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Research

Boldly innovating to impact society and transform the world.

Northeastern University has achieved the prestigious recognition as a top-tier R1 institution for research activity among U.S. colleges and universities by the Carnegie Classification of Institutions of Higher Education. Our tradition of partnership and engagement guides a use-inspired and interdisciplinary research enterprise that is strategically aligned with three global imperatives: health, security, and sustainability. Our annual Annual Report highlights pioneering research and achievements over the past year.


The College of Engineering has over 215 tenured/tenure-track faculty, each bringing complementary areas of research expertise to address pressing global challenges. Their state-of-art-research looks at critical issues in materials, processes, systems, infrastructure, hardware and software at every scale—nano to macro to global—grounded in a translational approach that integrates the values of fundamental and applied research.

Our faculty boldly innovate by collaborating across engineering disciplines and the university, as well as with government, academia, and industry. The College of Engineering has 18 multidisciplinary research centers and institutes with funding from eight federal agencies. Our commitment to conducting transformative research to better the world can be seen by a 80% increase in external research funding from 2016 to 2022, and by an investment in research capabilities such as our 223,000 square foot, six-story Interdisciplinary Science and Engineering Complex.

Government and Industry Partnerships

Industry and government partner with Northeastern for basic and applied research. The reason is simple: they know that at Northeastern, our two guiding principles are interdisciplinary collaboration and engagement with the real world. These principles are reflected in our research programs, which are driven by critical issues in materials, processes, systems and infrastructure. Our research collaborations are a win-win-win: our partners receive knowledge and products tailored to their needs, our researchers validate and extend their work, and our students receive training and experience to become the next generation of effective technologists.


Research At-A-Glance

$92.5M

External Research Funding (2022)

18

Research Centers and Institutes

116

Young Investigator Awards (as of Aug. 2022)

158

Patents 2016-Aug. 2022


Recent News

Improving Wireless IoT Signals Across Communication Channels

ECE Research Assistant Professor Salvatore D’Oro, William Lincoln Smith Professor Tommaso Melodia, and Assistant Professor Francesco Restuccia were awarded a patent for “Device and method for reliable classification of wireless signals.”

Integrating Deep Learning Algorithms to Enable Real-Time Spectrum-Driven Decision-Making

ECE Assistant Professor Francesco Restuccia and William L. Smith Professor Tommaso Melodia were awarded a patent for “Real-time cognitive wireless networking through deep learning in transmission and reception communication paths.” Abstract Source: USPTO Apparatuses and methods for real-time spectrum-driven embedded wireless networking through deep learning are provided. Radio frequency, optical, or acoustic communication apparatus include […]

Enabling the Automation of 5G Network Workloads

Northeastern’s Institute for the Wireless Internet of Things has been working with OpenShift, an Enterprise-level Platform-as-a-Service from RedHat, to enable the automation of 5G network workloads for ease of deployment by Mobile Network Operators.

Dahiya Publishes Book on Sensory Systems for Robotic Applications

ECE Professor Ravinder Dahiya has published a book on “Sensory Systems for Robotic Applications.”