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[ELEN] 2026-06-18 (11:00) : Interfacing molecules with silicon metamaterials for sensing applications
At Shannon
Speaker:
Michael J. Sailor (University of California)
Abstract: Combining the functions of biologics or reporter molecules within microelectronic systems is a growing discipline, with a wide range of applications in sensing, healthcare, robotics, and human factors engineering. There are many examples in which native or near-native proteins have been integrated into devices (e.g., glucose sensors, antigen detection kits, DNA sequencing devices, etc.), and some examples of engineered proteins that can function in non-native media or in more challenging environments. There are needs both for new molecules and for new materials that can enable hybrid optical sensor systems with enhanced performance in terms of sensitivity, selectivity, or long-term stability. Mesoporous silicon, generated by anodization of single-crystal silicon wafers, provides a means to integrate potential reporter molecules (indicator dyes, fluorescent proteins, enzymes, etc.) within nanoscale silicon metamaterials (such as photonic crystals) to achieve such enhanced performance. The effects of modulating mesopore dimensions, surface charge, and surface chemistry on performance characteristics such as enzyme turnover rates, ingress/egress of reactants/products, and enhanced optical responses will be discussed.
[ELEN] 2026-05-19 (10:00) : Structured Sparsity from Wavelets to Transformer Attention via Conic Projections
At Shannon
Speaker:
Michel Barlaud (I3S-Nice Sophia Antipolis)
Abstract: Structured Sparsity from Wavelets to Transformer Attention via Conic Projections
[ELEN] 2026-05-05 (09:30) : Modeling reconfigurable intelligent surfaces
At Shannon
Speaker:
Enrico Maria Vitucci (University of Bologna)
Abstract: Enrico Maria Vitucci will share some insights from his work on deterministic propagation modelling and reconfigurable intelligent surfaces. The presentation will remain at a fundamental level, so even if you are not an expert in his specific areas of focus, you should be able to follow along easily! He also plans to touch upon current challenges and exciting future research directions in the field.
[ELEN] 2026-04-08 (09:00) : From Beyond-Diagonal Reconfigurable Intelligent Surfaces to Analog Computing for Communications and Signal Processing
At Shannon Room
Speaker:
Bruno Clerckx (Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering - Imperial College London, South Kensington Campus)
Abstract: Modern systems rely on digital circuits, computing, and signal processors that operate on binary values, offering advantages such as precision, versatility, robustness. Yet, digital processors face major limitations as high power consumption and limited speed. Despite digital signal processing being widely adopted today, analog computing is attracting a renewed interest thanks to its ability to perform energy-efficient and massively parallelized computations.
The talk shows two promising avenues to devise new, faster, and more sustainable communication and signal processing architectures that marry the communication theoretic principles of modern digital communications with analog domain processing and computing paradigms such that information transmission, processing and computing are conducted faster with much lower computational complexity.
First, we introduce Beyond-Diagonal Reconfigurable Intelligent Surfaces (BD-RIS), a general framework of reconfigurable intelligent surfaces where elements are inter-connected via tunable impedances. This enables engineered coupling, allowing waves to propagate between elements, enhancing RIS-aided communications with greater signal manipulation flexibility.
Next, we introduce the concept of Microwave Linear Analog Computer (MiLAC) as a very general model of a computer exploiting the propagation of analog signals in a microwave network, offering exceptionally low computational complexity - unimaginable with conventional digital computers. We show that MiLAC can perform computation, e.g. matrix inversion and linear minimum mean square error estimation, with low complexity directly in the analog domain and enable new future MIMO communications with 10⁴× lower computational complexity than digital processing.
The increasing research interest in those areas is reflected by the Special Interest Groups on BD-RIS https://sites.google.com/view/ieee-comsoc-rcc-sig-bdris and on Analog Computing https://sites.google.com/view/sig-analog-computing in the IEEE Communications Society.
Bio:
Bruno Clerckx is a Full Professor and the Head of the Communications and Signal Processing Group at Imperial College London, London, U.K. He received the MSc and Ph.D. degrees in Electrical Engineering from Université Catholique de Louvain, Belgium, and the Doctor of Science (DSc) degree from Imperial College London, U.K. He spent many years in industry with Silicon Austria Labs (SAL), Austria, where he was the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) responsible for all research areas of Austria's top research center for electronic based systems and with Samsung Electronics, South Korea, where he actively contributed to 4G (3GPP LTE/LTE-A and IEEE 802.16m). He has authored two books on “MIMO Wireless Communications” and “MIMO Wireless Networks”, over 350 peer-reviewed international research papers, and 150 standards contributions, and is the inventor of over 80 issued patents among which several have been adopted in the specifications of 4G and 5G standards and are used by billions of devices worldwide. His research spans the general area of wireless communications and signal processing for wireless networks. He received the Blondel Medal 2021 from France for exceptional work contributing to the progress of Science and Electrical and Electronic Industries, the 2022 Adolphe Wetrems Prize in mathematical and physical sciences and the 2025 Georges Vanderlinden Prize in Electromagnetism and Telecommunications from Royal Academy of Belgium, multiple awards from Samsung, IEEE best student paper award, IEEE Globecom 2025 best paper award, and the EURASIP (European Association for Signal Processing) best paper award 2022. He is a Fellow of the IEEE and the IET. He is the vice-chair of ETSI Industry Specification Group (ISG) on Multiple Access Techniques (MAT).
