Student & Young Professionals (SYP) Forum – Hybrid
Program Agenda
Note: Forum participation is mandatory for SYPA winners.
Part 1: “Engineering Resilient Smart Grids and Smart Careers: AI, Cybersecurity, and the IES Journey”
Prof. Mohammad B. Shadmand
Chair, IES Technical Committee on Smart Grid
Director, Intelligent Power Electronics at Grid Edge (IPEG) Research Laboratory
Associate Professor, Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering
University of Illinois Chicago, USA
Part 2: “On the Transition from Conventional Power Systems to Intelligent Power Systems: Stability Challenges, Innovation Prospects, and Career Opportunities”
Dr. Muhammad Farooq Umar
Vice Chair, IES Technical Committee on Smart Grid
Postdoctoral Research Associate
College of Science and Engineering
Hamad bin Khalifa University, Qatar
“Beyond Graduation: Navigating Careers in Academia and Industry”
- Prof. Antonio Luque, Associate Professor, University of Seville, Spain
- Dr. Saeed Arafat, Technical Team Lead – Parking Sensors, Robert Bosch GmbH, Germany
- Ms. Regina Roos, Typhoon HIL GmbH, Switzerland
- Mr. Aziz Ben Kbaier, TrendLabs, Tunisia
- IES YPC Activities — Dr. Chathurika Brahmana, IES YP Chair
- IES SAC Activities — Mr. Aziz Ben Kbaier, IES SAC Co-Chair
- IES Hubs and Nodes — Prof. Milos Manic, IES Past President
- IES GenAI Hackathon — Prof. Daswin De Silva, TC Chair – Responsible AI
- IES SYP Congress — Prof. Leandro Becker and Mr. Aziz Ben Kbaier
“Peer-Review Process for IEEE IES Transactions Journals”
Prof. Juan Rodriguez-Andina, IES President
“IES Overview, MAs, and Opportunities for the IES Community”
Prof. Ya-Jun Pan, IES VP-MA
- Group photos
- Certificate ceremony
- Mandatory survey
- Networking: meet IES leaders and committee members
SYP Joint Keynote
Engineering Resilient Smart Grids and Smart Careers: AI, Cybersecurity, and the IES Journey
Abstract
The rapid evolution of active distribution grids, distributed energy resources, power electronics, and AI-driven infrastructure is creating new technical challenges and career opportunities for young professionals. This keynote will combine a technical perspective with personal reflections on professional growth, research leadership, and engagement with the IEEE Industrial Electronics Society (IES).
The talk will first highlight how artificial intelligence can support resilience, situational awareness, and cybersecurity in active distribution grids, with an emphasis on power electronics-dominated systems, microgrids, and grid-edge intelligence. Beyond the technical discussion, the keynote will share lessons learned from the transition from graduate student to faculty member, researcher, IEEE volunteer, IES journal editor, technical committee chair, and conference organizer. Particular attention will be given to how IES activities, such as technical committees, conferences, special sessions, workshops, publications, and industry engagement, can help students and young professionals build visibility, leadership skills, collaborations, and long-term career impact.
The presentation aims to encourage SYP participants to view technical excellence, professional service, networking, and leadership as interconnected pillars of a successful engineering career.
Biography
Mohammad B. Shadmand (S’09–M’15–SM’20) received the Ph.D. degree in electrical engineering from Texas A&M University, College Station, USA, in 2015. He is currently an Associate Professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Illinois Chicago, USA, where he directs the Intelligent Power Electronics at Grid Edge (IPEG) Research Laboratory.
His research interests include resilient control of power electronics-dominated grids, grid-forming and grid-following inverter coordination, self-driving grids, machine learning applications in inverter-dominated power systems, situational awareness, intrusion detection, and cybersecurity of smart grids. He has published more than 220 journal and conference papers, one book, and three book chapters, and has delivered more than 20 invited seminars, lectures, and keynote-style talks.
