News

July 2019

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  KAUST Researchers Are the First to Generate Images of Realistic and Highly Detailed Texture Maps of Gigapixel in Size Using Deep Neural Networks

  1 min read · Tue, Jul 2 2019

  News

  Deep learning artificial intelligence machine learning

  KAUST researchers Anna Fruehstueck, Dr. Ibraheem Alhashim, and Prof. Peter Wonka have developed a novel technique to generate images of realistic and highly detailed texture maps using deep neural networks. The texture images synthesized by their system TileGAN can be of gigapixel size and are created by seamlessly merging smaller texture blocks into a single large image. The underlying neural networks are trained using high-resolution images such as detailed satellite imagery, maps and famous paintings.

June 2019

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  Madain Saleh

  1 min read · Sun, Jun 30 2019

  Spotlight

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  New paper accepted in JGR - Earth Surface

  1 min read · Tue, Jun 25 2019

  Spotlight News

  Statistics of extremes Bayesian Statistics

  New accepted paper: Lombardo, L., Bakka, H., Tanyas, H., van Westen, C., Mai, P. M., and Huser, R. (2019+), Geostatistical modeling to capture seismic-shaking patterns from earthquake-induced landslides, Journal of Geophysical Research-Earth Surface [ PDF preprint]
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  New paper accepted in JABES

  1 min read · Tue, Jun 25 2019

  Spotlight News

  extreme weather spatio-temporal statistics Statistics of extremes

  New accepted paper: Castro-Camilo, D., Huser, R., and Rue, H. (2019+), A spliced Gamma-generalized Pareto model for short-term extreme wind speed probabilistic forecasting, Journal of Agricultural, Biological and Environmental Statistics, to appear [ PDF preprint]
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  A Precision, Energy-Efficient, Oversampling, Noise-Shaping Differential SAR Capacitance-to-Digital Converter

  1 min read · Tue, Jun 25 2019

  News

  Noise shaping capacitive sensors Circuits

  Abdulaziz Alhoshany, et al., "A Precision, Energy-Efficient, Oversampling, Noise-Shaping Differential SAR Capacitance-to-Digital Converter" IEEE Transactions on Instrumentation and Measurement, 68 (2), 2019, 392. This paper introduces an oversampling, noise-shaping differential successive-approximation-register capacitance-to-digital converter (CDC) architecture for interfacing capacitive sensors. The proposed energy-efficient CDC achieves high-precision capacitive resolution by employing oversampling and noise shaping. The switched-capacitor (SC) integrator is inserted between the comparator
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  Querying big data just got universal

  1 min read · Sun, Jun 23 2019

  News

  big data algorithm Computer science

  A universal query engine for big data that works across computing platforms could accelerate analytics research.
• Simulating Red Sea water exchanges

  1 min read · Sun, Jun 23 2019

  News

  oceanography Red Sea earth science and engineering

  Powerful computer simulations are revealing new insights into water exchanges between the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden.
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  Alumni Focus: Ronell Sicat

  1 min read · Thu, Jun 20 2019

  News

  immersive analytics computer graphics large-scale data visualization

  As the volume and complexity of data captured around the world continues to grow exponentially, new ways of exploring and visualizing this data are required. Today, society has moved beyond the traditional desktop computer with tools such as augmented and virtual reality (AR/VR) at the forefront of immersive data visualization and analysis.
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  Changing how we predict coral bleaching

  1 min read · Tue, Jun 18 2019

  News

  algorithm coral bleaching climate science earth science and engineering

  A remote sensing algorithm offers better predictions of Red Sea coral bleaching and can be fine tuned for use in other tropical marine ecosystems.
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  KAUST Professor Kazuhiro Ohkawa elected Fellow of the Japan Society of Applied Physics

  1 min read · Tue, Jun 18 2019

  Spotlight News

  semiconductors nitride photocatalyst artificial photosynthesis Laser Diodes

  By David Murphy, KAUST News KAUST Professor of Electrical Engineering Kazuhiro Ohkawa was recently elected as a Fellow of the Japan Society of Applied Physics (JSAP). The JSAP was established in 1930 as a voluntary forum for applied physics researchers in the country. Ohkawa's JSAP peers recognized him for his exceptional contributions to the progression of applied physics and his specific contribution to the "development of wide bandgap semiconductor epitaxial growth and optical devices," JSAP stated. "It is a great honor for me to be elected as a Fellow of the JSAP," Ohkawa noted. "The
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  Remote sensing of toxic algal blooms

  1 min read · Thu, Jun 13 2019

  News

  Red Sea environment marine science earth science and engineering

  Algal blooms in the Red Sea can be detected with a new method that accounts for dust storms and aerosols.
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  KAUST Ph.D student, Jorge A. Holguin-Lerma, awarded 2019 SPIE Optics and Photonics Education Scholarship

