The INQUIRE Lab team with the Translational Impact Award
The Gallogly College of Engineering congratulates the INQUIRE Lab and faculty from the School of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE), including
Dr. Mike Banad, associate professor, and Dr. Sarah Sharif, assistant professor, on their recognition at the Celebrating Research Translation at OU event, held April 9, 2026, at the Sam Noble Museum of Natural History.
The INQUIRE Lab received the Translational Research Impact Award in recognition of its work advancing semiconductor innovation and bridging fundamental research with practical, real-world applications. Banad and Sharif were each honored as Most Active in Intellectual Property Disclosures, reflecting their commitment to moving university research toward broader technological and societal impact.
The INQUIRE Lab, which stands for Intelligent Neuromorphic and Quantum Understanding for Innovative Research and Engineering, advances research at the intersection of artificial intelligence, materials, hardware, neuromorphic systems, photonics, quantum technologies, and next-generation semiconductor devices. The lab’s mission emphasizes both fundamental discovery and a clear pathway toward commercialization, with research efforts connected to national laboratories, federal agencies, and industry partners. .
The lab brings together device physics, algorithms, circuits, materials, and AI into an integrated research pipeline designed to move ideas from concept to validated systems. Its research portfolio includes AI for accelerated materials discovery, domain-specific large language models, hybrid quantum machine learning, neuromorphic computing hardware, physics-informed inverse design, quantum photonic sensing, and intelligent autonomous systems.
Banad, an associate professor in ECE and affiliated faculty member in the Materials Science and Engineering Program, leads the Neuromorphic Intelligent Computing Systems groups, with research spanning neuromorphic computing, AI-driven design, and intelligent autonomous photonic and electronic systems. His work focus on developing intelligent and efficient computing systems that connect materials, devices, circuits, algorithms, and applications.
Sharif, an assistant professor in ECE and affiliated faculty member of the Center for Quantum Research and Technology and the Materials Science and Engineering Program, leads the Quantum Nanophotonic Engineering Technology and Systems group, where her research advances optical and quantum optical systems, neuromorphic photonics, and machine learning applications for optical and quantum optical technologies.
These recognitions highlight the growing translational impact of interdisciplinary research at OU and the role of INQUIRE Lab in developing scalable, energy-efficient, and application-driven technologies for future computing, sensing, autonomy, and semiconductor systems.
