Welcome to Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) at the University of Waterloo

Electrical and computer engineers shape the future through innovation.  They develop and improve systems that serve everyday needs of society spanning from high-voltage engineering and sustainable energy, to breakthroughs in wireless technology. Our faculty and students do everything from creating low-cost digital x-ray imagers to combat tuberculosis in developing countries, to building real-time embedded systems to advance the design and reliability of commercial products.  ECE - the future is what we do.

Research

The Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering is a dynamic and innovative hub of cutting-edge advancements in technology and engineering. Faculty members lead pioneering research in areas such as robotics, artificial intelligence, communications, embedded systems, and renewable energy, addressing real-world challenges and driving technological breakthroughs.

Learn more about our research →

News

Electrical and computer engineering PhD student, Laith Alkhawaldeh, was awarded Best Student Paper at the IEEE PES ISGT-Asia 2025 conference, held in Guangzhou, China from October 31 to November 2, 2025.

Alkhawaldeh’s paper titled “Adaptive ADMM for Distributed Peer-to-Peer Energy Trading,” presents a distributed optimization framework for peer-to-peer (P2P) energy trading among residential prosumers.

This year, the Canada Research Chairs (CRC) program is investing more than 198 million to support new and renewed Chairholders, with up to 311 million invested annually to attract and retain some of the world’s top research talent. Electrical and computer engineering (ECE) professors Dr. Lan Wei and Dr. Kerstin Dautenhahn have been named new Canada Research Chairs, bringing their cutting-edge work in nanoscale electronics and socially intelligent robotics to the forefront.

The Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) is proud to announce that the Broadband Communication Research (BBCR) Group led by Drs. Xuemin (Sherman) Shen and Weihua Zhuang, earned top international recognition at the IEEE Vehicular Technology Conference (VTC) 2025-Fall.

Held in Chengdu, China, from October 19 to 22, 2025, the IEEE 102nd Vehicular Technology Conference brought together global leaders from academia, industry, and government to advance conversations in wireless, mobile, and vehicular communications. At the conference, two BBCR papers were selected for top accolades.