As the Herbert Wertheim College of Engineering works to Engineer the Future of Everything, we recognize that tackling the grand challenges of our time truly takes a village — or, in the case of transformative research, it takes a campus.
It is through this collaborative, campus-wide, boundary-transcending approach that engineering researchers continue to address many of society’s most pressing challenges, including advances in resilient infrastructure, quantum technologies, next-generation energy solutions and accessible health technologies. Progress in these critical areas requires teams that span many traditional fields and bring together complementary expertise.
This “it-takes-a-campus” approach is reflected not only in the number of departments and colleges working together, but also in how these efforts bridge the full breadth of our university, from classrooms to laboratories to outreach efforts that engage communities across the state. Together, we are preparing the next generation of scientists and engineers who will make truly transformative advances possible.
In this issue of Florida Engineer, we highlight just a few of the interdisciplinary teams tackling these challenges. You will read about researchers in our college working alongside colleagues in the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences to establish UF as a hub for quantum technology, with exciting advances in quantum sensors and workforce development.
These advances in quantum technology build on UF’s deep expertise in semiconductors, where the Florida Semiconductor Institute, or FSI, partners closely with the Nanoscale Research Facility to enable researchers across campus to fabricate and characterize next-generation devices. Together, FSI and the Nanoscale Research Facility are also advancing outreach and workforce development through the 2025 Chip in Florida Challenge, where FSI provides semiconductor lesson plans to K–12 educators across the state.
We also highlight how faculty in the Departments of Computer & Information Science & Engineering, or CISE, Electrical & Computer Engineering, or ECE, and the J. Crayton Pruitt Family Department of Biomedical Engineering, known as BME, are developing next-generation sensors and robotic systems for healthcare applications. Cybersecurity experts in CISE are uncovering vulnerabilities in thermal cameras and healthcare systems, providing critical insights that enable these risks to be addressed and corrected to ensure patient safety.
Interdisciplinary teams in BME have also partnered with the College of Medicine on the Intelligent Intensive Care Unit project. This effort is reshaping the future of intensive care by integrating advanced sensing and monitoring technologies to improve patient care and outcomes. The system is designed to support overburdened ICU teams by enabling more continuous, data-driven patient monitoring and assessment.
ECE researchers are partnering with the UF Orthopedics and Sports Medicine Institute to advance wearable sensors for gait monitoring. Historically, identifying gait abnormalities has required complex laboratory-based assessments. By combining wearable sensing with AI-driven analytics, UF researchers are detecting gait patterns and abnormalities during everyday activities, significantly lowering barriers to timely diagnosis and intervention. This approach brings real-world data directly into the clinical workflow, supporting more informed decisions and ultimately improving patient outcomes.
Researchers across the college are also advancing solutions that strengthen infrastructure resilience and public safety.
Faculty in the Engineering School of Sustainable Infrastructure & Environment, known as ESSIE, are developing predictive models to better understand complex storm impacts, including erosion, water levels and property damage. Others in the Department of Mechanical & Aerospace Engineering and ECE are examining how particles and droplets behave and burn collectively to inform next-generation combustion science.
ESSIE teams are also investigating novel concrete materials for transportation infrastructure applications, while also helping to inform new legislation to improve building-inspection practices for condominiums and cooperative housing. Together, these efforts reflect UF’s commitment to translating fundamental research into real-world impact.
Collectively, these efforts demonstrate what’s become possible when a campus comes together with a shared purpose. The future of engineering will be defined not by individual breakthroughs in isolation but by the strength of the ecosystems that make them possible.
In the Herbert Wertheim College of Engineering, we are intentionally cultivating that ecosystem through deep collaboration and a shared commitment to real-world impact. The work highlighted in this magazine only begins to capture the breadth of impactful work happening across our campus.
Together, we are Engineering the Future of Everything.