Zhen Peng

Dr. Zhen Peng 
Associate Professor
Electromagnetics Lab and Center for Computational Electromagnetics
Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
306 N. Wright Street, Urbana, IL 61801-2918, USA
+1 (217) 244-1259
zvpeng@illinois.edu

Biographical Sketch

Dr. Zhen Peng is currently an Associate Professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE ILLINOIS), University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He earned his Ph.D. degree in electromagnetics and microwave engineering from the Chinese Academy of Science, Beijing, China, in 2008. From 2008 to 2013, he was with the ElectroScience Laboratory, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA, first as a Postdoctoral Fellow, from 2008 to 2009, and then as a Senior Research Associate, from 2010 to 2013. From 2013 to 2019, he was an Assistant Professor with the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, The University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM, USA.

His research interests are in the area of computational, statistical, and applied electromagnetics. The goal is to develop mathematical and computational models that advance the understanding, prediction, and discovery of classical, chaotic, and quantum wave phenomena. These models allow for the design and optimization of novel electromagnetic systems at unprecedented scales, and contribute through education to the advancement of understanding. The recent research is focused on four interrelated areas: (1) classical electromagnetism with scalable algorithms, (2) statistical electromagnetics: theories and practices, (3) quantum electromagnetics: simulating probability in space and time domain, and (4) fusion of wave physics and quantum computing in wireless communication.

His research work has an impact on both civilian and commercial engineering applications, including advanced antenna design, radio frequency integrated circuits, electromagnetic interference and compatibility, signal and power integrity, and wireless communication. work has received support from NSF CAREER, NSF EPSRC-ECCS, NSF CCF, AFOSR Center of Excellence, ONR CDEW, DARPA WARDEN, Army SBIR, Navy STTR, Sandia National Laboratories, Lockheed Martin Aeronautics in California, CST-Computer Simulation Technology in Germany, DSO National Laboratories in Singapore, and VERUS Research in New Mexico.

Awards and Recognitions

Dr. Peng has published over 64 journal papers, 140 conference papers, delivered 32 invited talks, and offered 7 short courses. Dr. Peng’s research contributions have been recognized through a series of awards and honors. He is a recipient of three IEEE Transaction Paper Awards, eight Best Conference Paper Awards, and multiple Young Scientist Awards. He has also served as the advisor for students who have won twelve Best Student Paper Awards to date at various conferences. In addition, he received the NSF CAREER award in 2018 and the ACES Early Career Award in 2015. He is also an IEEE Antennas and Propagation (AP-S) Society Distinguished Lecturer (2024-2026).

• IEEE Transaction Paper Awards

  • 2024, Richard B. Schulz Award for the Honorable Mention Transactions Paper in IEEE Transactions on Electromagnetic Compatibility
  • 2018, IEEE CPMT Best Transaction Paper Award - IEEE Transactions on Components, Packaging and Manufacturing Technology
  • 2014, IEEE Antenna and Propagation Sergei A. Schelkunoff Transactions Prize Paper Award

• Best Conference Paper Awards

  • 2024, Best EMC Symposium Paper Award - 2nd Place (at the 2024 IEEE International Symposium on Electromagnetic Compatibility, Signal & Power Integrity (EMC+SIPI).)
  • 2022, Best Electromagnetics Paper Award (at 16th European Conference on Antennas and Propagation)
  • 2021, EPEPS Best Paper Award (at 30th Conference on Electrical Performance of Electronic Packaging and Systems)
  • 2019, EPEPS Best Paper Award (at 28th Conference on Electrical Performance of Electronic Packaging and Systems)
  • 2019, IEEE EMC Symposium Best Paper Award (at 2019 IEEE International Symposium on Electromagnetic Compatibility, Signal & Power Integrity)
  • 2018, The ICEAA - IEEE APWC Award (at International Conference on Electromagnetics in Advanced Applications and IEEE-APS Topical Conference on Antennas and Propagation in Wireless Communications)
  • 2016, 20th IEEE Workshop on Signal Integrity and Power Integrity Best Poster Paper Award

• Young Scientist Awards

  • 2017, IEEE Albuquerque Section’s Outstanding Young Engineer Award
  • 2016, International Union of Radio Science (URSI) Asia-Pacific Radio Science Conference
  • 2014, XXXI General Assembly and Scientific Symposium of the International Union of Radio Science (URSIGASS 2014)
  • 2013, Asia-Pacific Radio Science Conference (AP-RASC 13)
  • 2013, International Symposium on Electromagnetic Theory (EMT-S 2013)
  • 2010, International Symposium on Electromagnetic Theory (EMT-S 2010)

