Profiles

Postdoctoral Fellows

Biography

Melih Ucer is a postdoctoral researcher in the Mean-Field Games (MFG) group of Prof. Diogo Gomes at KAUST. He obtained his bachelor's degree from MIT in physics and PhD degree from Bilkent University in mathematics, where he did research on topology of algebraic varieties. Since he joined KAUST, he has been primarily working on the weak solution concepts to MFG equations. In addition, being a former IMO medalist, he is still active in training olympiad students.

Research Interests

Melih Ucer is primarily interested in existence and regularity of weak solutions to mean-field equations (MFE), which are PDE systems consisting of a Hamilton-Jacobi-Bellman equation and a Fokker-Planck equation.

Education
Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
Mathematics, Ihsan Dogramaci Bilkent University, Turkey, 2021
Bachelor of Science (B.S.)
Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, United States, 2014
Biography

Meng Tang earned his bachelor’s degree in applied physics and his Ph.D. in physics from Tongji University. In December 2022, he joined the Physical Science and Engineering Division at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) as a postdoctoral fellow under the supervision of Professor Xixiang Zhang. In March 2024, he transitioned to the Computer, Electrical and Mathematical Sciences and Engineering Division at KAUST, where he now works as a postdoctoral fellow under the supervision of Professor Gianluca Setti.

Research Interests

Meng Tang's research interests include spin-orbit torque (SOT) effects and spin transport, SOT-driven magnetization switching, SOT-based MRAM, spintronics-based neuromorphic computing and hardware security primitives, and superconducting spintronics. His areas of expertise encompass thin film deposition techniques (such as magnetron sputtering and pulsed laser deposition), nanofabrication methods (including lithography and ion milling), vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM), electrical transport measurements, harmonic Hall voltage measurements for SOT, current-driven magnetization switching measurements, spin-torque ferromagnetic resonance (ST-FMR), magneto-optical Kerr effect (MOKE) microscopy, X-ray reflection (XRR), and X-ray diffraction (XRD). Additionally, he is proficient in LabVIEW programming for measurement automation.

Education
Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
Physics, Tongji university, China, 2021
Bachelor of Science (B.S.)
Applied Physics, Tongji university, China, 2015
Biography

Merey Ramazanova is a Postdoctoral Researcher in the IVUL lab at KAUST. She pursued her PhD supervised by Professor Bernard Ghanem, with whom she also completed her Master’s degree. Her research focuses on egocentric video understanding, including multimodal modeling, action localization, and test-time adaptation under missing modality conditions. She also completed a research internship at Adobe.

Research Interests

Merey research focuses on data science, computer vision, and machine learning.

Education
Master of Science (M.S.)
Computer Science, King Abdullah University of Science and Tehnology (KAUST), Saudi Arabia, 2020
Bachelor of Science (B.S.)
Computer Science, Nazarbayev University, Kazakhstan, 2018
Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
Computer Science, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology KAUST, Saudi Arabia, 2025
Research Interests
  • Statistical signal processing .
  • Signal  application .
  • OFDM systems..
  • Random matrix theory
  • Discriminant analysis.
Education
Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
Electrical and Electronics Engineering, King Abdulaziz University (KAU), Saudi Arabia, 2022
Master of Engineering (M.Eng.)
Electrical and Electronics Engineering, International Islamic University Malaysia, Malaysia, 2014
Bachelor of Engineering (B.Eng.)
Electrical and Electronics Engineering, University of Khartoum, Sudan, 2013
Biography

Roberto earned a B.Sc. degree in Mechanical Engineering from University of Padova in 2014. Then he obtained a M.Sc. in Applied Mathematics at Politecnico di Torino in 2017. Subsequently he earned a Ph.D. in pure and applied mathematics at Politencnico di Torino under a Marie Curie Horizon 2020 program in 2021.

Research Interests

Roberto's research involves numerical analysis of high-order algorithms for solving partial, ordinary, fractional, and integral equations. He is also interested in approximation theory in the context of numerical methods for partial differential equations. Furthermore, he also works on multiphysics models, coupled algorithms, and randomized linear algebra.

