Professor Sunmoon Yu  has joined the Department of Materials Science & Engineering as a tenure-track assistant professor in the area of Green Energy. 

Prior to joining U of T, Yu served as a postdoctoral associate at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He earned his PhD in materials science and engineering from the University of California, Berkeley, supported by the prestigious Samsung Scholarship. His research has been recognized with an American Chemical Society Energy & Fuels Future Investigator Award, for his contributions to electroactive materials for electrochemical CO₂ capture and conversion. 

Yu leads the ECLIPSE Lab (Electrochemical Interfaces for Progress in Sustainability and Energy), where he designs electroactive materials with atomic-level precision to advance the green energy transition. His work integrates fundamental electrochemistry, operando characterization and device-level testing to decarbonize the production of chemicals and materials using CO₂ and other abundant small molecules.

Writer Sherry Esfahani spoke with Yu about his career and what led him to MSE.  

What motivated you to join U of T Materials Science & Engineering, and how does it align with your academic interests?
My primary research interest is developing electroactive materials for a sustainable future, and the department was seeking someone to lead research in green energy materials — an ideal match. With its long-standing excellence in materials research and outstanding students, I found U of T to be the perfect place to launch my research group. Canada is also a dynamic environment for innovation, and I am excited that my work can help shape the country’s future. 

Can you describe the vision behind the ECLIPSE Lab and what you hope students and collaborators will gain from being involved?
My vision is to use electrochemistry to upgrade abundant raw materials and small molecules — including CO₂, N₂, H₂O, and O₂ — into sustainable materials, chemicals and fuels. Students in my lab develop broad expertise spanning materials synthesis, fundamental electrochemistry, and advanced in situ and operando characterization, while addressing key challenges across electrochemical applications. I hope the lab becomes a birthplace for bold ideas and that students carry both the skill sets and mindset into careers in industry, startups, policy and academia worldwide. 

Your work involves designing electroactive materials at the atomic level. What scientific challenges are you tackling, and why do they matter?
While materials science has advanced significantly in surface science, characterization and nanomaterials, the field still lacks true atomic- and molecular-level precision in materials design across applications. Developing this capability would unlock properties inaccessible with conventional materials and enable major breakthroughs. Our group designs electroactive materials with well-defined geometric and electronic structures to move beyond current performance limits, while leveraging in situ and operando techniques to directly connect structure, microenvironment and function in sustainable energy systems. 

How does your research on electrochemical interfaces contribute to the green energy transition?
As renewable electricity becomes more accessible, electrochemistry will play a central role in storing energy in chemical bonds and replacing fossil fuel–based industrial processes. Because electrochemical reactions occur at electrode–electrolyte interfaces, understanding these interfaces is essential to predict and control performance. This insight enables efficient, selective and durable technologies for applications such as carbon capture, sustainable chemical production and critical mineral processing. 

What advice would you give to students pursuing research at the intersection of materials science and sustainable energy?
Take full advantage of the outstanding courses offered in materials science, chemistry and electrochemistry. Learning from world-class researchers is a rare opportunity and a crucial time to build a strong foundation. A solid grounding in fundamentals empowers you to develop new ideas, design innovative materials and approach complex research challenges with depth and creativity. 

Eleven outstanding staff members at U of T Engineering have been recognized by the faculty with Administrative Staff Awards. These awards acknowledge exceptional staff for their citizenship, leadership, innovation and contributions to the student experience.

“Our administrative staff members provide vital support and leadership in advancing our faculty’s mission and I’m grateful for the opportunity to recognize their achievements,” says U of T Engineering Dean Christopher Yip.

“Congratulations to the awardees, and my heartfelt thanks to all our staff members for their incredible contributions.”

The Administrative Staff Award recipients are:

Salvatore Boccia (MSE)

Quality of Student Experience Award for Behind-the-Scenes Staff

Recognizing staff members who have made significant contributions to the quality of student experience in the faculty through the creation or improvement of programs or services.

