Biography
Dr. Sumbel Ijaz is a Lecturer in the Department of Electrical Engineering at Government College University Lahore with over 13 years of teaching experience in undergraduate engineering education. She has taught a wide range of courses, including Antenna & Wave Propagation, Signals & Systems, Digital Signal Processing, and related subjects in electrical and electronic engineering. Her academic and outreach interests span optics, photonics, metasurfaces, solar energy systems, agrivoltaics, and emerging interdisciplinary technologies at the intersection of energy and information sciences.
Dr. Sumbel Ijaz is actively engaged in promoting STEM education and experiential learning through nationwide outreach initiatives, technical workshops, seminars, and public engagement activities. She has contributed to capacity-building efforts aimed at fostering scientific curiosity and technological awareness among students and young researchers. Her current research interests include sustainable energy technologies, optical and photonic systems, electromagnetic applications, and innovative approaches for integrating renewable energy with agricultural systems.
She is particularly interested in bridging the gap between academic research and societal needs by connecting engineering concepts with real-world innovation. Her work emphasizes the role of light-based technologies, next-generation photonic applications, and sustainable engineering solutions in addressing contemporary challenges related to energy, climate resilience, and technological development.
Research Interests
Teaching Experience
Affiliations
Government College University (GCU)
Lecturer, Department of Electrical Engineering
Lahore, Pakistan
HEC Pakistan
National Research Program for Universities (NRPU)
Co-Principal Investigator
Journal Publications
| Title | Publication | Authors | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sustainable Agrivoltaics Across Diverse Climates: A Generalizable Framework for Energy-Agriculture CoproductionJournal | Journal of Solar Energy Engineering | 2026 | |
| Towards sustainable Agri-Photovoltaics through system design and viability in Semi-Arid conditionsJournal | Solar Energy, Vol. 299 | 2025 | |
| Metasurface Absorber–Emitter Pair-Integrated High-Efficiency Thermophotovoltaic SystemJournal | ACS Photonics | 2025 | |
| Ultra-broadband UV–VIS–NIR absorbers via nanostructured refractory nitridesJournal | MRS Energy & Sustainability | 2024 | |
| Efficient Solar energy harvesting via thermally stable tungsten-based nanostructured solar thermophotovoltaic systemsJournal | Materials Today Communications | 2024 | |
| Multi-Material Described Metasurface Solar Absorber Design with Absorption Prediction Using Machine Learning ModelsJournal | Materials Today Communications | 2023 | |
| Numerical simulation to optimize the efficiency of HTM-free perovskite solar cells by ETM engineeringJournal | Solar Energy, Vol. 250 | 2023 | |
| Exploiting zirconium nitride for an efficient heat-resistant absorber and emitter pair for solar thermophotovoltaic systemsJournal | Optics Express, Vol. 29 | 2021 | |
| The Dawn of Metadevices: From Contemporary Designs to Exotic ApplicationsJournal | Advanced Devices & Instrumentation, Vol. 2022 | 2022 | |
| Physics-driven tandem inverse design neural network for efficient optimization of UV–Vis meta-devicesJournal | Applied Surface Science Advances, Vol. 18 | 2023 |
Conference Publications
| Title | Conference / Proceedings | Authors | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| A Machine Learning-based Approach to Model Highly-thermally Robust Metasurface AbsorberConf | CLEO Pacific Rim 2022 | 2022 | |
| Investigating sunlight trapping efficiency of an ultrathin, ultrabroadband, thermostable, zirconium nitride (ZrN)-based metasurface for solar thermophotovoltaic systemsConf | SPIE Photonics Europe, Vol. 12150 | 2022 | |
| Machine learning for metasurfaces broadband absorber designConf | SPIE Photonics Europe, Vol. 13011 | 2024 | |
| Application of machine-learning techniques for characteristic analysis of refractory materialsConf | SPIE/COS Photonics Asia, Vol. 12313 | 2022 | |
| Evaluating the most efficient 2D ZrN nanostructures for broadband metasurface absorbersConf | SPIE OPTO, Vol. 12004 | 2022 | |
| Ultra-black Pythagorean-tree metasurface antenna array based absorber and emitter for applications in solar thermophotovoltaicsConf | 1st International Conference on Microwave, Antennas & Circuits (ICMAC) | 2021 |
Education
PhD in Electrical Engineering
Information Technology University of the Punjab, Lahore
Completed
Specialization in Nanophotonics, Metamaterials, and Solar Energy Systems
Teaching Experience
Over 13 years of teaching experience in undergraduate engineering education at Government College University Lahore. Courses taught include:
Outreach & STEM Engagement
Actively engaged in promoting STEM education and experiential learning through nationwide outreach initiatives, technical workshops, seminars, and public engagement activities. Contributed to capacity-building efforts aimed at fostering scientific curiosity and technological awareness among students and young researchers.
Research Grants
HEC Pakistan National Research Program for Universities (NRPU)
PKR 8.195 Million
Project Title: "Framework for Development of Innovative Virtual Labs in Outcome-Based Education using Digital Twin for Industry-Ready Engineering Graduates."
Awarded for 2026 · Higher Education Commission of Pakistan
Research Focus Areas
Research Impact
10+ Journal Publications
In high-impact journals including ACS Photonics, Optics Express, Solar Energy, and Materials Today Communications.
6+ Conference Papers
At SPIE, CLEO, and IEEE venues covering photonics, energy, and microwave applications.
HEC NRPU Grant
Co-PI on an 8.195 Million PKR grant for virtual labs and digital twin research in engineering education.