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UCL Electronic & Electrical Engineering win Department of the Year Award

19 December 2012

England's oldest Electrical Engineering Department, founded at UCL in 1885 by the 'father of electronics' Professor Sir Ambrose Fleming, has won the 'Engineers of the Future - University Department of the Year' award.

Electronic Eng awards

The award is for the most innovative and successful electronic and electrical engineering university department in the UK.

Judging criteria for The Elektras award included interesting project work for students, industry partnerships and international collaborations as well as research successes. The competition is organised annually by Electronics Weekly magazine and has been running since 2002, recognising the achievements of individuals and firms across the European Electronics industry.

This year UCL Electronic & Electrical Engineering's outstanding research attracted over £18 million in new research grants. Research breakthroughs attracting significant media attention have included the discovery of fast, low power, cheap memristor technology and successfully producing "the Holy Grail of silicon photonics" - an efficient laser for telecommunications, grown on a silicon substrate, which could be a stepping stone to a single chip capable of electronic processing and light-wave (photonic) transmission.

We are delighted with this award and will continue our pioneering work in partnership with industry to produce innovative technologies that will change the world.

Professor Alwyn Seeds

In recognition of the department's strengths in photonics, the EPSRC awarded a £7.1 million grant in 2009 to set up a Centre for Doctoral Training (CDT) in Photonic Systems Development with Cambridge University, offering an innovative jointly taught MRes degree and industry focused doctoral research.

The Centre already works with over 30 companies, who provide collaborative project work for students in the rapidly growing photonics sector, and has just welcomed its largest ever cohort of students to start the programme.

The Centre has invited the UK's Tech Industry to come to Cambridge on 14th January 2012 to develop further collaborative links with its top postgraduate students.

Professor Alwyn Seeds, Head of UCL Electronic and Electrical Engineering said: "2012 has been a year of Olympic success for both the nation's athletes and our team of world leading researchers. We are delighted with this award and will continue our pioneering work in partnership with industry to produce innovative technologies that will change the world. There has never been a more exciting time to be an engineer."

Image: Deputy Head of Department Prof. Paul Brennan (centre) and Director of UCL Engineering Dr John Mitchell (right of centre) receive the Electra award. The ceremony was hosted by comedian Rory Bremner at the Park Plaza Westminster Bridge London Hotel


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