This workshop brings together researchers, engineers, and industry leaders to explore and discuss the full lifecycle of electrical machines from innovation and advanced fabrication to reuse, refurbishment, and redesign all within the framework of a circular economy. It highlights emerging materials, novel machine topologies, sustainable manufacturing processes, and design-for-disassembly approaches that reduce environmental impact while maintaining high performance and reliability.

Speakers

Our confirmed industrial speakers include motor manufacturers from the automotive and renewable sector, plus representatives from within the supply chain and automated assembly. From Academia we have leading researchers in electrical machine design, innovative manufacture, life cycle analysis and circular electronics.

Please join us if you can.

Hello,

Welcome to an ‘almost Spring’ edition of the newsletter. We hope you’re enjoying the lighter days. Read on for details of our current flexible funding opportunities, as well as a couple of events from friends of N-ZEEE.

FLEXIBLE FUNDING AND TRAVEL BURSARIES

We have opened our flexible funds again, and this round is due to close on 20 March 2026. These awards are up to £2000, to cover activities that will bring you into contact with potential collaborators, including (but not limited to) secondments, travel bursaries and workshop fees. The application form is here.

Our workshop fund has two awards remaining, also for up to £2000, to bring together researchers in electrical engineering for renewable energy. There must be an early career researcher aspect to the workshop (either in focus or speaking slots). This fund will remain open until we have made the final two awards. The application form is available here.

We have also opened an award expressly designed to enable researchers to come together as a group in order to develop a proposal for a funding bid. This will cover travel, accommodation, subsistence and room hire to allow time and space for a group (at least two people) to work up a proposal. The application form is available here.

For those who have registered to attend the ECR Net Zero conference in Birmingham, 9-10 March, we have a limited number of travel bursaries available to facilitate attendance. For this, please forward confirmation of your registration along with details of the travel you are looking to book.

RESEARCH SPOTLIGHT

Open call for posters, reports, provocations, test results, schematics... Do you have interesting research to share? If so, we want to know about it. For a chance to have the N-ZEEE spotlight on your research, let us know using this form.

OPPORTUNITIES FROM OUR PARTNERS

INVITATION TO SUBMIT FROM CPE

CPE will be holding their annual conference in Edinburgh, 7-8 July 2026. The Conference Organising Team invites Abstracts from Students (Undergraduate and Post-Graduate) and Post Doctoral Researchers for Poster and Oral Presentations which describe the latest advancements in Power Electronics, Electric Machines and Drives. Up to 6 Abstracts from PhD Students will also be selected for Oral Presentation during the CPE Conference. Prizes will be awarded to selected Poster and Oral Presentations.

The following Research and Development topics have been highlighted:

• Semiconductor and Passive Devices

• Materials, Packaging and Interconnect; including sustainability and

• Circularity

• Converters, Drives and Applications; including cryogenic and megawatt scale applications

• Control, Test and Reliability

Abstracts are due by Friday 13th March 2026.
Please submit your Abstract with a Title, Authors and up to 200 words to office@imaps.org.uk

MASTERCLASSES AND EVENTS FROM SUPERGEN ORE

Early Career Forum
Tuesday 21 April 2026, University of Warwick

Designed for those early in their careers in offshore renewable energy, this forum offers opportunities to connect with peers, develop key skills, and take part in panel discussions.

Find out more and register your free place.

Annual Assembly – Open to All
Wednesday 22 April 2026, University of Warwick

For all of those working in the offshore renewable energy sector, join the Supergen ORE Hub Assembly to explore the challenges and opportunities shaping the future of offshore wind, wave, and tidal energy. The Assembly connects industry, academia and policymakers to delve into the latest sector developments through research presentations, panel discussions and networking sessions.

Find out more and register your free place.

Masterclasses

Masterclass on Virtual Prototyping of Offshore Renewable Energy Technologies

Wednesday 29 April - Thursday 30 April | National Decommissioning Centre, University of Aberdeen

More info.

Environmental Contours and Extreme Value Analysis

Thursday 14 May - Friday 15 May 2026 | Penryn Campus, University of Exeter

More info.