  1 min read · Tue, Jun 11 2019

  Awards News Spotlight

  Visible light communications Photonic IC Laser Diodes III-Nitride Optoelectronics

  SPIE, the international society for optics and photonics, recently awarded KAUST Ph.D. student Jorge Holguín-Lerma a 2019 Optics and Photonics Education Scholarship for his potential research contributions to optics, photonics or other related fields. Holguín-Lerma joined KAUST in August 2016 and is a member of Professor Boon S. Ooi's Photonics Laboratory.
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  Taif

  1 min read · Mon, Jun 10 2019

  Spotlight

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  Tabuk

  1 min read · Sun, Jun 9 2019

  Spotlight

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  KAUST Associate Professor Jr-Hau He wins Nano Energy Award 2019

  1 min read · Sun, Jun 9 2019

  Awards Spotlight News

  nanomaterials hydrogen energy optoelectronics nanotechnology

  The Beijing Institute of Nanoenergy and Nanosystems of the Chinese Academy of Sciences recently announced that KAUST Associate Professor Jr-Hau He is one of three selected scholars who will receive the Nano Energy Awards 2019.
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  Al Balad

  1 min read · Sat, Jun 8 2019

  Spotlight

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  Al Riyadh

  1 min read · Sat, Jun 1 2019

  Spotlight

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  Compound Semiconductor features “Narrowing the linewidth of the green laser”

  1 min read · Sat, Jun 1 2019

  News

  ​Narrowing the linewidth of the green laser was featured in the June issue Compound Semiconductor Magazine.​

May 2019

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  Measurement Selection: A Random Matrix Theory Approach

  1 min read · Thu, May 30 2019

  News

  Random Matrix Theory Measurement Wireless Communications

  Khalil Elkhalil , Student Member, IEEE, Abla Kammoun, Member, IEEE, Tareq Y. Al-Naffouri, Member, IEEE, and Mohamed-Slim Alouini , Fellow, IEEE Abstract This paper considers the problem of selecting a set of k measurements from n available sensor observations. The selected measurements should minimize a certain error function assessing the error in estimating a certain m dimensional parameter vector. The exhaustive search inspecting each of the (n) possible choices would require very high computational k complexity and as such is not practical for large n and k. Alternative methods with low
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  Study finds Red Sea may be cooling rather than warming

  1 min read · Thu, May 30 2019

  News

  Bayesian Estimation Geophysical Fluid Modeling uncertainty quantification

  A recent study by a team including KAUST Earth scientists and oceanographers revealed that surface temperatures in the Red Sea may be cooling rather than rising. Analysis of long-term data sets shows that the current high warming rates of the Red Sea appear to be a combined effect of global warming and natural long-duration changes in sea surface temperature. "Our study has revealed a sequence of alternating positive and negative trends in Red Sea surface temperatures. Over the next decades, the trends indicate a cooling phase that may counter the effects of global warming," stated Ibrahim
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  Alumni Focus: Faisal Nawab

  1 min read · Wed, May 29 2019

  News Spotlight

  KAUST alumnus Faisal Nawab received his master's degree in computer science from the University in 2011. His M.S. thesis work, which focused on how to build wireless network infrastructure, was supervised by KAUST Associate Professor Basem Shihada.
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  Ph.D. student's innovative research wins awards

  1 min read · Sun, May 26 2019

  Awards News Spotlight

  student award

  KAUST Ph.D. student Khalil Youssef Moussi recently had his innovative research recognized at the 14th Annual IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers) International Conference on Nano/Micro Engineered and Molecular Systems (NEMS). At the event, which was held in Bangkok, Thailand, from April 11 to 14, the electrical engineering student was a finalist of the Best Student Paper Award and a finalist of the Best Conference Paper Award.
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  KAUST robotics team wins honors at European Robotics League event

  1 min read · Tue, May 21 2019

  Awards News Spotlight

  honor

  A team of researchers from the KAUST Robotics, Intelligent Systems, and Control (RISC) lab won both the "Best Air Team" special award and the European Global Navigation Satellite Systems Agency special prize during the recent European Robotics League (ERL) Emergency Robots Challenge in Sevilla, Spain. From February 18 to 23, the KAUST RISC team competed with several international university robotics teams from Croatia, France and Poland to complete a set of diverse aerial robotic challenges.
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  KAUST Professor David Keyes to chair International Supercomputing Conference 2020

  1 min read · Mon, May 20 2019

  Spotlight News

  supercomputing conference

  David Keyes, KAUST professor of applied mathematics and computational science; director of the University's Extreme Computing Research Center; and senior associate to the President of KAUST, will chair the International Supercomputing Conference (ISC) 2020. He will be the first program chair from a Middle Eastern institution, as announced by ISC 2020.
• Better racing car design through an industry partnership

