Dr. Praveen Jain
Professor and Canada Research Chair
Director, ePOWER
Praveen K. Jain received his Ph.D. from the University of Toronto in 1987. He is currently a Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Tier 1 Canada Research Chair in Power Electronics, and Director of the Centre for Energy and Power Electronics Research at Queen’s University. He made pioneering contributions in introducing resonant power conversion technology in telecommunications during his work at Nortel in the 1990’s. He played a key role in the design and development of high frequency power conversion equipment for the International Space Station at Canadian Astronautics in the late 1980’s. Over the last 35 years, he has made sustained contributions to the theory and practice of power electronics through his considerable consulting work with industry. He is the founder of two successful start-up companies, CHiL Semiconductor in the area of digital power controller (acquired by International Rectifier), and SPARQ Systems in the area of photovoltaic micro-inverters, launched publicly in 2022.
He has supervised and guided over 100 graduate students, postdoctoral fellows, and power electronics engineers. He has published over 600 papers and holds over 100 patents. He is the recipient of the 2023 Killam Prize in Engineering, 2021 IEEE Medal in Power Engineering, the 2017 IEEE Canada Electric Power Medal, the 2011 IEEE William Newell Power Electronics Award, and the 2004 Engineering Medal of the Ontario Professional Engineers. He is a Fellow of the IEEE, the Royal Society of Canada, the Engineering Institute of Canada, and the Canadian Academy of Engineering.
Dr. Alireza Bakhshai
Professor
Dr. Bakhshai is a Professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Queen’s University. Dr. Bakhshai received his BSc and MSc from the Isfahan University of Technology, Iran, in 1984 and 1986, respectively, and his PhD from Concordia University in 1997. He was a Postdoctoral fellow at Concordia University during 1997-8. From 1986 to 1993, and from 1998 to 2004, he served on the faculty of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Isfahan University of Technology.
Dr. Bakhshai is a licensed Professional Engineer (PEng) in Ontario, and in 2021 was elevated to a Fellow of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). He has contributed to the engineering discipline as a reviewer for both conferences and journals and has served on research committees. Dr. Bakhshai has acted as a supervisor or co-supervisor for 17 graduate students, and is currently supervising six and co-supervising one. He has published peer-reviewed papers in fields including high power electronics and applications, renewable energy conversion, and control systems. In addition, he has demonstrated his ability to apply his knowledge in an industrial context, contributing to the application of FACTS Controllers and of New Motor Drive Technologies for a Cold Rolling Mill at the Mobarakeh Steel Company, Iran, in 2001, and the design and implementation of a Unified Power Flow Controller in 2002-2003.
Dr. Yan-Fei Liu
Professor
Dr. Liu received his PhD degree from the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Queen’s University, Kingston, ON, Canada, in 1994. From February 1994 to July 1999, he worked as a Technical Advisor with the Advanced Power System Division of Nortel Networks. Since 1999, he joined Queen's University. Currently, he is a Professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. His research interests include digital control technologies for high efficiency, fast dynamic response dc–dc switching converter and ac–dc converter with power factor correction, resonant converters and server power supplies, and LED drivers. He has authored around 300 technical papers in the IEEE Transactions and conferences and holds 70 U.S. patents. He is also a Principal Contributor for two IEEE standards.
Dr. Liu is a licensed Professional Engineer in Ontario (PEO). He was elevated to the Fellow of IEEE in 2013 and to the Fellow of Canadian Academy of Engineering (CAE) in 2018. He received Queen’s University Prize for Excellence in Research; IEEE PELS Modeling and Control Achievement Awards in 2017; and Premier’s Research Excellence Award, Government of Ontario, in 2000; Award of Excellent in technology, Nortel Networks, in 1997.
Dr. Liu was the Vice President of Technical Operations of IEEE Power Electronics Society (PELS, from 2017 to 2020. He was the general chair of ECCE 2019 to be held in Baltimore, USA in 2019. Dr. Liu serves as an Editor of IEEE Journal of Emerging and Selected Topics of Power Electronics (IEEE JESTPE) since 2013. His other major service to IEEE is listed below: a Guest Editor-in-Chief for the special issue of Power Supply on Chip of IEEE Transactions on Power Electronics from 2011 to 2013; a Guest Editor for special issues of JESTPE: Miniaturization of Power Electronics Systems in 2014 and Green Power Supplies in 2016. He has been the chair of PELS Technical Committee on Control and Modeling Core Technologies since 2013 and chair of PELS Technical Committee on Power Conversion Systems and Components from 2009 to 2012.