Details

1 or 2 day Masterclasses.

£500/day. Free for eligible Early Career Researchers.

The series continues from April 2027 at leading research centres across the UK.

These sessions are part of our wider 10-part Masterclass Series. The details of the full series are here.

That’s all from us for now. Looking forward to sharing information about future opportunities and the next round of awardees soon.

The N-ZEEE leadership team

We are once again opening a round of flexible funding. The application window opens 13 February, 2026 and closes on 20 March, 2026.

We are especially interested in funding activity that demonstrates a clear step-change for the applicants and has strong alignment with their fundamental research topics, which sit under the focus for N-ZEEE – net-zero enabling electrical engineering. The funds can cover accommodation, travel and subsistence for secondments, research visits, networking, as well as attendance at workshops, seminars and conferences.

Throughout this application window, we will be highlighting researchers on the N-ZEEE LinkedIn page that have been awarded funds, and the range of activities they have undertaken, as well as the knowledge they have garnered and shared with the rest of the network.

A selection of past awards

Finds have been awarded for a range of activities. Reports from these activities are available on the profile pages of the researchers we’ve funded.

Hongye Zhang went on secondment with GKN Aerospace

Chenying Liu had research visits with a range of partners to foster deeper collaboration, producing a journal paper and developing a project outline.

Jordon Dobson attended a tutorial to inform a paper, which he then took to an international conference to deliver.

Xun Jiang put on a day long ECR conference using workshop funds to bring researchers together at Cardiff University

Xun Jiang and Cardiff colleagues hosted a workshop for early career researchers focused on careers in energy advancement.

Programme For E React Workshop

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Xun received Flexible Funding to support the workshop, which happened on 29 January.

Dr. Xun Jiang received the Ph.D. degree in electrical engineering from Cardiff University, U.K., in 2024. He is currently a Research Associate with the School of Engineering of Cardiff University, U.K.

His research interests lie in the modelling, operation and planning of smart electricity distribution networks to facilitate increasing integration of low carbon technologies, with the goal of achieving net zero carbon transition in electricity sector.

He has participated as a key researcher in electricity system–related projects, including the European Horizon project and UK EPSRC projects. He is the winner of lEEE PES UK & Ireland Chapter Best PhD Thesis Award in 2025. He has published 18 papers, including one first-author paper recognized as an ESI Highly Cited Paper in Engineering. He has served as technical session chairs at international conferences such as IEEE EI2, and the global conference for University Consortium on Engineering Education and Research. He currently serves as the Students & Young Professionals Representative of the IEEE PELS UK & Ireland Chapter, a Committee Member of CIGRE UK NGN, and a reviewer for prestigious journals, including IEEE Transactions on Smart Grid, IEEE Transactions on Power Systems, Applied Energy, etc.

Link to Xun’s website

Dr Jiang has organised the first of our flexible funds workshops, which is now open to registrations:

Workshop in Cardiff - E-REACT: Empowering early career Researchers for Energy Advancement and Career Transition
9:30 am-16:00 pm, Thursday, 29 January 2026
Rooms 0.01 & 0.02, Translational Research Hub, Cardiff University, CF24 4HQ

The E-REACT workshop features six distinguished speakers from academia, industry, and professional organisations. The workshop aims to exchange diverse perspectives and recent advancements in the energy transition, share career experiences and empower early career researchers to contribute to shaping a sustainable energy future. Join us for an inspiring and collaborative gathering of the energy community!

Event Chairs: Dr. Xun Jiang, Dr. Sheng Wang, Dr. Jiajie Luo, Dr. Wenlong Ming

Event co-sponsorship: EPSRC N-ZEEE Network+, IEEE UK and Ireland Power Electronics Chapter, CIGRE UK Next Generation Network, IEEE Student Branch at Cardiff

Sincere thanks are given to all members of IEEE PELS Chapter and IEEE Student Branch at Cardiff, who supported the organisation of this event

E React Event

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N-ZEEE industry workshops

N-ZEEE are hosting 2 workshops designed specifically to engage researchers and development engineers in industry. The workshops will enable a discussion about a future supergen hub bid, in consultation with industry and stakeholders. Through the new hub we aim to support and strengthen the UK renewable energy supply chain through innovation, including opening opportunities to organisations not currently active in the sector.