• Advisor of students’ honors and awards

  • Global Electromagnetics Conference Young Scientist Award (2024)
  • Raj Mittra Outstanding Research Award (2024)
  • Dr. Eric K. Walton Graduate Award (2024)
  • Yuen T. Lo Outstanding Research Award (2023)
  • The IEEE MTT-S International Conference on Numerical Electromagnetic and Multiphysics Modeling and Optimization (NEMO) Student Paper Competition (2nd Place 2023, 3rd Place 2019)
  • IEEE International Symposium on Antennas and Propagation and USNC-URSI National Radio Science Meeting (APS-URSI) Student Paper Competition (Finalist 2021, 3rd Place 2020)
  • International Applied Computational Electromagnetics Society (ACES) Symposium Student Paper Competition (1st Place 2019, 1st Place 2018)
  • Best Student Paper Award in 26th Conference on Electrical Performance of Electronic Packaging and Systems

Society Service

• IEEE Antennas and Propagation Society:
  • Chair of New IEEE AP-S Technical Committee – Computational Electromagnetics
• Associate Editors:
  • IEEE Open Journal of Antennas and Propagation (2023-present)
  • IEEE Transactions on Components, Packaging and Manufacturing Technology (2023)
  • IEEE Transactions on Microwave Theory and Techniques (2018-2020)

• Co-founder (with Hakan Bagci and Sima Noghanian) of the ACES School of Electromagnetics (2023, 2024)

• Technical PRogram Committee and Others:

  • Conference on Electrical Performance of Electronic Packaging and Systems (2020-present)
  • The IEEE Antennas and Propagation Society Topical Meeting on Computational Electromagnetics (ICCEM 2020, 2017, 2016, 2015)
  • The 13th European Conference on Antennas and Propagation (EUCAP 2019)
  • The International Workshop on Finite Elements for Microwave Engineering (FEM Workshop 2017, 2016)
• Short Courses at Conferences:
  • 2024 IEEE Intl. Symp. on Antennas & Propagation & ITNC-USNC-URSI Radio Sci. Mtg. (AP-S/URSI) (with Weng Cho Chew, Thomas E. Roth, Purdue; Dong-Yeop Na, Pohang UST; Gabriele Gradoni, University of Surrey; Paolo Rocca, Luca Tosi, University of Trento, Italy), Short Course Title: Quantum Electromagnetics and Its Applications
  • 2024 IEEE MTT-S International Microwave Symposium (IMS) Workshop Organizer and Speaker (with Michael Haider, TUM; Thomas E. Roth, Purdue, Vladimir Okhmatovski, University of Manitoba, Canada), Short Course Title: Quantum Circuits, Methods, and Algorithms in Microwave Engineering
  • 2023 IEEE AP-S/URSI (with Weng Cho Chew, Thomas E. Roth, Purdue University; Dong-Yeop Na, Pohang University of Science and Technology; Paolo Rocca, Nicola Anselmi, University of Trento, Italy), Short Course Title: Quantum Electromagnetics and Its Applications
  • 2023 IEEE IMS 2023 Workshop Organizer and Speaker (with Johannes Russer, TUM; Vladimir Okhmatovski, University of Manitoba, Canada), Short Course Title: Quantum Circuits, Methods, and Algorithms in Electromagnetics and Microwave Applications
  • 2022 IEEE AP-S/URSI (with Weng Cho Chew, Thomas E. Roth, Dong-Yeop NA, Purdue University, U.S.A.; Paolo Rocca, Giacomo Olivieri, Andrea Massa, University of Trento, Italy), Short Course Title: Quantum Electromagnetics and Its Applications
  • 2019 International Applied Computational Electromagnetics Society (ACES) Symposium, Short Course Title: Domain Decomposition Methods for Differential and Integral Equations
  • 2014 The 30th International Review of Progress in Applied Computational Electromagnetics, Short Course Title: Boundary Integral Equation Domain Decomposition Methods for Complex Electromagnetic Applications
  • 2012 The 28th International Review of Progress in Applied Computational Electromagnetics, Short Course Title: Non-overlapping and Non-conformal Domain Decomposition Method for Full Wave Solution of Time Harmonic Maxwell’s Equations
  • 2011 The 27th International Review of Progress in Applied Computational Electromagnetics, Short Course Title: CEM Algorithms for EMC/EMI Modeling: Electrically Large (Antennas on Platform) and Small (Signal Integrity in Integrated Circuits and Packaging) Problems

Most Representative Publications:

[1] Q. J. Lim, C. Ross, A. Ghosh, F. Vook, G. Gradoni, and Z. Peng, “Quantum-Assisted Combinatorial Optimization for Reconfigurable Intelligent Surfaces in Smart Electromagnetic Environments,” IEEE Trans. Antennas Propag., vol. 72, no. 1, pp. 147-159, Jan. 2024.

