ñޜThe energy we received from Mars when the exploration Rover beamed pictures back to Earth was less than that generated by a snowflake landing in your hand.ñޝ
says Dr Mohammed Zaki Ahmed, Associate Professor of Information Technology in the School of Engineering, Computing and Mathematics.
The impact of Dr Ahmedñޙs research, however, is anything but as gossamer light thanks to his world-leading insight into the way communication and code can transform energy efficiency.
A renowned expert in digital signal processing, error correction coding, and communication theory, heñޙs been a key member of the Centre for Security, Communications and Network Research. Working alongside his mentor Professor Martin Tomlinson, Zaki has lent his expertise to a range of projects, from signalling systems in the rail industry to near-field communication technology in the housing market, and has been integral to the centreñޙs generation of more than 300 of the best-known error correction codes.
ñޜWe have become addicted to energy, we canñޙt get enough of it,ñޝ he says. ñޜAll around us we see computers, phone chargers, flat-screen televisions, and theyñޙre only using half of their power efficiently; I think we can do better than that.ñޝ
Itñޙs an aspiration that has coursed through Zakiñޙs life and work from a formative age. Growing up in a university environment in Nigeria, he experienced both the frustration of extended periods without electricity, as well as the illumination of being involved with his fatherñޙs research on soil fertility and crop yield.
An outstanding student and courted by some of the top universities in the United States, Zaki came to ñ in 1996 to complete the final year of his degree. He was so inspired by his teachers that he turned down the likes of Georgia Tech to remain in the city and study a masters and PhD, becoming a permanent member of staff in 2001.
His work on solar power and energy efficiency in computers is now attracting serious commercialisation interest, and is currently cloaked in confidentiality to protect its intellectual property. It is, he knows, a chance to tackle the energy problem, reducing the amount we consume and increasing that which we can produce from renewable sources.
ñޜIf I said to you ñޘtake this 100-watt light bulb and communicate with me from a neighbouring cityñޙ you would think it impossible,ñޝ he adds. ñޜAnd yet Voyager is communicating with us from interstellar space, billions of miles away using the equivalent of a 100-watt light bulb. Thatñޙs inspirational!ñޝ