Registration details of the two consultation sessions are below and you are welcome to pass these on within your organisation.

9th December 11:00-12:00: N-ZEEE EPSRC Supergen Hub - Creating a Power-Electronics & Machines Focused Supergen Hub - Industry Partner Consultation | Meeting-Join | Microsoft Teams

17th December 11:00-12:00: N-ZEEE EPSRC Supergen Hub - Creating a Power-Electronics & Machines Focused Supergen Hub - Industry Partner Consultation | Meeting-Join | Microsoft Teams

Centre for Power-Electronics Conference: call for abstracts

The Centre for Power Electronics (CPE) and IMAPS-UK are pleased to announce a Call for Abstracts for the Annual CPE Conference from Early and Mid Career Academics. The CPE 2026 Conference is planned to be held at the University of Edinburgh on 7-8 July 2026.
Abstracts are invited from academics which describe the latest advances in Power Electronics and Drives. Up to 4 abstracts will be selected for Oral Presentation during the CPE Conference.

The following Research and Development topics have been highlighted:

• Semiconductor and Passive Devices

• Materials, Packaging and Interconnect; including sustainability and circularity

• Converters, Drives and Applications; including cryogenic and megawatt scale applications

• Control, Test and Reliability

Abstracts are due by Friday 19th December 2025.
Please submit your Abstract to office@imaps.org.uk

ECR NetZero Conference 2026 – Registration now open!

Early career researchers working across energy, net zero and sustainability are invited to join us in Birmingham for a two day conference. Featuring discussions, keynotes and networking opportunities, the conference offers connection, insight and innovation on the path to net zero.

Birmingham Conference and Events Centre 9–10 March 2026

Places are limited – register now to secure your spot.

Looking forward to connecting this month and in the new year, and wishing you all a prosperous 2026, full of insights, fruitful collaborations and new discoveries.

The N-ZEEE Team

Mr. Nguyen Binh Nguyen Le obtained a bachelor's degree from the International University, Vietnam National University, with a first-class ranking in 2024. He joined the Department of Engineering at the University of Huddersfield, United Kingdom, in October 2024 as a PhD student and recipient of the Department scholarship. His main research focuses on Machine Learning applications in power electronics and electric machine drives, particularly in Fuel-Cell Hybrid Powertrains.

Mr. Le has published several papers and will present his recent research at ECCE-Europe 2025, titled "AI-based Energy Management in Fuel-Cell Powertrains: A Review of Control Strategies and Implementation Challenges". This work explores the application of data-driven technology to optimise energy consumption in next-generation electric vehicles. The generous support of the N-ZEEE network provides him with a valuable opportunity to attend ECCE-Europe 2025, connecting his work with the UK and international academic and industrial networks.

Looking forward, Mr. Le's ambition is to develop adaptive and robust data-driven control algorithms that bridge the gap between theoretical research and practical implementation. These algorithms will contribute to a more sustainable future transportation.

nguyenbinhnguyen.le@hud.ac.uk

LinkedIn

Personal webpage

Battery Tutorial Notes Ecce2025

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I am an engineer working at the intersection of structural design, robotics, and sustainable energy. One of my current research areas focuses on origami-enhanced dielectric fluid generators – a new type of wave energy harvester that converts ocean motion into electricity. This approach, recognised with an ECR Poster Prize at the 2025 Supergen ORE Annual Assembly, offers a scalable and resilient pathway for renewable power.

With ECR Flexible Funding support from N-ZEEE, I am developing predictive models and testing advanced dielectric materials to improve efficiency and output. The award will also facilitate and strengthen collaborations with the University of Plymouth, Imperial College London, Queen Mary University of London, and the University of Bristol, helping to lay the groundwork for next-generation ocean energy systems.

