2/13/2013 Kim Gudeman
Written by Kim Gudeman
Coordinated Science Laboratory researcher Rayadurgam Srikant has been invested as the Fredric G. and Elizabeth H. Nearing Professor in Electrical and Computer Engineering. Srikant is internationally known for his work on communication problems related to the Internet and more recently for research on wireless networks.
“This honor recognizes Srikant for the excellence of his scholarly work.,” said Andreas Cangelllaris, interim head of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Illinois. “It is through such scholarly excellence that we accomplish our vision for leadership in breakthrough research and transformational engineering education.
Srikant received his B.Tech. from the Indian Institute of Technology, Madras, in 1985. The same year, he came to Illinois, where he graduated with a master’s degree and Ph.D. in electrical engineering in 1988 and 1991, respectively.
After graduating from Illinois with his doctorate, Srikant joined Bell Labs where he was a member of the technical staff. At Bell Labs, he focused on communications theory and practical design of communications networks.
He returned to Illinois as a faculty member in 1995, studying information transfer on the Internet. His research contributed to the development of understanding how to design congestion control protocols for the evolving Internet.
More recently, Srikant has begun to focus on wireless networks. Current projects include designing efficient architectures for communication networks (National Science Foundation); developing distributed algorithms with low-complexity implementation (Air Force Office of Scientific Research); and protecting the wireless infrastructure against a terrorism attack (Defense Threat Reduction Agency).
He has received numerous recognitions, including the engineering council award for excellence in advising (2003), the Shimemura Young Author Prize (2002), and an NSF Career Award (1997). In addition, he was named a fellow of IEEE in 2006.
As the new Nearing Professor, Srikant will hold the same title as his former advisor Tamer Basar, now a Swanlund Endowed Chair, whom he studied under as a Ph.D. student.
"It has been rewarding to see how he has made such a seamless transition from control to communications, and established himself as an internationally recognized authority in a field different from his Ph.D. research," said Basar, interim director of the University of Illinois'
Beckman Institute, "He is truly deserving of the honor that this title brings."