The Department of Information Electronics came from three disciplines: magnetics, founded in 1955, semiconductor physics, founded in 1956, and circuits and systems, founded in 1987.
It currently has four second-level disciplines of circuits and systems, physical electronics, microelectronics and solid state electronics, and biomedical engineering, of which the first three are conferring doctoral degrees.
The department has built up an outstanding research and teaching faculty of both science and engineering with young and middle-aged teachers as the core. The faculty includes 5 professors, 13 associate professors and senior engineers, 4 doctoral supervisors, 2 National Outstanding Youth Fund winners and 3 Nanjing University Young Academic Leaders. Faculty members below age 35 account for about 48% of the department’s faculty and staff.
The department boasts an embedded software R&D center, a biomedical electronic engineering research institute and several laboratories devoted to modern image engineering, advanced devices and information functional materials, micro-nano integration and optoelectronic chips, stereoscopic video signal processing and display, electromagnetic materials and application.
These facilities enables the faculty to conduct research in such areas as digital image processing, digital video processing, human-machine interaction, embedded software and hardware systems, wireless communication, pattern recognition, medical ultrasonic engineering, medical signal processing, medical instruments and systems, wide bandgap semiconductor power devices, UV optoelectronic devices, silicon-based deep sub-micron devices and integrated circuits, photoelectric detection and processing chips, new heterojunction material and device physics, electromagnetic absorbing materials and application, and microwave measurement.
Embedded Software R&D Center and Modern Image Engineering Laboratory
The Embedded Software R&D Center, established in 1998, and the Modern Image Engineering Laboratory, established in 2006, are both affiliated with the second-level discipline of circuits and systems. They are the earliest entities in the department and even in the school that integrated science and technology with the development of electronic information technology. They are devoted to the multidisciplinary research in electronic information, mainly including image control and operation automation, video display and processing, 3D scanning and augmented reality, near-field images, embedded operating systems, embedded intelligent systems, embedded handheld device application development, wireless self-organizing network and wireless sensor network algorithms and equipment, intelligent robots, IoT sensor network routing technology, highly secure biometric identification and other latest information technology. The two research bodies have already developed a series of core technologies with proprietary intellectual property rights and have a number of research projects that have passed the provincial or ministerial level appraisal or national defense acceptance inspection. Many research achievements like camouflage automation and embedded systems have been widely used in weaponry, intelligent transportation systems, environmental protection, public security and other defense and economic sectors.
The center and the lab have undertaken dozens of important research projects, including sub-projects of the National High-Tech R&D Program of China (the 863 Program), the National Defense Weapons Pre-Research Foundation, IT International Cooperation Program, the National Natural Science Foundation, Jiangsu High-Tech Research Program and the National Key Technologies R&D Program. They have made remarkable achievements, including three second prizes of National Science and Technology Progress Award conferred by the Ministry of Education, Jiangsu Science and Technology Progress Award, Fujitsu Excellent Operation Award (Japan) and Jiangsu Excellent Software Engineering Award. The students from the center and the lab have also won many national and international awards, including the gold award of “IBM Global Linux Challenge” and the first prize of “National Electronic Design Competition for College Students-Intel Cup Embedded System Design.”
Advanced Device & Information Functional Material Laboratory
This laboratory is affiliated both with the National Laboratory of Microstructures in Nanjing and Jiangsu Provincial Key Laboratory of Photonic and Electronic Materials Sciences and Technology. It mainly conducts research in physics and technology of new wide bandgap semiconductor materials and devices. The wide bandgap semiconductors, represented by III-nitrides and silicon carbide, are called the third generation semiconductor materials. They are extensively applied to a wide range of areas and are thus a research and development hotspot worldwide. For example, they are the best choices for developing ultraviolet optoelectronic devices, power electronic devices and microwave power devices.
The laboratory has undertaken a series of regional and national projects, such as sub-projects of the National Key R&D Plan, National Science Foundation for Distinguished Young Scholars, Key Program and Major Research Plan of National Natural Science Foundation, National Key Basic Research Program (the 973 Program), National High-tech R&D Program (the 863 Program) and Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province. It has made internationally recognized breakthroughs in several fields: It was the first to make and report AlGaN/GaN heterojunction high temperature Hall devices which can work at 300 °C or higher, InN-based chemical sensors, and GaN homoepitaxial ultraviolet detectors with extremely low dark current. It has developed GaN high-speed rectifiers which can resist a voltage of 800V and high-speed silicon carbide epitaxial growth equipment. It has also explored in depth the basic physical problems of GaN-based optoelectronic devices and power devices.