  1 min read · Sun, May 19 2019

  News

  applied mathematics computational science fluid dynamics aerodynamics

  The Formula 1 race track is the ultimate testbed for a KAUST researcher's latest work.
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  Alumni Focus: Manal Kalkatawi

  1 min read · Thu, May 16 2019

  News Spotlight

  Manal Kalkatawi graduated from KAUST in 2017 with a Ph.D. in computer science with a focus on bioinformatics. She is currently an assistant professor at the Faculty of Computing and Information Technology at King Abdulaziz University (KAU) in Jeddah. Kalkatawi also pursues research in her field of specialization through cooperation with different research organizations, and she supervises master's degree theses of KAU students.
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  Cutting datasets down to size

  1 min read · Thu, May 16 2019

  News

  applied mathematics computational science statistics environment

  A powerful statistical tool could significantly reduce the burden of analyzing very large datasets.
• West Africa warms but airborne dust keeps the Red Sea cool

  1 min read · Wed, May 15 2019

  News

  climate science climate projections supercomputing earth science and engineering

  World-class computing facilities at KAUST enable researchers to tackle complex questions in climate science and oceanography.
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  KAUST Associate Professor Andrea Fratalocchi’s research leads to Institute of Physics Fellowship

  1 min read · Sun, May 12 2019

  Awards Spotlight News

  photonics cybersecurity

  Andrea Fratalocchi, associate professor in the University's Computer, Electrical and Mathematical Science and Engineering (CEMSE) division, was recently granted a Fellowship of the Institute of Physics (FInstP) by the Institute of Physics (IOP). Fratalocchi was awarded the IOP's highest level of membership in recognition of his outstanding accomplishments in physics.
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  Taking aim at outliers

  1 min read · Sun, May 5 2019

  News

  statistics Environmental Statistics

  Automatic detection of uncharacteristic data sequences could change the way data is processed and analyzed.
• Smart pill bottle keeps drugs safe

  1 min read · Sun, May 5 2019

  News

  drug safety sensors electrical engineering

  Low-cost, stretchy sensors can be assembled inside the lid of a drug container to help monitor patient safety.
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  Al Baha

  1 min read · Sat, May 4 2019

  Spotlight

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  Semiconductor Today features “Distributed feed-back gratings for indium gallium nitride laser diodes”

  1 min read · Fri, May 3 2019

  News

  Distributed feedback gratings for indium gallium nitride laser diodes” was featured in the May issue of Semiconductor Today Magazine.
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  Eddy currents affect flux of salt more than heat

  1 min read · Thu, May 2 2019

  News

  earth science and engineering marine science ocean circulation Red Sea

  Modeling the 3D structure of Red Sea eddies shows how transport of energy and biochemical materials influences circulation patterns in the Red Sea.
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  Electronics conference gives a positive charge

  1 min read · Thu, May 2 2019

  News

  Electronic devices piezoelectric nanosystem

  Highlighting sustainability and the work of female researchers was a strong focus of the international KAUST-US NSF electronics conference.

April 2019

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  The darkest black

  1 min read · Tue, Apr 30 2019

  News

  gold nanosphere nanorods insects light

  Metallic nanostructures absorb light better than any other known structures.
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  Simple statistics can be good enough

  1 min read · Tue, Apr 30 2019

  News

  Computer science statistics environment

  Study of the mismatch between spatial environmental data and a commonly used statistical analysis suggests simpler statistics are sufficient in many cases.
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  KAUST alumna’s paper recognized by American Statistical Association

  1 min read · Tue, Apr 30 2019

  Awards News Spotlight

  data transformations wind emulation and forecasting depth for functional data

  KAUST alumna Yuan Yan recently received an honorable mention from the American Statistical Association (ASA) for her paper entitled "Vector Autoregressive Models with Spatially Structured Coefficients for Time Series on a Spatial Grid." Yan, who participated in the ASA student paper competition last year, will be officially recognized for her contribution later this year at the association's 2019 Joint Statistical Meetings in Denver, Colorado, U.S., from July 27 to August 1.
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  An Ultra-Area-Efficient 1024-Point In-Memory FFT Processor

  1 min read · Fri, Apr 26 2019

  News

  FFT Circuits

  Hasan E. Yantir, et al., "An Ultra-Area-Efficient 1024-Point In-Memory FFT Processor", Micromachines, 10 (8), 2019, 509. Current computation architectures rely on more processor-centric design principles. On the other hand, the inevitable increase in the amount of data that applications need forces researchers to design novel processor architectures that are more data-centric. By following this principle, this study proposes an area-efficient Fast Fourier Transform (FFT) processor through in-memory computing. The proposed architecture occupies the smallest footprint of around 0.1 mm2 inside
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  A Comparison of Artificial Neural Network(ANN) and Support Vector Machine(SVM) Classifiers for Neural Seizure Detection