• Significance: This paper presents a physics-based, hybrid classical-quantum optimization framework for reconfigurable intelligent surfaces (RIS), drawing inspiration from the statistical mechanics of correlated spins. The key innovation is mapping the electromagnetic power to the Ising Hamiltonian function, effectively transforming the RIS configuration optimization problem into finding the ground state of the Ising model. Moreover, this framework successfully demonstrates a quantum advantage in solving complex combinatorial optimization problems in smart radio environments.

[2] S. Lin, S. Luo, S. Ma, J. Feng, Y. Shao, Z. B. Drikas, B. D. Addissie, S. M. Anlage, T. Antonsen, and Z. Peng, “Predicting Statistical Wave Physics in Complex Enclosures: A Stochastic Dyadic Green’s Function Approach,” IEEE Trans. Electromagnetic Compatibility, vol. 65, no. 2, pp. 436-453, April 2023.

• Significance: This research focuses on developing physics-oriented statistical representations and algorithms for complex, wave-chaotic environments. The paper introduces an innovative computational methodology known as the stochastic Green’s function (SGF) method, which statistically describes the multipath, ray-chaotic interactions between transmitters and receivers. The work accomplishes a physics-oriented, mathematically tractable statistical wave model with diverse applications, including the mode-stirred reverberation chamber, information transmission in wave-chaotic indoor channels, statistical design of time-reversal systems, wavefront shaping and focusing, sensing and targeting.

[3] G. Cao and Z. Peng, “RayProNet: A Neural Point Field Framework for Radio Propagation Modeling in 3D Environments,” IEEE Journal on Multiscale and Multiphysics Computational Techniques, vol. 9, pp. 330-340, 2024.

• Significance: This research introduces a novel machine learning-empowered methodology for wireless channel modeling. It leverages a point-cloud-based neural network combined with spherical harmonics encoding to predict radio path loss maps in both indoor and outdoor environments. By embedding electromagnetic wave propagation physics into neural networks, this framework enables efficient and scalable modeling of complex 3D wireless scenarios, significantly enhancing the speed and adaptability required for network design and optimization.

[4] Zhen Peng, Yang Shao, Hong-Wei Gao, Shu Wang and Shen Lin, “High-Fidelity, High-Performance Computational Algorithms for Intra-System Electromagnetic Interference Analysis of IC and Electronics,” IEEE Transactions on Components, Packaging and Manufacturing Technology, vol. 7, no. 5, pp. 653-668, May 2017.

• Significance: As next-generation electronic systems evolve to achieve greater functionality and smaller sizes, electromagnetic interference (EMI) between components becomes a critical challenge, impacting performance. This paper introduces high-fidelity, high-performance full-wave field solvers for scalable electromagnetic simulations of product-level integrated circuits (ICs) and electronics. The work enables concurrent multiscale modeling, accounting for the mutual interactions of circuits, 3D interconnects, packages, and PCBs. These innovations offer a powerful verification tool during the design stage, enhancing the ability to predict and optimize the performance of complex IC systems with high confidence in their in situ performance.

[5] Zhen Peng, Kheng-Hwee Lim, and Jin-Fa Lee, “A Discontinuous Galerkin Surface Integral Equation Method for Electromagnetic Wave Scattering from Nonpenetrable Targets,” IEEE Trans. Antennas Propag., vol. 61, no. 7, pp. 3617-3628, 2013.

• Significance: The objective of this work is to allow the solution of integral equations using discontinuous trial and test functions without any consideration of continuity requirements across element’s boundaries. We can mix different types of elements and employ different order of basis functions within the same discretization. Built upon the DG-BEM, we investigate a rigorous, adaptive, and parallel coarse-graining method to reduce the computational complexity in multi-scale computation.

[6] Zhen Peng and Jin-Fa Lee, “A Scalable Non-overlapping and Non-conformal Domain Decomposition Method for Solving Time-harmonic Maxwell Equations in R3,” SIAM Journal on Scientific Computing., vol. 34, no. 3, pp. A1266-A1295, 2012.

• Significance: This paper lays the theoretical foundation for nonoverlapping finite element domain decomposition methods (FE-DDM) for solving the time-harmonic Maxwell equations. It introduces three key innovations: (a) a true second order transmission condition (SOTC) to enforce field continuities across domain interfaces; (b) a corner edge penalty term to account for corner edges between neighbouring subdomains; and (c) a global plane wave deflation technique to further improve the convergence of DDM for electrically large problems.