An engineering technologist in MSE since 1994, Boccia has been leading the electron microscopy operation at the Open Center for the Characterization of Advanced Materials (OCCAM) since its inauguration in 2015. In this role, he provides individual support to students using the OCCAM microscopy lab as well as overseeing the facility. Boccia’s behind-the-scenes contributions have meaningfully improved the student experience by enhancing access to equipment, strengthening student skills, and fostering a safe, positive and inclusive research environment.

Boccia works hard to create a welcoming and non-intimidating atmosphere in the OCCAM lab, which is especially valuable for students who are new to research. His patience and willingness to explain every aspect of the work help students feel confident, supported and capable of engaging meaningfully with advanced research tools. Equally important is Boccia’s unwavering commitment to laboratory safety and his proactive approach to facility management — troubleshooting equipment failures even on weekends and holidays — ensuring minimal interruption to student research. His support, mentoring, and dedication to providing an excellent research experience have positively influenced generations of students.

Jessica Chow (Student Recruitment and Outreach Office)

Harpreet Dhariwal Emerging Leader Award

Recognizing a staff member who leads by example in their dedication to the faculty’s mission and demonstrates potential to assume a more senior leadership role.

Since joining what is now the Engineering Student Recruitment & Outreach Office in 2017, Chow has taken on progressively senior roles in quick succession, from recruitment officer, events and engagement, to senior recruitment officer, and now manager, student recruitment. The duties in all these roles are considerable, from executing large-scale events to building a comprehensive virtual student recruitment plan, to leading scheduling for travel for recruitment events. Nevertheless, she has consistently taken on responsibilities above and beyond her role whenever needed.

Since assuming the manager, student recruitment role in 2022, Chow has continuously improved the office’s business processes and strengthened relationships with faculty partners such as Admissions, Alumni Relations, and the departments. She also leads by example in her commitment to equity, diversity, inclusion and accessibility. Chow has considerably grown outreach programs focused on women in engineering and dramatically improved services for Indigenous applicants. Her leadership is evident in the many relationships she has built across U of T that support her work building an inclusive and diverse student community.

Shayni Curtis Clarke (CivMin)

Agnes Kaneko Citizenship Award

Recognizing a staff member who has served with distinction and made contributions to the faculty’s mission above and beyond their job description over a long period of time.

Curtis Clarke joined U of T Engineering as a graduate assistant in 2005 and advanced through multiple positions in CivMin before taking on the role of undergraduate academic advisor in 2013.

Throughout this time, she has demonstrated an unwavering commitment to student success and to the broader faculty community. Curtis Clarke’s contributions extend well beyond her advising responsibilities. She is a trusted mentor to both academic and administrative staff, generously offering guidance and perspective to colleagues at all stages of their careers. Her collegiality and collaborative spirit contribute to a positive, inclusive and supportive working environment for staff and faculty alike.

Curtis Clarke has served as a key resource on both the FASE Scholarships Committee and the FASE Undergraduate Assessment Committee for approximately 15 years. In those roles, her thoughtful and principled contributions have helped ensure fairness, clarity and continuity in faculty-level decision-making. She has also served on the Joint Task Force on Academic Advising & Mental Health, where her insights have supported our commitment to student well-being. Curtis Clarke received the Barbara McCann Quality of Student Experience Award for Frontline Staff in 2020.

Michelle Deeton (CivMin)

Catherine Gagne Sustained Excellence in Leadership Award

Recognizing a staff member who has demonstrated leadership in supporting the faculty’s mission over a sustained period.

Deeton has demonstrated exceptional leadership in supporting and advancing the faculty’s education and research missions for more than a decade. Since joining U of T Engineering in 2015, she has taken on roles of increasing responsibility, from acting director, office of the Dean to her current position as director, finance & administration in CivMin. Across these roles, Deeton has continuously improved administrative systems, financial oversight and operational processes that directly enable the success of our students, faculty and staff. She also mentors and supports her team with a deep commitment to excellence, integrity and inclusion.

Deeton ensures staff feel valued and empowered to develop their own skills and careers, and her leadership fosters trust and confidence across CivMin and the faculty. Deeton’s contributions extend well beyond her job requirements — she is a committed citizen of the faculty, offering her expertise, mentorship and support to colleagues across U of T Engineering. Her dedication and professionalism make her an invaluable member of our community. On receiving this recognition, Deeton commented that she considers it a great privilege to work in U of T Engineering and CivMin alongside her colleagues.

