Welcome from the ECE Department Chair

Since its birth, Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) exploited the Physical Sciences to create a revolution in Information Technology that has marked the greatest changes of the last part of the 20th Century. These changes culminated in the design of laptop computers, wireless communications networks, and the Internet.  The ways in which the field has changed and molded human progress are breathtaking. At Davis, we think that there is much more to come.

We think that the future will open even more exciting new avenues for growth as electronics continues to be embedded in the most unexpected sites and to enable the most interesting discoveries -- nanoscale devices, energy scavenging circuits, cognitive radios, reconfigurable computing with terabytes of data, new circuits for implantable biosensors, pervasive communications, and many other major advances beyond what one can even imagine today.

Our campus is uniquely placed to undertake the new exciting challenges that face us in the 21sth Century. UC Davis continues to lead revolutions in the life sciences that are affecting, and will be determinant in, the future of electronics technology, as well.

Our school continues to attract and to produce leaders in science and technology. Our faculty’s research continues to have high impact and to attract substantial funding for our graduate program from the National Science Foundation, from the Department of Defense and other governmental agencies, and from industry.  Our graduates are in high demand in industry and academia.

ECE at Davis benefits from its proximity to Silicon Valley, which supplies a natural source of collaborations with the world-leading electronics industry. Within our tradition for academic freedom, we have an increasing involvement with industry, which keeps us informed about today’s needs for innovation.  This helps our research programs to have immediate relevance as well as long-term impact -- and opens tremendous career opportunities for our graduates.

UC Davis’s strength in the Biological Sciences also provides a rich environment for bio-electronics research. Advances in the Biological Sciences have set the stage for a new revolution in the 21st Century. We foresee that ECE will play a key role in this revolution through the application of our wide range of core discipline tools to biology – as well as through the use of biology to create new types of electronic devices and information technologies. Our department has a growing interest in these subjects.

We have the largest UC campus and the broadest program of all UC schools. In addition to its academic focus, the community of Davis is immersed in nature. It is an ideal place to enjoy the California life-style, with a mild climate that allows outdoors activities all year around (which helped make Davis the "cycling capital of the world"). The beauty of Napa Valley, uncontaminated national parks and dramatic mountains are less than an hour away.

We welcome talented students who share our enthusiasm and optimism about the future. We recruit faculty with vision and a broad perspective.  This blend of students and faculty is essential for creating the technologies of the future.

We hope that you will explore opportunities to join ECE at UC Davis!

Richard A. Kiehl, Professor and Chair, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering