Research

My main research field is power electronics, the technology that ties wind turbines and photovoltaics to the electric power grid, propels hybrid and electric vehicles, powers a countless variety of electronic systems, and makes it possible to operate battery-powered mobile devices for many hours. In the Colorado Power Electronics Center, we are exploring ways to achieve significant system-level advances in energy efficiency and renewable energy sources via smart power electronics. I am especially active in the field of digital control and modeling of switched-mode power converters, control techniques for dc-dc multi-level converters, modulation and control of bi-directional dc-dc converters, and power management solutions for energy harvesting systems.

  • Current projects
    • Medium Voltage Resource Integration Technologies (MERIT), sponsored by the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in the context of the Department of Energy Grid Modernization Initiative (GMI), aims at developing power electronics systems for medium-voltage and high-voltage applications.
    • Balancing Control Solutions for Indeterminate Converters (I-CON), supported by Texas Instruments, investigates effective and low-complexity balancing solutions for indeterminate converters by exploring their inherent static and dynamic properties
    • Next-Generation Microinverter Development, sponsored by Hanwha Q CELLS, explores innovative controls and designs for the next generation high-density, low-cost microinverters
    • High Power Density Universal 1-phase/3-phase Charger, sponsored by OptiGrid LLC, addresses the development of a highly versatile dc fast charging station featuring single-phase and three-phase connection capabilities, efficient re-utilization of semiconductor devices, and optimization of internal energy buffer.
  • Past projects
    • Unified Control of Non-Inverting Buck-Boost DC-DC Converters is a project focused on addressing the control challenges of photovoltaic dc-dc optimizers by departing from traditional mode-based control architectures, and unify the control in order to improve robustness and dynamic response throughout the converter's operating range.