  1 min read · Thu, Apr 25 2019

  News

  Elgammal, M. A., Mostafa, H., Salama, K. N., & Mohieldin, A. N. (2019, August). A Comparison of Artificial Neural Network (ANN) and Support Vector Machine (SVM) Classifiers for Neural Seizure Detection. In 2019 IEEE 62nd International Midwest Symposium on Circuits and Systems (MWSCAS) (pp. 646-649). IEEE. In this paper, two different classifiers are software and hardware implemented for neural seizure detection. The two techniques are support vector machine(SVM) and artificial neural networks(ANN). The two techniques are pretrained on software and only the classifiers are hardware implemented
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  Wearable Electronics: An Imperceptible Magnetic Skin

  1 min read · Thu, Apr 25 2019

  News

  Abdullah S. Almansouri, et al., "An Imperceptible Magnetic Skin." Advanced Materials Technologies 4 (10), 2019, 1900493. Flexible and wearable magnetoelectronics add intriguing new functionalities to natural perception. Of particular interest regarding these artificial skins are wireless sensing and touchless interactions. Biocompatibility and imperceptibility are the most significant features of devices attached to the bodies. A biocompatible magnetic skin is introduced. It offers extreme flexibility, stretchability (>300%), and is lightweight, while maintaining a remanent magnetization up to
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  KAUST Ph.D. student wins best paper award from American Statistical Association

  1 min read · Thu, Apr 25 2019

  Awards News Spotlight

  Statistical computing High Performance Computing

  KAUST Ph.D. statistics student Jian Cao was recently selected as a best paper award winner by the American Statistical Association (ASA) for his paper entitled "Computing High-Dimensional Normal and Student-t Probabilities with Tile-Low-Rank Quasi-Monte Carlo and Block Reordering." Cao's paper was chosen in an ASA student paper competition under the section on Statistical Computing.
• Putting the sense in materials

  1 min read · Wed, Apr 24 2019

  News

  sensors machine learning supercomputing

  An interdisciplinary initiative is helping KAUST be at the forefront of a digital revolution, where sensors can find a use just about anywhere.
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  Marine Skin dives deeper for better monitoring

  1 min read · Mon, Apr 22 2019

  News

  monitoring electrical engineering marine science

  A pioneering tagging system that monitors the movement and local environment of sea animals reaches deeper depths and higher sensitivities.
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  Student Focus: Muhammad Akram Karimi

  1 min read · Fri, Apr 19 2019

  News Spotlight

  integrated circuits sensors energy harvesting

  Muhammad Akram Karimi describes himself as an inquisitive-minded researcher who loves to solve industrial challenges through science and technology. Karimi is a third year Ph.D. student working in the Integrated Microwaves Packaging Antennas & Circuits Technology (IMPACT) Lab under the supervision of Professor Atif Shamim. His current research focus is on the design of low-cost and printed microwave sensors for various industrial applications, with a prime focus on the oil industry.
• MOFs can sense and sort troublesome gases

  1 min read · Wed, Apr 17 2019

  News

  sensors chemical science electrical engineering gas monitoring MOFs

  Fluorinated metal-organic frameworks make excellent materials for selective sensing and removal of toxic gases.
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  Tiny, fast, accurate technology on the radar

  1 min read · Wed, Apr 17 2019

  News

  communications electrical engineering sensors

  A tiny, portable radar device could allow visually impaired people, or unmanned moving devices, to detect objects in real time.
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  Alumni Focus: Suzan Katamoura

  1 min read · Mon, Apr 15 2019

  News Spotlight

  KAUST alumna Suzan Katamoura graduated from the University in 2013 with a master's degree in computer networks. She currently works at King Abdullah City for Atomic and Renewable Energy as a researcher and a director of the Nuclear Fuel Cycle Unit in the Atomic Energy Sector‏.
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  KAUST to launch first virtual fabrication lab

  1 min read · Mon, Apr 15 2019

  News

  MOOC CMOS technology electrical engineering virtual lab distance learning

  The vFabLab™ platform, short for Virtual Fabrication Lab, will be presented on April 24th during a webinar organized and hosted by the IEEE Electron Devices Society.
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  Conducting Fab lessons in a virtual clean room

  1 min read · Sun, Apr 14 2019

  Spotlight

  Training nanofabrication materials science electrical engineering

  A virtual platform makes learning how to fabricate a semiconductor device easier, safer and more interactive.