Dr. Pradeep Lall Honored with IEEE Biedenbach Outstanding Engineering Educator Award

We at NextFlex were very pleased to hear that Dr. Pradeep Lall was recently honored with the IEEE Biedenbach Outstanding Engineering Educator Award. Dr. Lall has been instrumental in NextFlex’s development and continued success, serving as a founding member of the institute and assisting with the first cooperative agreement. He is a co-lead of the NextFlex Asset Monitoring Systems technical working group and was recognized as a NextFlex Fellow in 2019 for his outstanding contributions to the organization and to the field of flexible hybrid electronics.

NextFlex Executive Director, Dr. Malcolm Thompson said, “Pradeep’s research has had a major impact on additive technologies for flexible hybrid electronics. In addition, his work on the Governing Council of NextFlex and as Academic Co-lead of the Asset and Situational Awareness TWG has helped set strategic direction. His recognition with the IEEE Biedenbach Award is truly well deserved.”

Dr. Lall was recognized for his contributions to the education in the field of additively-printed electronics manufacturing and reliability for harsh environment operation. Through his publications and courses, he has made the areas of additive printed electronics and harsh environment electronics accessible to an audience spanning high-school students, undergraduates, graduate students, and practicing engineers.

Dr. Lall’s research has enabled the design and manufacture of electronics for flexibility in end-applications for situations, ranging from flexed-to-install to others in which the electronics may undergo thousands of dynamic flexing cycles during normal usage. It is feasible to manufacture electronics using a number of new emerging processes, including aerosol jet printing, inkjet printing, screen-printing, and direct-write printing.

“Additive methods have made it viable to manufacture electronics using non-planar processes, allowing for a 3D-printed look and feel.  Development of materials and manufacturing processes capable of flexibility in electronics allows tighter integration of electronics, in addition to the realization of newer form-factors not possible with conventional processes,” explains Dr. Lall. His work on additive printed processes has brought to life the ability of additive electronics to manufacture high-complexity designs without the need for masks or etching, shortening ramp-up from CAD to prototype and decreasing time-to-market.