Zhao Recognized by International Electrical Engineering Group

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Yue Zhao, assistant professor of electrical engineering.

An electrical engineering faculty member has been recognized by an international professional organization for his early-career achievements.

Yue Zhao, assistant professor of electrical engineering, has earned the Andrew W. Smith Outstanding Young Member Achievement Award from the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers' Industry Applications Society.

The award recognizes Industry Applications Society members younger than 35 for outstanding contributions to the profession such as authorship of technical papers, chapter leadership, committee work, conference leadership and standards working groups, among others.

Zhao earned a National Science Foundation CAREER award in 2018 and the College of Engineering Dean's Award of Excellence in 2020.  

His research interests include electric machines and drives, power electronics, and renewable energy systems. His current research is sponsored by the National Science Foundation, The Center for Power Optimization of Electro-Thermal Systems, The Center Grid-connected Advanced Power Electronics Systems , Department of Energy Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy, Oak Ridge National Laboratory and industry partners. He holds four U.S. patents and has co-authored more than 80 papers in refereed journals and international conference proceedings. 

Juan Balda, head of the Department of Electrical Engineering, said the award is well-deserved.

"Dr. Zhao has seen significant success since joining our department in 2015," he said. "His research has won support from agencies across the country, and I'm pleased to see this recognition of his contributions to our field."