The Laboratory for Electromagnetic and Electronic Systems (LEES) is home to faculty and research staff from the Departments of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Mechanical Engineering, and Architecture.
Research interests include analog and digital circuit design, power electronics, control and estimation, automotive electronics and electrical systems, electromechanics, continuum electromechanics, heat and mass transfer, high voltage and insulation research, reliability of complex safety-critical systems, nanotube-enhanced ultracapacitors for regenerative energy storage, and use of photonics for high-efficiency thermophotovoltaic power conversion.
Work in power electronics ranges from device analysis and fabrication to circuit design and systems development and control. Automotive electrical and electronic systems are a topic of special interest, with research being funded by LEES's Consortium on Advanced Automotive Electrical/Electronic Systems and Components, whose international membership numbers around 25 companies.
LEES is also collaborating with the Microsystems Technology Laboratory on the development of micro-electromechanical devices and their application in a variety of new contexts. These silicon-based sensors and actuators show particular promise in automotive and biomedical applications.
High-voltage research in LEES is concerned with the basic physics and applications of electrical conduction and breakdown behavior of gases, liquids, and solids. Measurement methods include electro-optical and electro-acoustic techniques together with electronic sensors that can measure electric charge and fields, as well as the effects of temperature, moisture, and other trace materials. These measurement techniques are applied to power cables, power transformers, and fuel systems.
All programs in LEES are carried out with the assistance of undergraduate and graduate students working under the supervision of faculty members.
For further information, contact the acting director, Professor Joel Schindall, Room 10-140H, MIT, 617-253-3934.