In addition to an advanced device micromachining test line, a material growth and device test analysis system and an industrial-grade device simulation environment, the laboratory has built a joint platform for failure analysis of power electronic devices with Cascade, a well-known US test equipment company. The research findings are of great value and can be applied to such fields as electrical energy conversion, environmental monitoring, biological medicine, real-time monitoring of electricity and motors, national defense early warning and tracking, oil exploitation and mineral mining.
At present, the laboratory has established close cooperation and published papers jointly with more than ten internationally renowned research institutions, including Cornell University, UC Berkeley, Duke University, Georgia Institute of Technology, the US National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), the US National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Solid State Physics in Germany and Tohuku University in Japan.
The research mainly covers wide bandgap semiconductor power electronic devices, wide bandgap semiconductor microwave power devices, wide bandgap semiconductor UV optoelectronic devices, new semiconductor heterostructure materials and device physics.
Micro-Nano Integration & Optoelectronic Chips Laboratory
This laboratory is aimed at promoting the application of the next generation’s super-large-scale integrated circuits and chips. It is mainly engaged in the physical information electronics study of silicon-based semiconductor devices. It develops chip-based integration technology so as to apply relevant microelectronic devices to mobile storage, the detection, storage, transformation and transmission of photoelectric signals and other core fields in information electronics. The research covers the following areas:
physical structure and electronic design of prototype devices based on standard specifications of the microelectronic industry;
full-function simulation based on supercomputer platform (Dawning 5000) and three-dimensional simulation (structure, material and manufacturing techniques) of devices;
design of chip-based applied integration and industrial-grade manufacture of prototype devices and integrated chips;
reliability tests of semiconductor devices of 65 nm and below and comprehensive evaluation plans for reliability;
studies on the physical properties and matching techniques of high-k materials for devices of 32 nm and below; and
the design, manufacture and analysis of ultra-high density photoelectric sensor chips.
The laboratory boasts a world-class platform for the analysis and test of devices and chips as well as a device simulation design environment. It has undertaken sub-projects of the National Key Basic Research Program (the 973 Program) and National Natural Science Foundation, and it has also undertaken a number of major national special research projects and major national defense projects. It has comprehensive cooperation with the Institute of Microelectronics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation and Tsinghua University.
Stereoscopic Image Display & Stereoscopic Video Processing Technology Laboratory
Stereoscopic image display and stereoscopic video processing are multidisciplinary technologies involving digital image processing, electronics, computer science, optics, mechanics and materials science. In recent years, this laboratory has been focusing on such technologies as stereoscopic image display, coding and decoding and target recognition, paying special attention to the principle, algorithm, technique and engineering implementation of the acquisition and display of stereoscopic images which can be viewed directly by naked eyes as well as to the core technology study and engineering of high-definition interactive stereoscopic display with a large viewing angle.
Stereoscopic image display, stereoscopic video processing and their integrated application are important to not only the development of optoelectronic technology, multimedia technology and TV technology but also to that of stereoscopic TV system, digital telemedicine and stereoscopic combat command and control.
The laboratory has received support from a series of provincial, national and international scientific research programs, including
the European Cooperation in Science and Technology,
the EU Framework Program, the National High-Tech R&D Program of China (the 863 Program), the Key Program of National Natural Science Foundation of China, the National Defense Weapons Pre-Research Foundation of China, the Military Electronics Pre-Research Plan, supporting projects of National Defense Construction, Jiangsu High-tech Research Program and Guangdong
Industry-University-Research Cooperation Program.
Since the laboratory started to carry out research on stereoscopic image display and stereoscopic video processing in 1993, it has developed a series of core technologies with proprietary intellectual property rights. A number of research projects have passed the provincial or higher level appraisal or approval, with some achievements being the first or one of the best in the world and some having been successfully applied to modern military weaponry and equipment whose performance indicators have reached or even exceeded the international advanced level. The lab has also won a third prize of Jiangsu Science and Technology Progress Award and a third prize of Jiangsu Teaching Excellence Award.