The talk shows two promising avenues to devise new, faster, and more sustainable communication and signal processing architectures that marry the communication theoretic principles of modern digital communications with analog domain processing and computing paradigms such that information transmission, processing and computing are conducted faster with much lower computational complexity.
First, we introduce Beyond-Diagonal Reconfigurable Intelligent Surfaces (BD-RIS), a general framework of reconfigurable intelligent surfaces where elements are inter-connected via tunable impedances. This enables engineered coupling, allowing waves to propagate between elements, enhancing RIS-aided communications with greater signal manipulation flexibility.
Next, we introduce the concept of Microwave Linear Analog Computer (MiLAC) as a very general model of a computer exploiting the propagation of analog signals in a microwave network, offering exceptionally low computational complexity - unimaginable with conventional digital computers. We show that MiLAC can perform computation, e.g. matrix inversion and linear minimum mean square error estimation, with low complexity directly in the analog domain and enable new future MIMO communications with 10⁴× lower computational complexity than digital processing.
The increasing research interest in those areas is reflected by the Special Interest Groups on BD-RIS https://sites.google.com/view/ieee-comsoc-rcc-sig-bdris and on Analog Computing https://sites.google.com/view/sig-analog-computing in the IEEE Communications Society.
Bio:
Bruno Clerckx is a Full Professor and the Head of the Communications and Signal Processing Group at Imperial College London, London, U.K. He received the MSc and Ph.D. degrees in Electrical Engineering from Université Catholique de Louvain, Belgium, and the Doctor of Science (DSc) degree from Imperial College London, U.K. He spent many years in industry with Silicon Austria Labs (SAL), Austria, where he was the Chief Technology Officer (CTO) responsible for all research areas of Austria's top research center for electronic based systems and with Samsung Electronics, South Korea, where he actively contributed to 4G (3GPP LTE/LTE-A and IEEE 802.16m). He has authored two books on “MIMO Wireless Communications” and “MIMO Wireless Networks”, over 350 peer-reviewed international research papers, and 150 standards contributions, and is the inventor of over 80 issued patents among which several have been adopted in the specifications of 4G and 5G standards and are used by billions of devices worldwide. His research spans the general area of wireless communications and signal processing for wireless networks. He received the Blondel Medal 2021 from France for exceptional work contributing to the progress of Science and Electrical and Electronic Industries, the 2022 Adolphe Wetrems Prize in mathematical and physical sciences and the 2025 Georges Vanderlinden Prize in Electromagnetism and Telecommunications from Royal Academy of Belgium, multiple awards from Samsung, IEEE best student paper award, IEEE Globecom 2025 best paper award, and the EURASIP (European Association for Signal Processing) best paper award 2022. He is a Fellow of the IEEE and the IET. He is the vice-chair of ETSI Industry Specification Group (ISG) on Multiple Access Techniques (MAT).
[ELEN] 2026-04-07 (08:30) : Environmental sustainability of semiconductor manufacturing: from current trends and hotspots to practical skills for improving it.
At BARB12
Speaker:
Benjamin Vanhouche (VUB)
,
and
Vincent Schellekens (imec)
Abstract: This talk provides an introduction to assessing the (un)sustainability of nanoscale semiconductor manufacturing. We will first consider the macro-level, discussing the current status and trends regarding the environmental impact of the semiconductor industry as a whole. We will then zoom in at the micro-level, detailing the main environmental hotspots of integrated circuit manufacturing. After this overview of the current status of semiconductor manufacturing sustainability, we will have a hands-on session designed to empower (future) nanofabrication engineers to think about---and improve---the sustainability of their own processes.
[ELEN] 2026-02-17 (11:00) : Noise feedback in circuits and application to the design of a noise-based amplifier
At Nyquist
Speaker:
Bertrand Reulet (Université de Sherbrooke)
Abstract: Electronics is based on the idea that the current-voltage characteristics of a component are intrinsic and do not depend on the circuit the component is embedded into. This idea makes it easy to simulate and build circuits based on the characteristics of the individual components. We show that this is incorrect, because of noise feedback. The effect of the circuit is to transform the current fluctuations generated by each component into voltage fluctuations across itself. This feedback mechanism leads to changes in the current-voltage characteristics. We provide a simple theory to describes this as well as an experiment on an avalanche diode to confirm it. Then we build an audio amplifier where the noise feedback mechanism leads to a region with negative resistance in a Zener diode, which we use to build an audio amplifier.
[ELEN] 2026-02-12 (13:00) : Mixed-signal neuromorphic circuits and systems for extreme-edge computing
At Nyquist
Speaker:
Dr. Ariana Rubino (ETH Zurich)
Abstract: Brain-inspired computing architectures offer a promising solution for
integrating Internet of Things (IoT) sensors with intelligent local
processing in edge computing applications. In particular, mixed-signal
event-based neuromorphic designs inherently meet key requirements of
edge computing: power efficiency, compactness, low latency, real-time
processing, and adaptability via on-chip learning.