Dr. Shadmand is a Senior Member of the IEEE and the recipient of the 2024 IEEE Industrial Electronics Society J. David Irwin Early Career Award for outstanding contributions to the resiliency and cybersecurity of power electronics-dominated grids. He currently serves as Chair of the IEEE IES Technical Committee on Smart Grid and as an Associate Editor of the IEEE Transactions on Industrial Electronics and the IEEE Journal of Emerging and Selected Topics in Industrial Electronics. He has also held leadership roles at several IEEE conferences, including as general chair and technical program co-chair, and in special sessions, workshops, and publication activities.
On the Transition from Conventional Power Systems to Intelligent Power Systems: Stability Challenges, Innovation Prospects, and Career Opportunities
Abstract
The transition from conventional power grids to smart, inverter-dominated power systems is transforming both grid dynamics and the role of future engineers. This keynote will highlight how renewable integration, power electronics, converter control, and emerging technologies are reshaping power-system dynamics and creating new stability challenges, including oscillatory instability phenomena. Alongside the technical discussion, the talk will explore innovation pathways and career opportunities for students and young professionals in smart grids, power electronics, AI, cybersecurity, and advanced control of power electronics. The session will combine technical insight with practical career guidance and interactive discussion to show how the next generation of engineers can contribute to building more reliable, stable, and intelligent power systems. Moreover, the keynote will blend technical insights with reflections on career development, research leadership, and the value of active engagement in the IEEE Industrial Electronics Society.
Biography
Muhammad F. Umar (Member, IEEE) received the B.S. and M.S. degrees in electrical engineering from the Lahore University of Management Sciences, Pakistan, and the National University of Sciences and Technology, Pakistan, in 2014 and 2018, respectively. He received the Ph.D. degree from the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Illinois Chicago, USA, in 2023. He was a 2019 Fulbright Fellowship awardee.
His research focuses on the stability, control, and security of power electronics-dominated power systems, with particular emphasis on the coordination of grid-forming and grid-following inverters, autonomous and self-healing microgrids, and machine learning applications in power systems and power electronics. He has published more than 40 journal articles and high-impact conference papers.
He was previously a postdoctoral researcher at Texas A&M University, Qatar, and is currently a Postdoctoral Research Associate at Hamad bin Khalifa University, Qatar.
SYPA Winners
| No. | Winner | Affiliation | Paper Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Wai Yan Win Aung | Dartmouth College | Physics-Constrained Human-in-the-Loop LLM Framework for Voltage-Violation Mitigation in Distribution Feeders |
| 2 | Hamza Al-Hallaj | University of Illinois Chicago | Designing Batteries for the AI Era: A Specific-Resistance Design Framework for AI Datacenter DC-Bus Surge-Buffer |
| 3 | Edivan Laercio Carvalho | NOVA University Lisbon | DC–DC Converter Based on Differential Connection with Partial Power Processing, Wide Conversion Range, and Reduced Switch Voltage Stress |
| 4 | Farshid Naseri | Aalborg University | Electric Vehicle Battery Impedance Identification Using Pseudo Random Binary Sequence Signals Applied by Altered Electric Motor Drive Reference |
| 5 | Prathap Reddy Bhimireddy | Indian Institute of Technology Indore | Analytical Modeling of Common-Mode Voltages for PWM Inverter-Fed 3-Phase and Multiphase Machines |
| 6 | Richard Júnio de Assis | Federal University of Rio Grande | Experimental Evaluation of Stereo Vision Reconstruction Error in Crane Digital Twins |