Amy Hsueh, Elvis Ibrahimovic, Dharsha Sundarampillai, Marie Wee, and Kary Wong (ECE)

Barbara McCann Quality of Student Experience Award for Frontline Staff

Recognizing staff members who have made significant contributions to the quality of student experience in the faculty through their outstanding frontline service.

This team, which makes up the ECE Graduate Office, has navigated an extraordinary period of growth and transformation, as the ECE MEng program has doubled in the past few years. In addition to adapting to the impact of these changes, the team has expanded its portfolio to include recruitment and the development of new administrative infrastructure. Throughout it all, they have not simply managed growth, they have improved and elevated the graduate student experience in ECE. In a period defined by expansion, funding reform and post-pandemic rebuilding, they have strengthened community —  particularly for MEng. Students — enhanced academic progression, improved administrative transparency and elevated recruitment outcomes.

Drawing on daily frontline experience, the team helped translate recurring student questions and procedural bottlenecks into practical system improvements, most notably contributing to the development of the new graduate student portal — a centralized platform designed to streamline processes, improve transparency and enhance access to information. The portal represents not just a technical tool, but a structural improvement to the student experience. It is being scaled for broader faculty adoption.

Colleen Kelly and Fannie Yu (CivMin)

Innovation Award

Recognizing a staff member or team of staff members who has shown innovation in developing a new method, technology or system, or improving an existing system, to the benefit of the faculty.

Kelly and Yu are being recognized for the creation of a dashboard that allows CivMin faculty members to monitor their departmental contributions to funding allocation for student fellowships and to track all payments made to their students and research associates over the course of the academic year. The dashboard provides faculty with a comprehensive, real-time view of all active payees under their supervision. While built on a familiar tool — Excel worksheets — the system represents a significant leap forward in administrative efficiency, transparency and collaboration.

Prior to this innovation, the department relied on a fragmented system that separated business office records from student services oversight. Faculty had limited access to their own payroll activity, and staff had no shared platform for verifying payments. This created inefficiencies and increased the risk of students being underpaid. The new system allows faculty to easily view their spending and ensure they remain on track to meet their funding commitments to students. It also allows staff to share real-time data on payments to students and research associates. It has fundamentally transformed how the department supports students and manages the student funding package.

Researchers at the Institute of Biomedical Engineering at the University of Toronto have demonstrated a new way to monitor transplanted stem-cell-derived heart cells using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). The method allows researchers to visualize where transplanted cells survive over time, which could help scientists evaluate and improve emerging stem cell therapies for heart damage such as those caused by heart attacks. 

Professor Hai-Ling Margaret Cheng (BME) and her team have shown that an imaging platform known as “bright ferritin MRI” can be used to track transplanted human pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes in the hearts of rats for up to eight weeks. The findings were published in a recent issue of Magnetic Resonance in Medicine.

Human pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes can form new heart muscle and integrate with existing tissue. However, many transplanted cells do not survive in clinical trials, and researchers currently lack reliable tools to monitor transplanted cells over long periods inside the body. Existing imaging methods either work only in small animals, or rely on labels that fade or produce misleading signals as cells divide or interact with the immune system.

“Tracking therapeutic cells inside the living body has been a scientific endeavour for decades,” says Cheng.

“The gap in the field, however, has been a failure to visualize surviving cells without losing signal beyond a few days or weeks, and with sufficient signal. Our goal is to address these critical gaps. We want to visualize and spatially map therapeutic cells as long as they are alive, wherever they are in the body.”

To test the approach, lead author Keyu Zhuang (BME PhD 2T5) and colleagues engineered stem cells to overexpress ferritin, a protein that stores iron in cells. These modified stem cells were then differentiated into cardiomyocytes and assessed in laboratory experiments to confirm that they maintained normal cell structure, contractile proteins and electrical properties.

The researchers then transplanted the engineered cardiomyocytes into the left ventricular heart muscle of immunodeficient rats, including animals with heart injury. Using MRI scanners, the team tracked the cells over eight weeks.

