UW ECE Research Colloquium Series: Milad Koohi, Texas A&M University

Event interval: Single day event
Campus room: ECE 037
Accessibility Contact: events@ece.uw.edu
Event Types: Academics,Lectures/Seminars
Link: https://www.ece.uw.edu/colloquia/milad-koohi/

Towards Agile Radios for NextG Wireless Communications and Sensing

Abstract
As the demand for higher data capacity persists and wireless technologies advance, current front-end circuitry in communication systems requires transformative changes. Multifunctional materials, such as ferroelectrics and ferromagnetics, are increasingly vital in providing critical solutions for communication, computation, and sensing. Integrating such materials into the development of reconfigurable components promises reduced complexity, smaller size, and high performance for future radios, enabling them to transcend beyond 5th generation (5G) wireless technologies.

In this talk, Dr. Koohi will present his research focusing on ferroelectric-based radio frequency (RF) acoustic wave (AW) devices that facilitate efficient spectrum access for future wireless systems. First, he will describe how the electrostriction phenomenon in thin-film paraelectric barium strontium titanate (Ba(1-x)SrxTiO3) is utilized to develop a framework for building intrinsically reconfigurable AW filter modules. This technology increases the functional density of RF front-ends by combining switching and filtering functionalities onto a single device, remarkably reducing the size and complexity of future radios. Next, he will introduce inhomogeneous piezoelectricity as a new paradigm to overcome the fundamental frequency and bandwidth limitations of traditional piezoelectric RF AW technologies. Dr. Koohi will present the first realization of inhomogeneous piezoelectricity in multilayer ferroelectric heterostructures, providing a fundamentally new approach to synthesize next-generation RF AW devices that are programmable and have the capability to selectively operate across multiple frequency bands. The second part of the talk will explore the ferroelectricity in scandium-doped aluminum nitride (Al(1-x)ScxN) to enable mm-Wave acoustics. He will demonstrate how polarization switching in ferroelectric AlScN allows the realization of mm-Wave acoustic devices with record electromechanical coupling and quality factor values required for the demployment of future 5G+ and 6G radios.

Bio 
Prof. Milad Koohi received his Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, in 2020. Following his doctoral studies, he joined Qorvo Inc. as an R&D Technical Lead at the BAW Research Center in FL, where he led the integration of ferroelectric nitrides into acoustic wave devices for microwave and mm-wave frequencies. In January 2025, he transitioned to academia, joining the Department of Electrical Engineering at Texas A&M University. Prof. Koohi’s research focuses on understanding multiphysical domain interactions, particularly in the electromagnetic, acoustic, and optical domains, within emerging material systems and integrating them into innovative devices, microsystems, and integrated circuits, advancing the frontiers of communication, computation, and sensing technologies. He has received several awards, including the Qorvo Best New Technology Award and the IEEE MTT-S Graduate Fellowship. Dr. Koohi has authored or coauthored more than 40 peer-reviewed publications and patents on ferroelectric nitrides, complex oxides, and their incorporation into novel devices and integrated circuits.