Program Overview

Program Overview

The Electrical and Computer Engineering program at Northwestern University offers a comprehensive education in the fields of electrical and computer engineering. The program is designed to provide students with a strong foundation in the principles of electrical and computer engineering, as well as the opportunity to specialize in a particular area of interest.

Program Details

The program offers a range of specializations, including Photonics and Optoelectronics. This specialization focuses on the generation, manipulation, and detection of light, and its applications in communications, imaging, sensing, energy, manufacturing, and more.

Core Courses

The following core courses are required for the Photonics and Optoelectronics specialization:

• EE 308 Applied Electromagnetics and Photonics
• EE 379 Lasers and Coherent Optics
• EE 382 Photonic Information Processing
• EE 383 Fiber-Optic Communications
• EE 385 Optoelectronics
• EE 386 Computational Electromagnetics and Photonics
• EE 395, 495 Introduction to Nanophotonics and Plasmonics Science and Technology
• EE 395, 495 Metamaterials and Nanophotonic Devices
• EE 394, 495 Optical and Secure Communications
• EE 405 Advanced Photonics
• EE 406 Nonlinear Optics
• EE 407 Quantum Optics
• EE 409 Semiconductor Lasers
• EE 425 Introduction to Nanoscale Lasers, Quantum Noise, Photons, & Measurement
• EE 427 Optical Communications
• EE 478 Advanced Digital Communications
• EE 495 Statistical Optics

Elective Courses

The following elective courses are available for the Photonics and Optoelectronics specialization:

• CS 396, 496 Computational Optics
• MAT_SCI 380 Intro Surface Science & Spectroscopy
• MAT_SCI 387 Solar Energy Conversion
• MAT_SCI 451 Advanced Physics of Materials
• PHYSICS 426 Nonlinear Optics
• PHYSICS 427 Quantum Optics
• PHYSICS 480 Advanced Topics in Atomic, Molecular, and Optical Physics

Research Areas

The program offers research opportunities in a range of areas, including:

• Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning
• Computer Vision and Image Processing
• Network and Communication Systems
• Quantum Computing, Sensing & Communications
• Robotics and Autonomous Systems
• Cybersecurity
• Embedded Systems
• High-Performance Computing
• Internet-of-Things & Edge Computing
• Semiconductors
• Sustainable Energy and Low-Power Design

Program Structure

The program is designed to provide students with a comprehensive education in electrical and computer engineering, as well as the opportunity to specialize in a particular area of interest. The program includes a range of core and elective courses, as well as research opportunities.