Biography

Sofiane Ben Mbarek received his B.S. degree in Electronic Signals and Systems from Toulon University, Toulon, France, in 2006 and his M.S. degree in Telecommunications and Microelectronics from Nice-Sophia-Antipolis University, Nice, France, in 2007. He obtained his Ph.D. in Engineering Sciences and Microsystems from Franche-Comté University, Besançon, France, in 2011. Before joining KAUST, he was a postdoc at the Centre for Quantum Materials and Technologies, Queen’s University, Belfast, UK. He has research and teaching experience in various universities and companies. His research and interests include magnetic sensors, electromagnetic compatibility, multiphysics modeling, and nanofabrication.

Research Interests
  • Magnetic Sensors 
  • Electromagnetic Compatibility
  • Multiphysics Modeling
  • Micro and Nanofabrication
Education
Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
Engineering Sciences and Microsystems, Franche-Comté University, France, 2011
Master of Science (M.S.)
Telecommunications and Microelectronics, Nice-Sophia-Antipolis University, France, 2007
Bachelor of Science (B.S.)
Electronic Signals and Systems, Toulon University, France, 2006
Biography

Wahyu Hendra Gunawan currently a Postdoctoral Fellow at Photonics Laboratory in the Division of Computer Electrical and Mathematical Sciences & Engineering (CEMSE) at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST). He earned his B.S. and M.S in Physics at Institut Teknologi Sepuluh Nopember, Indonesia, in 2012 and 2014, respectively. In December 2022, he earned his P.hD. from Department of Photonics at National Yang-Ming Chiao-Tung University (NYCU), Taiwan, with research focus on Enabling Techniques for Optical Wireless Communication and Optical Fiber Communication Systems. He has over 15 authored/co-authored publication in peer-reviewed journals and conference proceedings. He also serving the scientific community as reviewers for several international journals, such as: Drones, Applied Sciences, Sensors, IEEE System Journal, IEEE Access and Photonics.

Research Interests

Optical Systems and Communications, Wireless Optical Sensing

Education
Bachelor of Science (B.S.)
Physics, Institut Teknologi Sepuluh Nopember (ITS), Indonesia, 2012
Master of Science (M.S.)
Physics, Institut Teknologi Sepuluh Nopember (ITS), Indonesia, 2014
Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
Photonics, National Yang-Ming Chiao-Tung University (NYCU), Taiwan, 2022
Biography

Dr. Weiping Li is a Postdoctoral Fellow at the Integrated Photonics Laboratory (IPL) under the supervision of Prof. Yating Wan at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST). Before joining KAUST, he received his B. S. degree in National University of Defense and Technology, in 2016, and Ph. D. degree in Fudan University, in 2024. 
Prior to joining IPL, Dr. Li was a postdoctoral scholar at Institute of Advanced Chips and Systems, Fudan University. He has published over 100 peer-reviewed articles , with more than 30 as first and corresponding authors, including Optical Fiber Communications Conference (Post deadline paper), Transactions on Microwave Theory and Techniques, Journal of Lightwave Technology, Science China Information Sciences, Optics Letters, etc. Dr. Li won the 2024 Shanghai Outstanding Graduate. In addition, he was selected into the list of top 2% scientists in the world in 2025.
 

Research Interests

Dr. Li’s research interests include integrated photonics-aided LIDAR, Quantum dot lasers, broadband photonics-aided terahertz communication and sensing, etc.

Education
Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
Electromagnetic Field and Microwave Technology, School of Information Science and Engineering, Fudan University, China, 2024
Bachelor of Science (B.S.)
Information and Communication Engineering, National University of Defense and Technology, China, 2016
Biography

Dr. Xiaowen is a Postdoc Fellow at the Integrated Photonics Laboratory under the supervision of Prof. Yating Wan at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST). Before joining KAUST, he received his B.E. degree in Material Science from South China University of Technology in 2013. He received the Ph.D. degree from the South China University of Technology in 2017 and completed 2-year postdoctoral research in Zhejiang University. He previously published 15 SCI journals (8 first author), including Nano Lett., Nano Res., Chem. Mater., etc. His current research focus towards the integration of 2D materials on silicon-photonics and the nonlinear optics of optical waveguides. His work aims to explore the unique properties of these materials and their potential applications in the field of integrated photonics.