N Zeee Flexiblefundreport Dr Chenying Liu

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Email

Website

Dr. Shuangrong You received his MSc degree from Shanghai University, China, in 2018, where his study focused on the design of compact superconducting magnets and superconducting transformers.

After graduation, he worked as an electromagnetic engineer at AllTech Medical Systems, a company specializing in superconducting magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) technology.

From 2019 to 2023, he pursued his PhD at the Robinson Research Institute in New Zealand – a world renowned centre for applied superconductivity. His doctoral research focused on the experimental measurement and finite element method (FEM) simulation of AC loss in superconducting coils, along with structural optimization to minimize AC loss. He participated in the “Fastest Superconducting Machine” project, funded by the New Zealand Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE).

Dr. You is currently working as a postdoctoral researcher with Prof. Markus Mueller at the University of Edinburgh since 2023. He is involved in the SuperMachine Project, a superconducting wind turbine initiative funded by the Royal Academy of Engineering (RAEng).

His current research interests include high-temperature superconducting (HTS) rotating machines, AC loss characterization in HTS coils and devices, and FEM modelling of superconducting systems.

His future research aims to focus on the development and commercialization of ultra low-loss HTS machines.

Shuangrong You - Google Scholar

syou2@ed.ac.uk

Dr Sebastian Neira Castillo (Lecturer in Electrical Machines and Drives, University of Edinburgh) has a track record of delivering research outcomes for industry collaborative projects covering topics such as wide-bandgap power semiconductors for megawatt-scale converter design in renewable energy applications, DC circuit breakers for future HVDC networks, and converter design for superconducting transmission systems. He recently obtained two Early Career Research (ECR) Awards from Supergen ORE and N-ZEEE to explore novel power conversion systems for marine wave energy and transport electrification applications.

His current research interests are in innovative power conversion systems for next-generation sustainable transportation and renewable energy applications. These applications include all-electric aviation, heavy-duty transport electrification and renewable energy applications with high potential in the UK such as marine wave energy. He is particularly interested in developing (i) megawatt-scale power electronics converters to operate at cryogenic temperatures with high efficiency/high power density levels and (ii) DC-DC power conversion systems capable of performing the power take-off process of innovative wave energy technologies, such as Dielectric Elastomer Generators (DEG).

Funded Activity

Sebastian Neira Castillo was funded to attend the 2025 IEEE Transportation Electrification Conference, including the AIAA Electric Aircraft Technologies Symposium. This activity aimed to:

• Enable Sebastian to make new connections with potential Industrial and Academic partners to support a Fellowship bid regarding the design and development of cryogenic power electronics converters for superconducting propulsion systems.

• Allow Sebastian to stay connected with the latest industry advancements and challenges related to the electrification of transportation in order to include that view in the development of his Fellowship proposal and future research grant applications.

• Provide opportunities for Sebastian to exchanging knowledge with potential partners, using his extensive experience in the design and development of power converters up to the MW-scale for renewable energy applications and energy storage systems.

Read Sebastian’s summary of the conference, with key insights about major challenges and research themes.

I am Xinyun Zhang, a PhD student at the University of Edinburgh. My research focuses on the Programmable Lattice Modular Converter (PLMC), an innovative idea for building a universal converter that can operate across medium- to low-voltage levels. The aim is to create a flexible hardware platform where different converter topologies can be realized within one system, making it highly adaptable for future grid applications. Beyond this, I am especially interested in wide-bandgap devices such as GaN and SiC, advanced control strategies, and the design of new converter topologies. These directions together support my goal of improving efficiency, flexibility, and practicality in next-generation power conversion.

Ecpe Poster Xinyun

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Ecpe Report Xinyun

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My name is Nguyen Nam Anh Dang, and I am a PhD student at the University of Huddersfield, UK, supported by a full scholarship. My research mainly focuses on developing advanced and reliable microgrid systems for renewable energy applications. I am particularly interested in grid-interactive inverter design (including LCL design and controller strategies), modeling, and the application of artificial intelligence (AI), especially machine learning in power converter systems.