By administering manganese chloride, the researchers could trigger a bright MRI signal from the ferritin-expressing cells, allowing them to map the location of surviving transplanted cells in three dimensions. The MRI findings were confirmed using tissue analysis after the experiments. Additional echocardiography tests showed that the manganese treatment did not impair overall heart function.

“The next step is to use the information garnered from the bright-ferritin cell tracking technology to optimize stem cell research directly,” says Cheng.

“Now that we can reliably pinpoint when and where stem cells are surviving, stem cell scientists are better equipped to develop strategies for increasing cell survival.”

On April 1, U of T Engineering students were recognized for their outstanding leadership and service at a celebration hosted by the U of T Engineering Office of Advancement, the Engineering Society (EngSoc), and the offices of the Vice-Dean Undergraduate and Vice-Dean Graduate. 

The annual event honours student leaders who dedicate their time to enhancing the engineering student experience — whether through clubs and design teams, conferences, mentoring, school leadership, outreach initiatives or community-building events. 

Their collective efforts strengthen academic support, promote mental wellness and inclusion and help sustain a vibrant Skule™ community. 

This year, 18 students received the prestigious University of Toronto Student Leadership Awards (UTSLA). Established in 1994 by the University of Toronto Alumni Association in honour of Gordon Cressy, former vice-president, development and university relations, the awards recognize students whose volunteer service has made a meaningful and lasting impact on their peers and the university. 

Also at the event, members of EngSoc and the Graduate Engineering Council of Students (GECoS) celebrated their outgoing student leaders, and recognized the contributions made to student life with the EngSoc Awards.

“Student leaders are so important to the U of T Engineering experience,” says Chris Yip, Dean of U of T Engineering. 

“Their dedication powers the clubs, teams and co-curricular activities where students connect with their peers in pursuit of their passions. These experiences spark life-long friendships, as well as innovative new ideas that lead to new technologies, products and business ventures.”  

“We are so proud of our student leaders who have stepped up to enhance the educational experience, not only for themselves, but for those who will come after,” says Julie Audet, Vice Dean, Graduate. 

“We know they will continue this work even after graduation, acting as key nodes in our vibrant, global network of more than 60,000 alumni.”  

The UTSLA recipients for 2026 are:   

• Mai Ali 

• Lauren Altomare 

• Zeineb Ben Rejeb 

• Ruonan Cao 

• Matthew Du 

• Olivia Fredrickson 

• Vedant Gupta 

• Kenneth Hilton 

• Ava Jakob 

• Harvi Karatha 

• Shaba Khan 

• Lincoln Macdonald 

• Ainsley Ross-Howe 

• Sharini Sam Chee 

• Tess Seip 

• Aryan Singh 

• Kenneth Sulimro 

• Michelle Sun 

Outgoing EngSoc Leadership  

• Kenneth Lloyd Hilton, President  

• Kenneth Sulimro, Vice-President of Finance  

• Ethan Mao, Vice-President of Communications  

• Jim Xu, Vice-President of Academics  

• Shosh Lebo, Vice-President of Student Life 

Outgoing GECoS Leadership  

• Sharini Sam Chee, Co-President  

• Aryan Singh, Co-President 

• Chaitanya Ahuja, Vice President of Finance  

• Anna Nguyen, Vice President of Communications  

• Mymoon Bhuiyan, Vice President of Student Life  

• Uyen Hua, Vice President of Professional Development  

EngSoc Award Winners   

• Engineering Society Centennial Award: Ammar Hasham and Ryan Hammer 

• Engineering Society Semi-Centennial Award: Justin Fang 

• Engineering Society Award: Kenneth Lloyd Hilton 

• Skule™ Cannon Award: Shosh Lebo 

• Discipline Club of the Year: Indy Club 

• Affiliated Club of the Year: University of Toronto Nuclear Energy Association 

• Director of the Year: Christina Pizzonia (Cannon Editor), Michael Atkinson (Design Team Association Director), Justin Fang  (Hi-SkuleTM Director) 

• Representative of the Year: Firdaus Ansari and Justin Fang 

• Joe Club Award: Hayden Groer 

• L.E. Jones Award for Arts in Engineering: Liam Krestow 

• Valedictorian: Abdullah Fawzy 

In mid-March, four U of T Engineering students — Rafael Jabbour, Alina Khan, Lavneet Sidhu and Daniel Rolfe (all Year 3 CompE) — took first place at the Canadian Engineering Competition (CEC). 

