Shekhar Bhansali to lead NSF Division of Electrical, Communications and Cyber Systems

The U.S. National Science Foundation has selected Shekhar Bhansali of Florida International University (FIU) to serve as division director for Electrical, Communications and Cyber Systems (ECCS). Bhansali, who begins his NSF term on Sept. 14, is currently Alcatel-Lucent Professor and distinguished university professor in the FIU department of electrical and computer engineering.

"NSF welcomes Dr. Bhansali and his commitment to scientific discovery and the growth of all engineering students and faculty," said Dawn Tilbury, NSF assistant director for Engineering. "Dr. Bhansali's insights on future research opportunities and his experience with innovation and partnerships will help NSF and the community advance the frontiers of engineering research."

At FIU, which he joined in 2011, Bhansali served nine years as department chair and two years as the interim director of the school of electrical, computer and enterprise engineering. Previously, Bhansali spent 11 years as a professor at the University of South Florida. Earlier in his career, he was a researcher at the University of Cincinnati and the National Research Laboratory of Metrology in Japan. His career began with several years as an engineer at Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd.

Bhansali's main research interests are in nanotechnology, biosensors and microfluidics. He holds 40 patents, has published over 300 publications and has advised more than 40 doctoral students and postdoctoral fellows in research.

Bhansali earned his bachelor's in metallurgical engineering at Malaviya National Institute of Technology, Jaipur, his master's in aircraft production engineering at the Indian Institute of Technology Madras, and his doctorate in electrical engineering at RMIT University in Australia.

Bhansali is an active member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers and other professional societies. He is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science and the National Academy of Inventors. His dedication to mentorship has been recognized with several awards.

ECCS supports fundamental research in device and component technologies, power, controls, computation, networking, communications, cyber and quantum technologies to support the integration and networking of intelligent systems.