September 7, 2021

This map created from satellite data by PhD student Shikhar Rai shows, in blue, areas of the oceans where “eddy killing” results in net loss of kinetic energy. The areas in black depict land masses and oceanic regions with seasonal or permanent ice coverage. (Courtesy of Hussein Aluie)

Dear members of the Hajim School community,

Ocean currents, propelled by kinetic energy from the wind, are the great moderators of our climate. By transferring heat from the equator to polar regions, they help make our planet habitable. And yet, the large-scale models used by scientists to study this complex system fail to accurately account for the impact of wind on the ocean’s most energetic components: swirling, mesoscale eddies.

In a paper in Science Advances, Hussein Aluie, associate professor of mechanical engineering; Shikhar Rai, a PhD student in his research group, and collaborators at Los Alamos National Laboratory describe how the wind, which propels larger currents, has the opposite effect on eddies less than 260 kilometers in size. This results in a phenomenon called “eddy killing.” The researchers, for the first time, were able to directly measure the overall impact of eddy-killing: a continual loss of 50 gigawatts of kinetic energy from the ocean’s currents.

By applying a coarse-graining approach to satellite imagery, the researchers were able to separate the complex, multiscale structures of ocean currents and eddies embedded within each other. The method will hopefully be adapted by oceanographers to further explore other factors that may influence eddy killing, and the role these eddies play in other aspects of the oceans’ circulation, heat flow, salt concentrations, and up-welling of nutrients and marine organisms, Hussein says.

He praises Shikhar for doing “all the heavy lifting” for the paper. “There were many technical issues, but he persevered and was able to figure them out,” Hussein says. “He’s got a lot of talent and promise.”

Hussein just received a $575,843 National Science Foundation grant to not only explore eddy-killing more thoroughly but also other energy pathways within the ocean and its interaction with the atmosphere.

Well done, Hussein and Shikar! Read more.

A UNIQUE LEARNING EXPERIENCE

Two of our mechanical engineering students–Julia Esen ’25 and Hanne Siri Hartveit ’22–took advantage of a unique learning experience at our University by participating in the Center for Matter at Atomic Pressure’s summer school for undergraduates. They were among 32 students accepted from a range of universities, including UCLA, Bryn Mawr College, Imperial College London, Georgia Southern University, University of Michigan, University of Colorado – Denver, and SUNY Geneseo.

“I wasn’t even expecting to get in, let alone receive the $300 stipend, since I hadn’t even set foot on campus yet,” Julia says. She approached it as an opportunity to learn more about a field she wasn’t familiar with, because of all the news surrounding the Space X and Blue Origin commercial space flights. “The series was complex, yet fun,” she says. “The guest lecturers were awesome.” Her frustration at not being able to easily understand the fluid dynamics calculations and calculus-based physics simply fueled her excitement for “the future classes that await me in these subjects,” Julia says. Believe me, with that kind of willingness to try things new, even outside her comfort zone, Julia is going to have a great experience here. I urge our other incoming first-year students to follow her example.

Hanne enrolled in the CMAP summer school to extend her knowledge of the high-energy-density (HED) physics behind the work she is doing in the lab of Ranga Dias, assistant professor of mechanical engineering. “The course’s guest lectures gave me a good idea of the vast HED applications,” she says. Hanne exemplifies how to use multiple opportunities to pursue an interest—in her case, the “imperative” need to transition from nonrenewable to renewable sources of energy. Last summer, for example, Hanne interned with Equinor, an energy company back home in Norway, analyzing hydrogen as a clean energy carrier. She was drawn to the Dias lab, she says, because its efforts to create superconducting material at ambient pressure and temperature could revolutionize the electrical grid and save enormous amounts of money and resources. “I was thrilled to find an on-campus research so relevant to my interests,” Hanne says.

AN OPTICS ‘THEN AND NOW’

The evolution of asymmetric and freeform optics is the theme for the July/August “Then and Now” feature in Optics and Photonics News, a publication of The Optical Society (OSA). Jannick Rolland, our Brian J. Thompson Professor of Optical Engineering and director of the Center for Freeform Optics, is highlighted, along with her group’s recent work integrating freeform optics and metasurfaces for next generation AR displays. Take a look here.

AURA MATCHES UNDERGRADS, RESEARCHERS

Undergrads looking for research opportunities–and faculty members looking to recruit them–are encouraged to take advantage of AURA. Created by the UR Office of Undergraduate Research in collaboration with RocLab (a student software development club), the new website connects faculty research mentors with interested undergraduates using a simple and intuitive web interface.

AURA allows research mentors to easily advertise research opportunities and identify students who are best qualified for their projects. Positions posted on AURA will be viewable on the Office of Undergraduate Research website and advertised on social media platforms. AURA is expected to become the primary site that undergraduates will be directed to by the Office of Undergraduate Research.

Helpful FAQ pages are included; suggestions for improvements are welcomed. Feel free to start advertising your research positions on this website.

WUN FUNDING AVAILABLE

Our University’s participation in the Worldwide Universities Network (WUN) gives our researchers an opportunity to establish collaborations around the globe. This year’s grants of up to £10,000 from WUN’s Research Development Fund are aimed specifically at establishing collaborations to address challenges of sustainability, across seven key areas–health, education, affordable energy, reduced inequalities, sustainable cities and communities, life below water, and life on land.

Engineers and computer scientists will definitely be in demand! Interested? Applications are due Friday, October 22. Please note, however, that each university has its own internal deadlines. If you are considering submitting a proposal you should first contact our WUN coordinator, Ruth Levenkron. Additional information may be found on the Global Engagement website.

ALUMNI NEWS

The Quantum Daily, which provides news and data on the quantum technology market, recently listed 23 of the “best minds in the world” leading quantum tech programs and initiatives at major corporations.

Second on the list is electrical engineering alumnus Darren Brock, ’90, ‘94MS ‘97PhD, now a principal research engineer at Lockheed Martin Corporation since 2008. As site lead with Lockheed Martin Space Advanced Microelectronics R&D, Darren is principal investigator for multiple R&D projects spanning nanotechnology, quantum technology, and RF/mmW integrated circuits.

Darren is co-author of more than 30 technical articles and has been granted 37 US patents. He is a member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) and an associate fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA).

Have a great week!

Your dean,
Wendi Heinzelman