The team designed an augmented reality platform that enables building inspectors to quickly spot defects using a smartphone. Their solution earned the top spot for programming, U of T’s first win in that category in more than two decades, and the first in any category since 2022. 

“It felt absolutely surreal,” says Sidhu.  

“We went into the competition aiming to place top three, but at the start of the awards ceremony we had no expectations, only hopes. The moment itself was just ecstatic.” 

“We completely lost it, jumping and screaming,” says Jabbour. 

“What really got to me was seeing other universities celebrating with us — the teams that didn’t win were genuinely happy for us. That made the CEC experience even better.” 

The win marked the culmination of a journey that began over a year ago. The four teammates had been friends since their first year, but it wasn’t until their second year that they first heard about the University of Toronto Engineering Kompetitions (UTEK). 

“Rafael and I were in a lecture one day when the UTEK directors presented to the class, and it just immediately felt like the perfect competition for us,” says Sidhu. 

“I hadn’t done a hackathon before, but it sounded like a great opportunity, so I was in,” says Khan. 

The foursome competed at UTEK 2025, winning first place and a chance to compete at the 2025 Ontario Engineering Competition (OEC), which was held January 25–26, 2025 at McMaster University in Hamilton, Ont. 

Though the team did not advance any further that year, they knew they were onto something. 

“Even though we came up short, it definitely fuelled us to come back stronger and try to win this time around,” says Rolfe.  

“By this year, we already had that chemistry, so it was an easy decision to run it back with the same team.” 

 The team competed at UTEK for the second time this past January. 

The challenge selected for the programming competition was to design a hospital inventory automation system, which would enable robots to navigate via building blueprints and transport supplies between rooms. 

“I think what set us apart was that we actually deployed our system to the cloud,” says Jabbour. 

“You could access it through a URL, so it wasn’t just running locally on a laptop. It made a big difference during the presentation because the judges could interact with it live, and everything worked smoothly without any bugs.” 

After that design placed first, the team headed to the 2026 Ontario Engineering Competition (OEC), which took place at Carleton University in Ottawa, Ont. 

This time, the design challenge involved creating an interplanetary route planner that calculates fuel-efficient trajectories between planets using real orbital mechanics. 

“OEC was a big level up from UTEK,” says Rolfe. 

“Last year, we weren’t fully expecting that jump in difficulty, but this time around we had a much clearer execution plan, and we were a lot more intentional about things, like setting up a clean architecture early, defining interfaces between components and avoiding last-minute integration issues. We also came in with a stronger presentation plan and a lot more confidence overall.”

This time, the team placed first at OEC, earning the opportunity to advance to CEC 2026, which was hosted by the Université de Sherbrooke from March 20–23. 

“At CEC, the challenge was quite open-ended,” says Khan. 

“They asked us to use augmented reality (AR) to support building inspectors and address real-world problems. Given the short timeline of only 8 hours, we focused on balancing ambition with execution.” 

“We designed an AR solution where you point your phone around a room, see defect markers overlaid, track damage over time and collaborate with property owners,” says Jabbour. 

“What really set us apart though was that we were the only team with true 3D AR, which is extremely hard to pull off on the web, alongside a web app with 2D AR. It was a gamble because we split the team in half, two on the web app and two on the 3D AR, knowing that if the 3D didn’t come together, the 2D project might not be enough. But it worked out.” 

The team plans to keep the momentum going for the next UTEK event, set to take place in November 2026. 

“Daniel and I will be the programming directors for UTEK this year, while Rafael will be the webmaster,” says Sidhu. 

“Given our experience, we’re going to try our utmost to prepare and challenge the UTEK competitors in a way that will prepare them to go big and to show off the talent here at the University of Toronto.” 

The team is also looking forward to 2028, when U of T is scheduled to play host to the provincial competition. 

“After competing for two years, we’ve seen what works and what doesn’t,” says Jabbour. 