| 7 | Mohammadreza Azizi | Chernihiv Polytechnic National University, Chernihiv, Ukraine | Hybrid Flatness–API Control for Improved Grid Current Quality in a Multiport Energy Router |
| 8 | Leya Sharrouf | American University of Beirut | Terrain-Aware and Weight-Adaptive Path Optimization for Seedball-Dispensing UAVs |
| 9 | Hani Beirami | Independent Researcher | Predictive Safety Monitoring for Camera-Guided Micro Aerial Vehicle Obstacle Avoidance |
| 10 | Yousef Alkayyali | Khalifa University | Fault-Tolerant Operation of a Six-Phase Symmetrical Open-End Winding Induction Motor Drive |
| 11 | Zicong Zhang | Beijing Institute of Technology | An Integrated Active Sensing System for On-Board Bolt Preload Monitoring |
| 12 | Salvador Yabar | Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú | Feature Selection for Data-Driven Solar Photovoltaic Maximum Power Point Tracking |
| 13 | Muhammad Saqib Ali | ISMO | Impedance Based Precise Characterization of a High-Voltage High-Frequency Transformer |
| 14 | Mohammad Amir | University of Liverpool | A Generative AI-Enabled Digital Twin for Predictive Maintenance of Battery Energy Storage Systems: An Experimental Study |
| 15 | Md Tahmid Hussain | National Taiwan University of Science and Technology | Experimental and Grid-Connected Validation of a Cascaded High Step Up DC–DC Converter for Photovoltaic Applications |
| 16 | Sai Prashanth Mallellu | Symbiosis Institute of Technology, Hyderabad Campus, Symbiosis International (Deemed University), Pune, India | GenTwin: A Generative Industrial Immunosystem for Autonomous Resilience in Smart Manufacturing |
| 17 | Ashish Panda | Indian Institute of Technology Delhi | Model-Independent Position-Sensorless Vector Control of Parallel VSI Fed High-Power Induction Motor Drives Operated at Low Switching Frequency |
| 18 | Chhavi Singh | National Institute of Technology, Jalandhar | Robust Control Architectures for Trajectory Tracking of Autonomous Skid-Steer UGVs |
| 19 | Joni Sk | Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee | A Novel Triple-Inductor Cascaded Hybrid Switch Capacitor Flexible High Step-Up DC-DC Converter for Sustainable Energy Integration |
| 20 | Oumaima Joraiche | ESE Laboratory, ENSEM, Hassan II University of Casablanca, Casablanca, Morocco | Control of an Integrated Three-Level NPC Rectifier-Based On-Board Battery Charger for EVs |
| 21 | Kotb Tawfiq | Khalifa University | A Reliability-Enhanced PWM Strategy for Symmetrical Six-Phase Drives With Zero Common-Mode Voltage and Reduced Zero-Sequence Current |
| 22 | Tareq Foqha | School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Technological University Dublin, Dublin, Ireland | Impact of VSC Harmonic Modeling Representation on Harmonic Distortion and Resonance Prediction in Power Distribution Networks |
| 23 | Tanishq Singh Sisodiya | Symbiosis Institute of Technology, Hyderabad Campus, Symbiosis International (Deemed University), Pune, India | An Air-Gapped Neuro-Symbolic Framework for Autonomous Root Cause Analysis in Commercial Chillers |
| 24 | Pansheng Ding | Harbin Institute of Technology | A Multi-Task Deep Conditional Adversarial Domain Adaptation Network for Bearing Fault Diagnosis |
| 25 | Anju James | Indian Institute of Technology Palakkad | Experimental Assessment of Modulation Schemes and Reactive Power Support Capability of Grid-connected HERIC Inverter |
| 26 | Vida Ranjbarizad | University of Tabriz | A New High Step-Up DC-DC Converter Based on Voltage-Boost Cells and a Z-Network Cell |
| 27 | Harsha Vardhan Reddy Modugu | University of Illinois Chicago | AI-Assisted Future-Horizon Dynamic Response Prediction in Power-Electronic Systems |
| 28 | Dhawal Dwivedi | National University of Singapore | Compact Low Cost Single-Switch Multi-functional SiC Flyback EV Charger for G2V, S2V, and V2V |
| 29 | Takudzwa Haparimwe | Bindura University of Science Education | Design and Implementation of a TinyML-Based Predictive Maintenance System for Ball Mill Condition Monitoring |