Coming from Vietnam, a developing country, I expect to make the most of every opportunity to enhance my knowledge, establish an international academic network, and stay current with the latest technologies in power electronics and energy systems. Thanks to the funding support from the N-ZEEE network, I have the opportunity to attend IEEE ECCE Europe 2025, Europe’s largest international conference on power electronics and energy conversion, taking place in Birmingham, UK.

Looking ahead, I aim to explore advanced AI-driven control approaches to enable efficient online training for future power systems. I also plan to investigate fault-tolerant solutions for microgrids to ensure reliable operation under diverse fault conditions, contributing to the development of sustainable and intelligent energy systems.

LinkedIn

Ecce Report Nguyen Nam Anh Dang

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Jordon A. Dobson received his M.Eng. degree in Marine Technology with Honours in Marine Engineering from Newcastle University, U.K, in 2020. Since 2021, he has been pursuing a PhD as part of the Centre for Doctoral Training in Sustainable Electric Propulsion (SEP-CDT) within the Power Electronics, Machine and Control Research Institute at the University of Nottingham.

His early research focused on shore-to-ship electrification, where he investigated the industrial adoption of cold ironing in commercial ports. This work was recognised with the IMarEST Sir Donald Maxwell Award. Building on this foundation, his current research interests centre on the application of wide band gap device semiconductors, particularly Gallium Nitride (GaN), in medium-voltage power electronic systems.

Alongside his doctoral studies, he has contributed to projects on solid-state circuit breakers and the characterisation and applications of cryogenic motor drives for aerospace technologies. His current work is focused on the transient behaviour of multicellular converter topologies employing GaN HEMTs, supported in part by the NZEEE+ Network, where he received the Early Career Research Funding Award, allowing him to advance his work, and receive training from ECPE tutorials.

His research aims to advance the reliability and efficiency of next-generation power electronics for sustainable transport and energy applications.

Activity Digest

Jordon was awarded funding to support participation in an ECPE tutorial to inform development of an established concept for a conference paper based on GaN-based power electronics for medium voltage systems. Following submission of the paper, the fund will also support Jordon’s attendance at the 2025 International Conference on Electrical Machine and Systems (ICEMS25) in November 2025.

Icems 2025 Digest Jordon Dobson

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Jordon’s activity has now completed, as the report below summarises.

Nzeee Report Jordon Dobson

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Mason Parker received the M.Eng (Hons.) degree in General Engineering specialising in Renewable Energy from Durham University, Durham, U.K, in 2021. He then completed the Ph.D. degree in Power Electronics with The University of Edinburgh, Edinburgh, U.K in 2025. He is currently working as a senior product applications engineer at Analog Devices, Edinburgh, U.K, in the high voltage protection group. His research interests include the active gate driving of high current Silicon Carbide devices. This is with a focus of improving switching characteristics, reducing emissions and achieving active current balancing between parallel power modules.

Workshop Report

Mason’s funding allowed him to attend an ECPE tutorial ‘Testing and Electrical Characterization of Power Semiconductor Devices’. The aims for this workshops were: to enhance his knowledge relating to the testing of power semiconductor devices; to improve his PhD research; to inspire new ideas or directions for research beyond his PhD; to get a better understanding of how to overcome unique challenges like very high bandwidth requirements; to bring back the knowledge gained to my group and the N-ZEEE network to facilitate academic discussions. Finally, he anticipated that the networking would allow him to make new contacts from both industry and academia, potentially resulting in future collaborations or funding.

Nzeee Notes Mason Parker

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Dr Hongye ZHANG (h-index 18, FHEA, MIET, MIEEE), Lecturer (Assistant Professor) in Superconducting and Cryogenic Electric Machines at the University of Edinburgh, UK. He received the BSc (2015) and MSc (2018) degrees in Electrical Engineering from Xi’an Jiaotong University, China, the Diplôme d’ingénieur (2018) from École Centrale de Lyon, France, and the PhD degree in Applied Superconductivity (2021) from the University of Edinburgh. In 2021, he was awarded one of the six IEEE Superconductivity Graduate Study Fellowships. From 2021 to 2024, he worked on the £54-million H2GEAR project to develop cryogenic motors for hydrogen-electric aircraft as a PDRA at the University of Manchester. In 2024, he was awarded an Outstanding Scholar Award by the UK OYSS.