“We proved this year that U of T can compete at the national level, and I don’t want that to be a one-off. It would be nice if we can build something that helps the next group of competitors feel more prepared and more supported.”

Ali Asgarian has joined the Department of Materials Science & Engineering (MSE) at the University of Toronto as an assistant professor. He specializes in the integration of advanced simulation with AI, sensing and automation to transform materials processes and powder technologies.  

Before joining U of T, Asgarian led the Materials Design, Scale-up, and Optimization team at the National Research Council Canada (NRC). In that role, he oversaw research initiatives advancing materials and devices for batteries, hydrogen production and the decarbonization of heavy industries. His own research focused on plasma-based methods for powder synthesis and modification, targeting next-generation batteries and sustainable industrial applications.  

Prior to his time at NRC, he spent a decade at Hatch Ltd., a global engineering firm where he contributed to technology development as well as the design and construction management of numerous mineral and metallurgical plants. 

Writer Sherry Esfahani spoke with Asgarian about his career and what led him to MSE.  

What sparked your interest in materials science and engineering, and what attracted you to U of T’s MSE department? 

I studied mechanical engineering, where thermodynamics sparked my interest in materials science by showing how turbine-blade materials limit the efficiency of power plants, underscoring the field’s role in technological advancement. After moving to Canada and recognizing its vast mineral resources, I shifted fully into materials science, spending a decade at Hatch developing metals and minerals processing technologies, completing a PhD at U of T’s MSE department on additively manufacturable metal powders with Rio Tinto, and later leading novel materials design, scale up, and optimization at the National Research Council Canada. Having earned my PhD at MSE, returning felt like coming home, and its outstanding faculty, collaborative environment, and motivated students make it an ideal place to teach, researchand mentor the next generation. 

Can you tell us more about the vision and goals for your ASPiRE Lab, and what you hope students will take away from working on projects there? 

ASPiRE (ASgarian’s Process and Powder Intelligent REsearch) Lab integrates materials science, transport phenomena, process modeling and AI-based optimization to make metallurgical and powder processing more sustainable, efficient and semi-autonomous. It bridges the gap between material innovation and industrial scale-up. Our work addresses major challenges such as resource scarcity, decarbonization and large-scale production of critical and energy materials. Through projects like digital twins for steel processing, hydrogen-based recycling of critical minerals and machine vision for defect monitoring, students learn to model and optimize complex systems using experiments and computational tools while translating their work into real industrial impact. Equally important, they develop professional skills through collaboration with industry and government partners, gaining insight into how engineering innovation operates in real-world contexts. 

Your research spans sustainable materials and advanced manufacturing — what emerging technologies or challenges in materials science excite you most right now? 

I’m particularly excited by AI and self-driving labs, which are accelerating materials discovery and transforming how we design and optimize processes. At the same time, the field faces urgent challenges such as resource scarcity, critical minerals and decarbonization, all of which require advances in materials production. In my team, we address these by integrating AI and automation into processing systems, for example, developing digital twins and semi self-driving platforms for faster optimization and adaptive control, while also advancing cleaner, more sustainable routes using technologies such as hydrogen and plasma-based methods. 

How does your experience leading research teams and projects at NRC influence how you structure collaboration and innovation in your lab at U of T?  

At NRC, projects were multidisciplinary, industry-driven and aligned with government mandates, so I learned to align diverse expertise around clear milestones and partner needs. I’ve brought that approach to my lab by building teams that integrate researchers with diverse backgrounds and expertise, and by co-developing projects with industry and government, ensuring the research remains both fundamental and impactful. 

What advice would you give to students interested in combining materials science research with real-world applications in energy, sustainability or advanced manufacturing? 

There’s no single recipe, but a few principles help. Always connect materials knowledge to large-scale applications and consider how materials are produced, processed and used in practice. Even transformative discoveries like graphene required scalable integration into real technologies. Engage with industry early through internships or collaborations to frame research around real-world constraints and accelerate deployment. Think beyond technical performance by considering economic viability — techno-economic analysis is essential for scalability — and develop cross-disciplinary skills in modeling and systems design to translate materials insights into practical, impactful solutions.