| 30 | Heinrihs Skrodelis | Riga Technical University | Hardware-Resident IEC-104 Intrusion Detection: FPGA Feasibility Under Realistic Prevalence and Domain Shift |
| 31 | Ahmad Al-Khateeb | Texas A&M University | GSETS: Gaussian Smoothed Efficient Transition Sampling for Data-Driven Digital Twin Models |
| 32 | Taha Al-Saadi | Sultan Qaboos University | Adaptive PID Control for Melt-Pool Area Regulation in Laser Powder Bed Fusion: Stability Analysis and Simulation Study |
| 33 | Zhenxiao Yin | The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (Guangzhou) | Efficient Learning of Neural Network Assisted Controller for PMSMs using Lyapunov Function |
| 34 | Alaa Selim | Dartmouth College | Adversarial Margin Capability of Soft Open Points in Flexible Distribution Networks |
| 35 | Xin Sui | Institute of Energy, Hefei Comprehensive National Science Center | Multi-Sampled PWM Enabled Passivity Enhancement and Voltage-Feedforward Simplification for Grid-Following Doubly-Fed Induction Generator Systems |
| 36 | Bheemaiah Chikondra | Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Petroleum Technology | SiC-Based Multi-Phase Traction Inverter for Transportation Applications |
| 37 | Sarina Zirak Sima | School of Engineering, University of Leicester, Leicester, UK | Efficient Half-Step Delay Compensation for Deadbeat Predictive Current Control of 2-Level Inverters Using Low-Cost ARM Cortex-M Microcontrollers |
| 38 | Eithar Alammari | Effat University | Machine Learning-Enabled Channel Classification for RGB Underwater Visible Light Communication |
| 39 | Tong Xu | School of Automation, Nanjing University of Science and Technology | Enhanced Overload Capability Design of an Integrated AFPM Drive for Compact Robotic Joint Applications |
| 40 | Zhenxiao Yin | The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology (Guangzhou) | Minimal-Loss-Informed Neural Network for Permanent Magnet Synchronous Motors |
| 41 | Amin Farjah | Simon Fraser University | Parametric Performance Analysis of a Software-Adjustable Inerter–Spring–Damper System |
| 42 | Hafiz Rumman Adnan | North China Electric Power University | Priority Fitted Network-Based Optimization of Ferrite Structure in DD Coil WPT System |
| 43 | Shahal Ibn Islam Joy | Gdansk University of Technology | Different Approaches to Optimal Flux Selection for Wide-Speed-Range SynRM Drives |
| 44 | Sesadri Bhusan Sahoo | Indian Institute of Technology Patna | A Continuous Robust Observer for Rotor Flux and Speed Reconstruction in Five Phase Induction Motor Drive |
| 45 | Chen-Wei Kuo | National Tsing Hua University | Cost-Aware Shielded Reinforcement Learning for Battery Energy Storage Dispatch under Suppressed-Spread Market Shifts |
| 46 | Hamza Noureddine | Lebanese American University | A Transfer Learning Approach to Dictionary Learning-Based Attack Detection and Classification in Power Systems |
| 47 | Xuewei Bi | School of Automation, Nanjing University of Science and Technology | Stiffness Enhancement-Based Suppression of Backlash-Induced Limit Cycle Oscillations in Two-Mass Systems |
| 48 | Nada Saidani | ISSAT Mateur | AI-Driven Platform for Integrated Cyber-Physical Supervision of Datacenter Infrastructure |
| 49 | Nader El Zarif | Polytechnique Montreal | Fully Automated Hardware-in-the-Loop Validation of a Buck Converter Controller |
| 50 | Jaiminkumar Patel | Sardar Vallabhbhai National Institute of Technology, Surat | Prismatic Li-Ion Battery Parameter Identification using Mean-Variance Optimization and SoC Estimation via Extended Kalman Filter |
| 51 | Zihan Tian | North China Electric Power University | A Clamp Circuit Based Wireless Battery Charging System With Inherent CC-CV Output for Shared E-Micromobility |
| 52 | Hema Janga | University of Hertfordshire | Rule-Based Energy Management of a Wind-Battery Hybrid AC/DC Microgrid for Grid-Connected Applications |
| 53 | Jyothi Krishna K V | Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology, Valiyamala | Comparative Analysis of Stator Flux Ripple in Five Phase Induction Motor Drives Using Conventional Space Vector PWM and Bus Clamping PWM |