Dr. Suzan Eren
Associate Professor
Dr. Suzan Eren, is an Assistant Professor and Queen's National Scholar in the ECE Department, Queen’s University, and a member of ePOWER, the Queen’s Centre for Energy and Power Electronics Research Group. Dr. Eren received her BSc with first class honours, MSc and PhD degrees in Electrical Engineering from Queen’s University in 2006, 2008, and 2013, respectively. Her industrial experience includes collaboration with SPARQ Systems in developing their highly efficient solar micro-inverter. She is the author of 60 publications, the inventor of 12 U.S. patents and is a registered Professional Engineer in the province of Ontario. Dr. Eren is an associate editor of the IEEE Journal of Emerging and Selected Topics in Industrial Electronics and the IEEE Journal of Emerging and Selected Topics in Power Electronics, as well as the chair of the IEEE Kingston Section. Her research interests include the application of power electronics and control to micro-grids, renewable energy, energy storage and electric vehicles.
Dr. Majid Pahlevani
Associate Professor
Dr. Pahlevani received his Ph.D. degree from Queens University, Kingston, ON, Canada, in 2012. He is currently an Assistant Professor with the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, Queen’s University. Prior to Queen’s, he was an Assistant Professor at the University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada, from 2016 to 2019. He was also the Chief R&D Engineer and then the VP of Technology with SPARQ Systems, Inc., from 2011 to 2016. At SPARQ, he invented multiple innovative power circuitry and digital control techniques for SPARQ’s main product, QUAD micro-inverter. He collaborated with Freescale Semiconductor, Inc., where he was the Leader of a research team working on the design and implementation of the power converters for a pure electric vehicle from 2008 to 2011. He has conducted more than 20 industrial projects in renewable energy systems, energy storage systems, electric vehicles, and LED lighting. He has authored more than 150 journal and conference proceeding papers and is the holder of 70 U.S. patents (issued/pending).
Dr. Pahlevani is the Associate Editor of the IEEE Journal of Emerging and Selected Topics in Power Electronics and a Member of the IEEE Power Electronics Society. He is also the recipient of numerous awards such as the “Early Research Excellence” Award form Alberta, Canada, “Research Achievement Award” and “Teaching Achievement Award” from the University of Calgary, “Engineering and Applied Sciences Outstanding Thesis” Award from Queens University, Kingston, ON, Canada, “Research Excellence Award” from IEEE Canada, and “Distinguished Research Award” from the University of Calgary.
Dr. Shangzhi Pan
Adjunct Faculty
Dr. Shangzhi Pan, is an adjunct assistant professor at Queen’s Center of Energy and Power Electronics Applied Research Laboratory (ePOWER) since April 2014. He received his B.Sc. and M.Sc. in Electrical Engineering from Zhejiang University, China, in 1998 and 2001, respectively, and his Ph.D. from Queen’s University in 2008. He worked as a senior research engineer at Queen’s University from 2008 to 2013. Dr. Pan has completed extensive research at Queen’s University over the past decade on advanced digital control techniques and microinverter technologies. His work has been applied in computer, lighting and PV industries. His research interests include digital control techniques for power converters, grid-connected inverters, voltage regulators for computing systems, power converters for renewable energy sources, and power converters for electric vehicles.
Dr. Shangzhi Pan is also working as VP of Engineering at SPARQ systems, a photovoltaic microinverter company, which was spun off from Queen’s University in 2009. Since 2009, he has led the research, development, design, testing and certification of SPARQ innovative microinverters, including both microinverter hardware design and digital control system design. He is the inventor of 29 issued and pending international/US patents. He previously worked as a design engineer for power supply systems, including as an R&D engineer for Alcatel Shanghai Bell and as a consultant for CHiL semiconductor USA to transfer patented technologies. Dr. Pan is a senior member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE), and a member of IEEE Power Electronics Society and Industrial Electronics Society.