IEEE Circuits and Systems Magazine - Q1 2022 - 82

recovery and security, wear leveling in resistive memories,
retention error mitigation in DRAM, and monolithic
3D integration for in-data processing.
Memristors
Emerging memory technologies, such as memristors,
have new and very different properties than conventional
technologies. These new properties can be exploited
for more than just replacing the existing technologies,
and may enable completely new designs and applications.
One goal is to explore novel applications of emerging
technologies in different fields such as Computer Architecture,
VLSI Systems, Integrated Circuit Design, and
Hardware Security. The research focuses on inventing
novel circuits and architectures for various applications
and building non-von Neumann systems to overcome
the main performance and energy limitations of modern
computing systems. Recent research projects include
performing logic using memory cells to build the memristive
memory processing unit (mMPU), mixed-signal
circuits for adaptive data converters, RF reconfigurable
circuits, neuromorphic computing, cytomorphic systems,
deep learning accelerators, nonvolatile processors,
and circuits for hardware security. The research
is supported by all major competitive foundations (European
Research Council, Israel Science Foundation,
Binational Science Foundation, NSF-BSF, Ministry of Science
and Technology, Israel Innovation Authority), and
include numerous collaborations with industry (Intel,
CEVA, Huawei, Cisco, Winbond, Weebit-Nano, Tower
Jazz) and leading research groups in academia.
Advanced Circuits Research Center (ACRC)
The ACRC is a research and teaching center within the
Electrical Engineering faculty at the Technion, collaborating
with Israeli industry in the areas of advanced circuits
for VLSI (analog, mixed-signal, RF, and high speed
digital). The main goals of the center are to foster new
knowledge in the field, educate and train students in circuit
design skills, and transfer useful technology to the
Israeli industry. Excellence, expertise, and innovation in
this critical area are essential for continued success in
the development of future microelectronic technology,
as well as the preparation of technically trained engineers
able to successfully lead the next generation of
technology and business development.
The center operations are primarily supported by
industry, which provides technical guidance for the center
and direction for the research foci of the center. The
primary activities of the Advanced Circuits Research
Center include recruiting and nurturing of new faculty
members with relevant expertise, encouraging PhD and
MSc students in these fields, developing new courses,
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IEEE CIRCUITS AND SYSTEMS MAGAZINE
hosting external experts, and funding research projects.
The current member companies are Intel, Mellanox,
Huawei, SCD, Apple, and Tower Jazz.
Micro-Nano Mechanical Systems
The micro-nano integration of interacting electro-mechanical
structures is studied by few research groups.
One group is currently developing a sensor based on a
mechanical resonator that is integrated with an optical
cavity and an optical gain medium, explore nonlinear
dynamical effects in this system including self-excited
oscillation and mechanical mode locking. Another
group studies electro-mechanical coupling of 2D vdW
materials and 1 dimensional (1D) systems such as carbon
nanotubes (CNTs) and silicon nanowires (SiNWs).
Power Systems and Energy
The research in this area includes both theoretical and
experimental directions, and consists of a variety of topics
such as power electronics, wide bandgap GaN semiconductors,
solar cells design, the behavior of energy
markets, power system dynamics, optimal control of
storage devices, and sensing and estimation in power networks.
Members of the group regularly collaborate with
researchers in other areas. In particular we have close relations
with the interdisciplinary Grand Technion Energy
Program (GTEP), which is devoted to energy related research.
Our long-term goals are primarily to foster basic
and applied research in the energy field, and to develop
innovative clean and efficient energy technologies.
Traditionally teaching and research in electric energy
conversion focused mainly on the design of power
system components, and therefore emphasized electromagnetic
phenomena in transformers, power lines,
electric machines, and similar devices. However, at the
break of the 21st century such phenomena are already
well understood, and the major open questions in this
field relate to the need to replace fossil fuels, to integrate
renewable energy sources into existing systems, and to
understand the behavior of increasingly complex power
networks. Many of these questions require understanding
of complex systems rather than device physics, and
therefore calls for teaching and research methods that
are quite different from the traditional ones.
Disclaimer
The opinions expressed in this document reflect only
the author's point of view, and do not represent the official
position of any Israeli institution.
Yoash Levron has been a faculty member at the Technion,
Israel Institute of Technology since 2014, and today
is an Associate Professor at the EE faculty.
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