News

The University of Waterloo has seen an increase in the number of researchers included in this year’s Highly Cited Researchers™ 2025 list recently published by Clarivate. The list highlights the world’s most influential researchers and scientists.

Those selected have authored multiple Highly Cited Papers which rank in the top one per cent by citations in their field. Citations and peer review are the lifeblood of academic research, ensuring both integrity and innovation. The Highly Cited Researchers™ list recognizes only one in 1,000 researchers from around the world.

While several researchers across the University of Waterloo are featured on this year’s list, this article highlights the honourees from the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE).

A research team led by Waterloo Engineering professors received $2 million in new federal funding to safeguard Canada’s critical cybersecurity infrastructure by identifying and countering threats that could emerge through the supply chain.

Led by Dr. Sebastian Fischmeister, an electrical and computer engineering professor, and Dr. Michael Mayer, a professor in mechanical and mechatronics engineering, the Materials-based Cybersecurity in Electronics (MATSEC) project brings together a collaborative team of Waterloo Engineering researchers.

A research team from the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) has earned international recognition at the IEEE/CVF International Conference on Computer Vision (ICCV 2025) — the premier global event in computer vision research.

Under the supervision of Dr. Fakhri Karray, MASc student Md Rezwanul Haque, ECE alumnus S. M. Taslim Uddin Raju, and Dr. Md. Milon Islam received the Best Poster Award and secured 2nd Place in the Continuous Sign Language Recognition Challenge (Unseen Sentences Task) at ICCV 2025.

QR code–based scams, known as quishing, are becoming increasingly common as attackers use fraudulent codes to steal personal information or redirect users to malicious sites. InsideHalton recently explored this issue and interviewed electrical and computer engineering professor, Dr. Kami Vaniea, who provided expert insight into why these attacks are difficult to detect and how users can protect themselves. The article offers a clear overview of the risks and practical guidance for safer QR code use.

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.

The Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) at the University of Waterloo joins the global scientific community in celebrating the recipients of the 2025 Nobel Prize in Physics — John Clarke, Michel H. Devoret, and John M. Martinis. Their pioneering experiments demonstrated that quantum mechanical properties can be realized in macroscopic electrical circuits, laying the foundation for modern quantum computing and sensing technologies.

This recognition holds special significance for Dr. Christopher Wilson, professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering and faculty member at theInstitute for Quantum Computing (IQC), who completed his postdoctoral fellowship underMichel H. Devoret.

Dr. Raafat Mansour, a professor and University Research Chair in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Waterloo, has been selected to receive the 2026 Distinguished Educator Award from the IEEE Microwave Theory and Technology Society (MTT-S).

This prestigious international honour recognizes educators who have made exceptional and lasting contributions to the field of microwave engineering and science, while exemplifying the spirit of the late Fred J. Rosenbaum — a visionary who viewed teaching as a calling and dedicated his career to advancing the MTT-S community through mentorship and service.

Dr. Mansour’s award citation reads:

“For Outstanding Achievements as an Educator, Mentor, and Role Model of Microwave Engineers and Engineering Students.”

A professor in electrical and computer engineering has been appointed to an updated Val O’Donovan Chair position that reflects the Faculty’s strategic focus on advancing artificial intelligence through ethical research, interdisciplinary collaboration, and student engagement.

Starting September 1, Dr. Amir-Hossein Karimi will hold an O’Donovan Chair in Trustworthy AI. The five-year appointment comes with $100,000 in annual research support.

Electrical and computer engineering PhD student, Trevor Blaikie, has been selected as the winner of the NAMBE 2024 Best Journal Paper Award. Trevor’s research, supervised by Dr. Zbig Wasilewski, earned top recognition for the paper titled “Optimizing GaAs/AlGaAs growth on GaAs (111)B for enhanced nonlinear efficiency in quantum optical metasurfaces.”