His research interests include the design of superconducting and cryogenic electric machines (especially for electric aircraft and wind energy), multiphysics modelling of superconductors, fusion magnets, cryogenics, and artificial intelligence.

He is Chairman of the international workshop HTS 2026, a Board Member of the European Society for Applied Superconductivity (ESAS), a Board Member of the HTS Modelling Workgroup, and an Early Career Editorial Board member & Associate Editor for Elsevier Superconductivity, etc.

Google Scholar

Hongye.Zhang@ed.ac.uk

Secondment report

Hongye’s award supported a one-week secondment at GKN Aerospace, to engage in several collaborative and developmental activities including mentorship and knowledge exchange. The activity had a number of aims. It was designed to contribute to the development of a research project; to strengthen Industry-Academia collaboration; to contribute to career development through strategic networking and visibility: to develop long-term research collaborations; and to contribute to Zero Emission Aviation.

Secondment Report Hongye Zhang

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N-ZEEE and the electrical engineering department at Imperial College hosted experts in the field of integrating power-electronic interfaced renewable resources into power-systems, including academics and industrial partners.

About N-ZEEE: N-ZEEE is one of four EPSRC Network+ projects aiming to create coherence in a renewables focused research area that is currently absent with the aim of enabling an upcoming bid to compete for a Power-Electronics, Machines & Drives focused EPSRC Supergen Hub.

Steering the Supergen Hub Bid: The latter part of the day was dedicated to the N-ZEEE team discussing the vision for this hub, as well as running a steering workshop event to attendees to shape plans for the Supergen Hub, influence the strategic research priorities that this hub will address, as well as contribute to steering of how the hub can most effectively fund research activities to support its core mission.

Yudi Xiao and Strathclyde colleagues hosted a workshop exploring power electronics for extreme environments at Ross Priory. N-ZEEE members were in attendance, and made new connections.

Yudi received Flexible Funding to support the workshop, which happened on 27 October 2025.

Yudi received his PhD degree in Electrical Engineering from Technical University of Denmark, and Industrial PhD Certificate from Innovation Fund Denmark in 2022. He was an Electronics Engineer at Welltec A/S, Denmark, where he worked with his colleagues to develop the most powerful down-hole power supply capable of withstanding ambient temperature above 175 degree Celsius. Now at the Applied Superconductivity Laboratory he lays eyes on the other end of the temperature scale, -200 degree Celsius. His research interest is power electronics in extreme environments.

Workshop

Yudi was awarded funds to help put on a workshop about power electronics in extreme environments, taking place in Glasgow in October 2025. Book your place today.

Electrical engineering can and will play a significant role in next-generation renewables. N-ZEEE has an ambition to support early career researchers to deepen their knowledge and expertise, as well as broaden their horizons. The network is especially keen to enable new collaborations and insights through facilitating activity outside of a researchers’ institution and discipline. To that end, this flexible funding round calls for applications to support workshops that bring experts and the network's researchers together. The funding will cover expenses like accommodation, subsistence, travel, venue hire and catering.

For each workshop, we would anticipate a thirty minute speaking slot for a member of the N-ZEEE leadership team and speaking opportunities for early career researchers. The network will help organise and promote workshops as required. We have five awards to offer, to a value of around £2000 each.

Apply now or email n-zeee@durham.ac.uk for more information.

We are delighted to have made funding offers from N-ZEEE’s first flexible funding call! The eight awards have been made to PhD students, postdoctoral researchers and early career academics across a range of UK universities, and cover activities from conference attendance to research secondments. We are really looking forward to seeing the results of these funded activities and will post more about the awards as they progress. Thank you to everyone who applied and gave use such a strong field of applications to assess.

Flexible Funding Awardees

• Sebastian Neira Castillo

• Jordon Dobson

• Yaohui Gai

• Amirhossein Malekipour

• Parvathy Mohanan-Leela

• Mason Parker

• Hongye Zhang