The number of School of Engineering researchers on the “World’s Top 2% Scientists List” continues to grow. Based on the latest database report, published in PLOS Biology, twelve UBC Okanagan engineering researchers are now on the list. They rank among the top researchers in the categories of building and construction, clinical medicine, environmental engineering, strategic, defence and security studies, nanoscience and nanotechnology, and networking and telecommunications.
The report assesses a score based on citations, career-long citation impact and citation impact during a single calendar year. By comparing nearly 7-million science researchers within 22 major fields and 176 sub-fields, the report lists the 100,000 most-cited in the world.
“Although the merit of these sorts of calculations can be debated, there is no doubt that engineering research at UBC Okanagan is at the cutting-edge of innovation,” explains Rehan Sadiq, executive associate dean and one of the researchers included in the list. Sadiq, whose work has been cited over 15,000 times, is an internationally recognized authority on the asset management and reliability of water supply systems and a leading expert in environmental risk analysis and lifecycle assessment of built environments.
He is joined on the list by Shahria Alam, a civil engineering professor, Principal’s Research Chair in Resilient and Green Infrastructure (Tier 1), and co-director of the Green Construction Research & Training Centre, who investigates, who develops of new technologies and analysis techniques structural engineering and materials. He ranks among the top 2% in the field of building and construction.
Civil engineering professor and Principal’s Research Chair in Infrastructure Management (Tier 1) Solomon Tesfamariam is included in the list for the second year in a row. He designs multi hazard risk-based decision support tools for infrastructure management (earthquake, wind, and fire).
Kasun Hewage, a professor of civil engineering and FortisBC Smart Energy Chair co-directs the Lifecycle Management Lab at UBC Okanagan. He is also among the top researchers in the field of building and construction for his work empowering municipalities and industry in improving their energy efficiency through decision support tools and best management practices.
Developing novel analysis and control algorithms for microgrid systems has helped establish electrical engineering assistant professor Morad Abdelaziz as a leading researcher in the enabling and strategic technologies category. His latest work is focused on optimizing electric vehicle charging infrastructure.
“The success of our researchers in their respect fields strengthens our overall goal of uncovering transformational solutions through multi-disciplinary approaches,” says Sadiq.
Mechanical engineering assistant professor and Canada Research Chair in Advanced Materials and Polymer Engineering, Mohammed Arjmand, is a prime example of a researcher who collaborates within a wide range of disciplines with impressive results. He ranks among the top global researchers working in the field of nanoscience and nanotechnology.
Zheng Liu is a professor of civil engineering whose research focuses on intelligent sensing, diagnostics and prognostics. That research has placed him among the top researchers in this area.
Electrical engineering Professor Julian Cheng was recognized as the 2021 UBC Okanagan Research of the Year (NSERC category), and retains his position amongst the top 2% of researchers in the field of optoelectronincs and photonics. He continues to push the envelope in the areas of wireless digital communications theory, optical wireless communications, and machine learning and deep learning.
Abbas Milani is a professor of mechanical engineering, principal investigator of the Okanagan Node of the Composites Research Network (CRN), and director of the Materials and Manufacturing Research Institute at UBC. His research related to textile composites earned him a spot amongst the world’s top mechanical engineering and transports’ researchers.
Designing state of the art sensors using microwave resonators has propelled electrical engineering Assistant Professor Mohammed Zarifi into the list of productive and highly-cited researchers within networking and telecommunications.
Stephen O’Leary, a professor of electrical engineering, was recently recognized as a Fellow of Engineers Canada. His applied physics research characterizes novel electronic materials, and their device implications. He is among the top researchers in the sub-field of materials with physics and astronomy.
Electrical engineering Associate Professor Wilson Eberle was among the researchers recognized for their work in networking and telecommunications. His research focuses on power electronics enabling technology for advanced energy applications such as portable devices, renewable energy conversion, electric vehicles and lighting.
The Stanford University global scientists list is updated annually in the journal PLOS Biology.