Ghodssi invited speaker at Transducers 11

ISR Director Reza Ghodssi (ECE/ISR) was an invited speaker at the 16th International Conference on Solid-State Sensors, Actuators and Microsystems (Transducers 11). The international conference was held June 5–9 in Bejing.

Ghodssi spoke on June 8 at the 3-D Integration Session. His topic was “Microball Bearing Technology for MEMS Devices and Integrated Microsystems,” research recently conducted with his Ph.D. students Mustafa Beyaz, and Brendan Hanrahan in his MEMS Sensors and Actuators Laboratory (MSAL).

Ghodssi is well-known for his microball bearing research.

The Winter 2009 issue of Micro Manufacturing, which was devoted to new directions in micro-electro mechanical (MEMS) research, included an article on Ghodssi’s micro-ball bearing/micro turbine work. The article reviews the 15-year quest for micro engines that could provide electrical power for an individual’s needs, starting with Dr. Alan Epstein’s original idea and work at MIT. Read more here.

Also in 2009, Ghodssi was featured in the April cover story of Mechanical Engineering magazine. The piece focused on Ghodssi's research on microscale ball bearings for use in micromachines and Micro-Electro-Mechanical Systems (MEMS) devices. Read more here.

In addition to his current students, several of Ghodssi’s previous students completed their dissertations in this area:

Christopher Michael Waits (EE Ph.D. 2008), "Microturbopump Utilizing Microball Bearings." Waits is currently a Team Leader in the Power and Energy Branch of the US Army Research Laboratory in Adelphi, Maryland.

Alireza Modafe (EE Ph.D. 2007), "Benzocyclobutene-Based Electric Micromachines Supported on Microball Bearings: Design, Fabrication, and Characterization."Modafe is a R&D Technical Lead at Synaptics, Santa Clara, Calif.

Nima Ghalichechian (EE Ph.D. 2007), "Design, Fabrication, and Characterization of a Rotary Variable-Capacitance Micromotor Supported on Microball Bearings." Ghalichechian is the Design Lead at FormFactor Inc.

In addition, postdoctoral researchers Dr. Xiaobo Tan (now at Michigan State University) and Dr. Matt McCarthy (now at Drexel University) worked extensively on this project.

Published June 6, 2011