Despite these advantages, several challenges remain. These include the
development of powerful and effective spike-based learning mechanisms,
the adoption of advanced Complementary metal-oxide-semiconductors (CMOS)
technology nodes, and the significant silicon area required to implement
neural dynamics with long time constants and synaptic plasticity.
In my talk, I will showcase the research conducted during my PhD to
advance the state of the art in mixed-signal neuromorphic processors for
edge computing. In particular, I will highlight the potential of
multi-compartment neuron models to enable dendritic spike-based learning
rules driven by target activities - an approach well suited to compact
and resource constrained edge devices. To support the development of
more compact and low-power systems, and to address the limitations of
scaled bulk-CMOS technologies, I will present our investigation into
Fully Depleted-Silicon on Insulator (FDSOI) transistor technology for
neuromorphic circuit design, demonstrating improved energy efficiency,
reduced mismatch, and better support for long synaptic dynamics.
Finally, to further optimize compactness at the synaptic array, I will
discuss emerging memory technologies, with a focus on energy-efficient
edge-compatible Ferroelectric Tunneling Junction (FTJ) memristive
synapses.
For each of these three aspects, I will present the mixed-signal
neuromorphic processors I designed and/or contributed to - ranging from
prototype test platforms to large-scale multi-core architectures - along
with both circuit-level simulation results and chip-level measurement
data.
[ELEN] 2026-01-27 (14:00) : The MPC-in-the-Head Paradigm for Post-Quantum Signatures: Recent Frameworks and Applications
At Shannon
Speaker:
Thibauld Feneuil (CryptoExperts)
Abstract: Signature schemes based on the MPC-in-the-Head (MPCitH) paradigm play a central role in post-quantum cryptography, enabling constructions from a broad range of hardness assumptions. In NIST's ongoing process for additional post-quantum digital signature standards, six candidate schemes rely on MPCitH, spanning assumptions from symmetric-key, code-based, and multivariate cryptography.
In this seminar, the speaker will first recall the core idea behind MPC-in-the-Head. They then will discuss how the paradigm has evolved into the recent VOLE-in-the-Head and TC-in-the-Head frameworks through the lens of Polynomial IOPs. Introduced in 2023, these frameworks underpin today’s MPCitH-based NIST candidates and enable signature sizes in the 2.5–5 kB range. The seminar will conclude by positioning MPCitH schemes within the broader landscape of post-quantum signatures, and by highlighting current efforts to port MPCitH-based implementations to embedded platforms.
[ELEN] 2026-01-06 (09:00) : Environmental Net Impact of AI - Reviewing Challenges for Decision Making
At Shannon
Speaker:
Daniel Schien (University of Bristol)
Abstract: The net environmental impact of digital services, and artificial intelligence (AI) services in particular, is of increasing interest to society and governance of this part of the economy. The practice of weighing of both positive and negative consequences to arrive at a net impact of digital services has been around for many years and attracted controversy. Efforts such as methodology development through the EU Green Digital Coalition demonstrate ongoing interest as well as the fundamental challenges with this practice. Following a recent pre-print article, I will review existing net-impact methodologies along with the general epistemological challenges and illustrate them through a case study of estimating the benefits from substituting human translation work through LLMs.
[ELEN] 2025-12-16 (16:15) : Acquisition chain vs. value chain: how to reconcile technological innovations and market needs
At BARB91
Speaker:
Thomas Walewyns (ChipsWIN - ICHEC)
Abstract: Dr. Walewyns received the M.Sc. degree in electromechanical engineering and a Ph.D. degree in engineering sciences, both at the Université catholique de Louvain (UCLouvain), Louvain-la-Neuve, Belgium, in 2010 and 2016 respectively. In 2010, he obtained the AILouvain Innovation Award for his master thesis. From 2013 to 2015, he was also carrying out an Executive Master in Management at the Louvain School of Management. Specialized in microsensors, system integration and micro-/nano-fabrication, he is author and co-author of more than 20 scientific articles and conference papers, and holds 3 patents. Passionate about innovation and driven by business, he founded VOCSens, a UCLouvain spin-off developing selective multi-gas microsensors for environmental monitoring & industrial applications, that he managed from 2019 to 2024. He is now leader of ChipsWIN, the Walloon competence centre in semiconductors, strategic advisor for various startups, and part-time guest lecturer at ICHEC.
[ELEN] 2025-12-15 (16:15) : Raw material challenges in photovoltaic technology: entering the terawatt age
At BARB10
Speaker:
Jonathan Parion (University of Hasselt)
Abstract: Jonathan Parion is a PhD student at the University of Hasselt, the University of Ghent and imec. His current work focuses on the characterization and simulation of perovskite thin-film solar cells, specifically to improve their stability and sustainability. Before his PhD, Jonathan followed a master in electrical engineering science at UCLouvain, focusing on device physics and nanotechnology.
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