Research Interests

Dr. Xiaowen’s research interests are 2D integrated silicon photonics, nonlinear optics.

Education
Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
Materials Science, South China University of Technology, China, 2017
Bachelor of Science (B.S.)
Material Science, South China University of Technology, China, 2013
Research Interests

Dr. Teng's primary research interests lie in the field of antenna theory and technology, with a specific focus on the design of millimeter-wave high-gain antennas, phased array antennas, and endfire antennas. Her designed antennas can be applied in various advanced systems, including 5G phased array communication systems, 77GHz automotive radar systems, and shipborne communication systems.

Education
Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
Antenna theory and technology, Tianjin University, China, 2025
Bachelor of Engineering (B.Eng.)
Communication Engineering, Jilin University, China, 2019
Research Interests
  • GNSS Localization.
  • Attitude Determination.
Education
Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
Electrical Engineering, King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST), Saudi Arabia, 2023
Master of Science (M.S.)
Information and Communication Technology, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (UCAS), China, 2017
Bachelor of Engineering (B.Eng.)
Electrical Engineering, China University of Petroleum (East China), China, 2014
Biography

Yang Liu is a Ph.D. candidate at Stochastic Numerics Research Group (STOCHNUM) under the supervision of Professor Raul F. Tempone at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST). His primary research interests involve uncertainty quantification, Monte Carlo methods, and finite element methods. He obtained a Master's Degree in Applied Mathematics and Computational Science from KAUST in 2019.

Biography

Dr. Ying is a Postdoc Fellow at the Integrated Photonics Laboratory under the supervision of Prof. Yating Wan at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST). Before joining KAUST, he received his B.E. degree in Communication Engineering from Lanzhou University in 2017 with some honors such as the First Price Scholarship, School Outstanding Graduates Awards. He received the Ph.D. degree from the State Key Laboratory of Advanced Optical Communication Systems and Networks at Shanghai Jiao Tong University in 2022. His Ph.D. doctoral research focuses on polymer waveguide technology for high-speed optical circuit board application. He previously published 16 journals and conference papers, including the first author's 3 OE, 1 OL, OFC, OECC, etc. He now pivots himself towards the silicon photonics integrated circuit platform and its applications.

Research Interests

Dr. Ying’s research interests are optical interconnects, silicon photonics.

Education
Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)
Electronic Engineering, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, China, 2022
Bachelor of Engineering (B.Eng.)
Communication Engineering, Lanzhou University, China, 2017
Biography

I defended my PhD thesis from KFUPM in January 2024. My thesis was about assessing the importance of morphology in language understanding for Arabic. I am the co-founder of arbml an open source initiative to support Arabic NLP research and tools. I am also a founding member of fihmai, which targets publishing resources that enrich AI content in Arabic. I was part of multiple open science projects like BigScience and Cohere for AI and helped the efforts to support Arabic NLP understanding in such initiatives.

Education
Doctor of Science (DS)
Computer Science, King Fahd University of Petroleum and Minerals, Saudi Arabia, 2024

Students

Biography

Abdelrahman Fatouh is an electrical and computer engineering master’s student at KAUST started in 2025, specializing in embedded systems, AI, and IoT. He holds a B.Sc. in Computer Engineering from King Saud University (2024) and has industry experience developing robotics and intelligent systems at multiple technology start-ups. His recent work includes EEG-based humanoid robot control for disabled people.

Research Interests
  • Embedded systems
  • AI
  • TinyMl,
  • IoT
  • Digital hardware design
Education
Bachelor of Science (B.S.)
Computer Engineering, King Saud University, Saudi Arabia, 2024
Biography

Abdullah Alquwayzani is a Ph.D. student at the Photonics Lab in the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST.) He received his M.S. degree from KAUST in 2022 with a thesis in characterizing the power consumption of a flexible system-on-chip. He recieved his B.S. degree in Electrical Engineering from Texas A&M University in 2020.

Research Interests

Optoelectronics

Education
Bachelor of Science (B.S.)
Electrical Engineering, Texas A&M University, United States, 2020
Master of Science (M.S.)
Electrical Engineering, KAUST, Saudi Arabia, 2022