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UC Irvine researchers (from left) Dr. An Do, associate professor of neurology; Payam Heydari, professor of electrical engineering and computer science; and Zoran Nenadic, professor of biomedical engineering, recently participated in a study that demonstrated a brain-computer interface technology that enables spinal cord injury patients to walk with a robotic exoskeleton and feel lifelike sensory responses, a key factor in safe and realistic mobility. Debbie Morales / UC Irvine

UC Irvine-led Study Achieves Brain-controlled...

April 16, 2026

Researchers at the University of California, Irvine, Caltech and Keck School of Medicine of USC have developed a bidirectional brain-computer interface that allows a person to control a robotic walking exoskeleton using brain signals and receive artificial leg sensation through direct electrical stimulation of the sensory cortex. The project is the first implementation of a BDBCI for walking that incorporates bilateral interhemispheric leg sensorimotor brain areas and represents a critical step toward restoring full ambulatory function in individuals living with spinal cord injury and paraplegia.

Adeola Adekoba Wins ASEE PSW Outstanding...

April 15, 2026

Fourth-year biomedical engineering student Adeola Adekoba was recognized with the Outstanding Undergraduate Student award by the American Society for Engineering Education - Pacific Southwest Section. He will receive this award at the ASEE Zone IV Conference at Cal Poly Pomona University on April 16-18.

The initiative pulls together faculty from both Samueli Schools of Engineering and is designed to deepen cross-campus partnerships and accelerate high-impact research.

Samueli Foundation Selects 6 UCI-UCLA...

April 14, 2026

The Samueli Foundation has funded another round of the UCLA–UC Irvine Collaborative Grants Program. Established in 2024, the initiative pulls together faculty from both Samueli Schools of Engineering and is designed to deepen cross-campus partnerships and accelerate high-impact research.

Dion Khodagholy holds neural soft electronics in his UCI lab.

NINDS Recognizes Khodagholy’s Epilepsy...

April 8, 2026

The National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS) named a research paper co-authored by two UC Irvine faculty members as a Top 10 NINDS Research Advance of 2025. Dion Khodagholy, associate professor of electrical engineering and computer science, and Jennifer Gelinas, associate professor of pediatrics, were part of a multidisciplinary team who conducted the research, originally published in Nature Neuroscience on June 23, 2025.

More than 230 student teams presented senior design projects at the Samueli School of Engineering 2026 Annual Design Review.

Eleven Senior Projects Win Dean's Choice...

March 30, 2026

The entire first floor of the UC Irvine Student Center buzzed with excitement at the Samueli School of Engineering's Annual Design Review on Friday, March 13. Over one thousand attendees and over 230 student team projects spanned across eight rooms.

UC Irvine’s new AAAS Fellows are (clockwise from top left) Payam Heydari, Chancellor’s Professor and Henry Samueli Faculty Excellence Professor of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science; Amir AghaKouchak, Chancellor’s Professor of civil and environmental engineering; Ann Marie Carlton, professor and vice chair of chemistry; Andrew Lankford, Distinguished Professor Emeritus of physics and astronomy; Michael Yassa, professor of neurobiology and behavior and James L. McGaugh Chair in the Neurobiology of Learning and Memory; Elizabeth Jarvo, Chancellor’s Professor of chemistry; and Geoffrey Abbott, professor and interim chair of physiology and biophysics. UC Irvine

AAAS Names 7 UC Irvine Researchers as...

March 26, 2026

The American Association for the Advancement of Science, the world's largest general scientific society, has selected seven University of California, Irvine researchers – working in disciplines as diverse as chemistry, civil and environmental engineering, neurobiology, and physics – as fellows. “Congratulations to the seven UC Irvine researchers named fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science this year,” said Hal Stern, UC Irvine provost and executive vice chancellor.

“What we’ve built is essentially a light-powered interface that speaks in electrical and mechanical pulses, the same language as the heart, without any of the drawbacks of rigid electrodes, such as tissue damage or contamination risk over long-term use,” says study co-author Herdeline “Digs” Ardoña, UC Irvine assistant professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering. Steve Zylius / UC Irvine

UC Irvine Researchers Engineer a Light-Powered...

March 24, 2026

Researchers at the University of California, Irvine have developed a polymeric biohybrid cardiac device that harnesses the power of light to electrically and mechanically control living heart tissue without the use of metal electrodes. The innovation represents a leap forward in how scientists study heart disease, test cardiac drugs and potentially treat life-threatening arrhythmias.