financial Engineering
Jennifer Rexford, Computer Science
Information and Departmental Plan of Study
The Department of Electrical Engineering offers an academic program of study spanning a wide range of disciplines. This program is accredited by the Engineering Accreditation Commission of ABET. All electrical engineering (ELE) students begin with a unifying foundation, after which areas of specialization range from devices to optoelectronics, to computer architecture and communication technology, to microprocessors. Students may select one of a set of suggested concentrations, or tailor their own in consultation with their faculty adviser to suit special interests.
Students enter the department with a variety of career objectives in mind. Some intend to enter industry directly upon graduation or to continue their studies in graduate school. Others wish to take an electrical engineering program as background for careers in other fields ranging from business to law to medicine. Sufficient flexibility is built into the undergraduate program to allow a wide variety of objectives to be achieved and to allow a student to see a wide cross section of electrical engineering before deciding on an area of concentration.
A student may also formally combine electrical engineering with studies in biology, computer science, physics, materials, neuroscience, engineering and management systems, energy and environmental studies, and several other fields.
General Requirements
All candidates for the B.S.E. are required to satisfy the general University requirements and the School of Engineering and Applied Science requirements. An introductory computer science course should be taken during the freshman year if possible.
Each student's academic program must have depth in at least one area plus a reasonable degree of breadth to produce a sound basis for future development. All programs are required to have a strong design component and a strong engineering science component. The specific plan of study is determined in consultation with the student's academic adviser, taking into account ABET program guidelines. All such plans must include the following:
1. Foundations: Electrical Engineering 201, 203, 206, 308. This requirement is normally satisfied by the end of the sophomore year. These courses are all open to qualified freshmen.
2. Core: Electrical Engineering 301 and 302. This requirement is normally satisfied by the end of the junior year.
3. Mathematics: At least one upperclass mathematics course. This may be MAE 305/MAT 391, MAE 306/MAT 392, ORF 309/MAT 380, COS 340, or other 300-level or higher mathematics courses. The course selected to satisfy this requirement may not be counted toward the concentration requirement, toward the breadth requirement, or as a departmental.
4. Concentration: Three courses in a chosen concentration. (See Program of Study.) For the concentration requirement, Physics 208 and 305 count as one course only.
5. Breadth: At least one departmental elective course in an area distinct from the area of concentration. Some COS and PHY courses are also possible. Note: ORF 309 cannot be used to satisfy this requirement.
6. Engineering science: An engineering course with a significant scientific component must be taken outside ELE to satisfy this requirement. Many courses can be used to satisfy this requirement; note, however, that a course composed largely of mathematics or applied mathematics does not satisfy the requirement. The course used for satisfying the engineering science requirement cannot also be used for satisfying the concentration requirement or the breadth requirement, nor can it be counted as a departmental requirement. The following is a non-exhaustive list of possibilities: CBE: 245, 246, 341, 415, 445, 447; COS: 217, 226, 320, 402, 423, 425, 444, 451, 487; CEE: 205, 303, 305, 471; MAE: 206, 221, 222, 324, 328, 344, 345, 433, 434; MSE: 301, 302; ORF: 307, 311, 405, 406, 417.
7. Design: At least one upperclass electrical engineering course with substantial design content beyond ELE 302 must be selected. These courses include 352, 375, 404, 454, 461, 462, 475, 482, and COS 426, 436. This requirement may also be satisfied with junior or senior independent work with a substantial design component. (See Independent Work.)
8. Balance and completeness: ELE students must take at least two upperclass technical courses in each of the last four terms. These 300-level-or-higher courses are called departmental courses. Of the eight departmental courses, at least five must be ELE courses. The remaining three courses can be taken in CEE, CHM, CBE, COS, EEB, ELE, MAE, MAT, MOL, MSE, ORF, or PHY. Courses outside electrical engineering counted toward this requirement must be closely related to the student's academic program.
9. Oral presentation: This requirement is normally satisfied during the senior thesis presentation. The independent-work poster presentation does not meet the oral presentation requirement.
10. Independent work: Independent work cannot be used to fulfill the breadth or concentration requirements.
11. Senior thesis: A two-term senior thesis is required. Students must enroll in ELE 497 (Fall) and ELE 498 (Spring). A grade will be given at the end of each term. A senior thesis must include an oral presentation to the faculty at a senior thesis presentation at the end of the spring term.
Program of Study
Each student must develop depth in a coherent area of concentration in the department. Concentrations may be interdisciplinary and include courses from other departments in the School of Engineering and Applied Science, as well as from related fields such as biology, chemistry, neuroscience, physics, and others. However, the courses must form a coherent theme, and normally, two of the courses will be ELE courses or designated equivalents. ORF 309/MAT 380 may be used to satisfy either the upperclass mathematics requirement or the concentration requirement, but not both.
Graduate courses (500 level) are open to undergraduates after the completion of a permission form containing the signatures of the instructor and departmental representative.
Independent Work
Independent projects or research projects outside normal, structured lecture or laboratory courses are a valuable educational experience. The projects are intellectually challenging but also extremely fulfilling. Independent work cannot be used to fulfill the breadth or concentration requirements. Each student doing independent work will be required to give a poster and/or an oral presentation during a department-organized session given at the end of each term.
Interdisciplinary Programs. Interested students may combine their work in electrical engineering with that in other departments through interdisciplinary certificate programs such as engineering and management systems, engineering physics, materials science and engineering, neuroscience, engineering biology, environmental studies, applied and computational mathematics, and the Woodrow Wilson School (the last by application only). Students fulfilling a certificate program will receive a special certificate upon graduation. Concentrators should consult with their advisers to develop an ELE program that best combines their ELE interest with the interdisciplinary program. Additional materials on a certificate program may be obtained by contacting the director of the program.
Further Information. Additional information on the departmental academic program and requirements is given in the Electrical Engineering Handbook, available from the departmental undergraduate office, Room B304, Engineering Quadrangle. Prospective concentrators in electrical engineering should consult the departmental representative as early as possible for purposes of planning an academic program.