First-year NSF recipient Raha Riazati plans to apply her background in integrated electronics and chip design to the emerging field of silicon photonics.
Specifically, Riazati’s research interests rest in combining the Radio Frequency (RF) transmissions traditionally used in communications networks with optical systems, enabling faster transmissions. At Penn, Riazati joins the research community working to leverage the speed of photonics within the extensive infrastructure of electronics and RF, which could elevate the communications field to new heights.
Originally from Jacksonville, Florida, Riazati earned her bachelor’s degree from the California Institute of Technology (Caltech) in 2024. When applying to graduate school, the ESE Department in the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) appealed to Riazati for its interdisciplinary approach to research in general. In particular, the research led by Dr. Firooz Aflatouni in the EPM lab, “has such a wide variety of projects in different areas.” Riazati explained that she can apply her research from integrated circuits and photonics to different disciplines such as communications or biotechnology. “I really liked it here,” said Riazati of the department’s March 2024 visit day. “There was such a strong sense of community.”
As a first-year student, Riazati has primarily focused on coursework, though she attends group meetings. Dr. Aflatouni, has also “given me many ideas to consider and papers to read before the next semester starts,” Riazati said, adding, “I want to be ready to jump into one of the projects already going on in the lab and start helping out.”
Of course, Riazati has already contributed to an ongoing project. “I helped with my first tapeout,” said Riazati of a chip’s final design stage before the lab sends it to a semiconductor foundry for fabrication.
According to Riazati, the tapeout involved a large electronics chip. The team did not have enough time to design all of its blocks. “I offered to help design one of the simpler blocks,” Riazati said. “I didn’t do anywhere near as much work as the main guys on the project,” Riazati explained. That said, the experience showed Riazati “how the system of a tapeout works, the timeline, and the overall design process.”
Outside of the lab, Riazati enjoys cooking and baking as well as dancing, reading, and watching movies. Riazati’s favorite film? That is none other than the 1979 sci-fi, horror classic Alien.