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ECE doctoral student wins innovative internship at Samsung

April 30, 2019

Elyas Bayati, a Ph.D. student in the Department of Electrical & Computer Engineering, will spend his summer at the Samsung Strategy and Innovation Center (SSIC) working on new generation of augmented reality (AR) visors that are smaller, lighter to wear and more affordable.

Bayati was awarded an internship by Samsung’s UVenture program. The company invited students from five universities who are leading the way in artificial intelligence, robotics, mobility, digital health and natural user interface and virtual reality, to submit their big ideas for an opportunity to win an internship at SSIC in San Jose, California.

Bayati was chosen for his proposal to begin the creation of “Metaware,” a visor based on flat optics technology called metasurfaces. Metaware, Bayati said will be an affordable, cutting-edge solution to make AR near-eye visors smaller and lighter while having a large field of view. This is a drastic contrast to most AR visors that tend to be bulky, complex, and have a limited field of view.

The internship is a unique opportunity for Bayati to work alongside Samsung mentors and technologists while continuing the research that supports his thesis.

Samsung interns

Bayati and fellow Samsung Strategy and Innovation Center interns.

“I think Elyas’s idea of using metasurfaces for augmented reality is unique, and extremely promising,” said Arka Majumdar, Bayati’s advisor and professor in ECE. “The internship that Elyas is doing is unusual, as this one is given to people who pitched their own ideas, and Samsung selected the ideas they like. Unlike other internships where the company defines the problem, Elyas defined the problem.”

Majumdar added that it will be an incredible experience for Bayati to work in a company like Samsung because it will help build his credibility.

Bayati said that he believes more people will use AR once it is more user friendly. He ultimately hopes to release a version with an embedded, tunable lens so that all users, included near and farsighted corrective lens wearers, can use an AR visor without any problem.