Modern Electromagnetic Materials and Application Technology Laboratory
This laboratory has been carrying out research on microwave absorbing materials and relevant technologies since the “Eighth Five-Year Plan” (1991-1995), covering the manufacturing of ultrafine magnetic metal powders, ferrite materials and magnetic films as well as the study of high frequency microwaves’ physical properties and the measurement of related microwaves. The research findings can be applied to stealth military equipment and civilian anti-electromagnetic radiation materials. The lab has undertaken a number of projects under the supervision of the General Armaments Department and the State Administration of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense, such as sub-projects of the National Key Basic Research Program (the 973 Program), Weapons Exploration Research Program, Weapons Pre-Research Foundation, Basic Scientific Research Program, Military Industry Supporting Project and Basic Ability Construction Project. As one of the major suppliers of microwave absorbing materials, the lab is leading the way in the country in the development of this kind of materials which have already been extensively applied to lots of facilities. In the past five years, its
research grants exceeded 40 million yuan, and it has cultivated a large number of talents who are qualified both for military and civilian sectors.
Its research areas include nanostructured magnetic absorbent, absorbing mechanism of nanomaterials, film absorbing materials, physical properties of magnetic nano-film high frequency microwaves, microwave measurement, and ferrite magnetic materials.
Biomedical Electronic Engineering Research Institute
This institute is mainly engaged in research in areas biomedical electronics, biomedical ultrasonics, microwave medicine and biomedical information detection and processing. It focuses on application foundation and technology development so as to cultivate talents, and it attaches great importance to the “industry-university-research cooperation” in order to apply research findings to medical diagnostic and treatment equipment which can be introduced to the market and thus directly benefit clinical practices. It has made achievements that are domestically and internationally influential. For example, its high-tech medical diagnostic equipment “High-Frequency Electrocardiogram Detector” won the second prize of Jiangsu Science and Technology Progress Award (1993) and the China Patent Invention and Creation Excellence Award (1995); its “Human Body Balance Function Testing and Training System” won the second prize of Jiangsu Science and Technology Progress Award (2005) and the second prize of the MOE Higher Education Outstanding Scientific Research Output Award (2008); its “All-Information Radiotherapy Navigation Intensity-Modulated System” won the third prize of Jiangsu Science and Technology Progress Award (2009).
Its current research covers biomedical information detection and processing, non-linear phenomena and models in life activities, biological function feedback mechanisms and their clinical applications, telemedicine systems, intensity-modulated radiotherapy optimization and surgical navigation, brain function nuclear magnetic resonance information analysis, processing and its physiological mechanism, biological recognition, new B-scan principle and its application and embedded miniaturized medical instruments.
The institute has undertaken over 60 projects, including sub-projects of the National High-tech R&D Program of China (the 863 Program), national and Jiangsu Natural Science Foundation and a number of university-enterprise cooperation projects.
The Department of Information Electronics currently has three undergraduate specialties: Electronic Information Science and Technology, Microelectronics, and Biomedical Engineering. As a department based both on science and engineering and focusing on the application of scientific research, it attaches great importance to the cultivation of undergraduate students’ mathematical foundation, scientific knowledge and innovative ability so that the students can have a good command of basic theories and skills of their specialties.
Every year, many students from the department participate in the National Electronic Design Competition for College Students, the National College Student Challenge Cup and the National Electronic Design Competition for Postgraduates, and since 2000, have always made great achievements with the coaching of teachers from the Embedded Software R&D Centre and the National Defense Image Engineering Laboratory.
The main courses the department offers include: Advanced Mathematics, General Physics, Solid State Physics, Semiconductor Physics and Devices, Circuit Theory, Automatic Control Principles, Analog Circuits, Digital Circuits, Computer Architecture, Operating System and Linux Programming, Microprocessors and Embedded Systems, Digital System II, Engineering Fundamentals of Artificial Intelligence, Fundamentals of Software Technology, Signal and Communication Systems, Digital Signal Processing, Digital Image Processing, Electronic Information System Experiments, and Semiconductor Technology Experiments.
