Celebrating the 163rd anniversary of Riga Technical University (RTU), awards were traditionally presented to the Scientist of the Year and young scientists, recognizing their achievements in the field of future communication technologies and innovative biomaterials. The authors of the most successful scientific publications also received awards.
The Scientist of the Year 2025 award went to Xiaodan Pang, tenured professor at the Institute of Photonics, Electronics and Electronic Communications, Faculty of Computer Science, Information Technology and Energy, RTU. His research focuses on free-space optical communications, short-distance optical interconnects, photonically assisted terahertz communication technologies, and machine learning applications in optical networks. His work has significantly contributed to the development of next-generation wireless and optical fiber communication systems. The scientific potential and ability of the tenured professor to create new research directions is confirmed not only by various international awards, but also by two world records achieved and presented at leading international scientific conferences and in prestigious journals, including Nature Communications.
The Young Scientist of the Year 2025 award goes to his colleague, Jānis Braunfelds, a leading researcher at the Institute of Photonics, Electronics and Electronic Communications. He is the first RTU industrial doctor to have developed his doctoral thesis in collaboration with the company Latvijas Mobilais telefons, developing a multifunctional fiber optic sensor system for remote monitoring of various structures, such as road surfaces, concrete, and composite materials. J. Braunfelds heads the Fiber Optic Sensor Research Group at RTU, which is developing a new research direction at the university - the study and application of fiber optic entertainment sensor technology in telecommunications, materials science, construction, and other industries.
Meanwhile, Karina Egle, a researcher at the Institute of Biomaterials and Bioengineering at the RTU Faculty of Natural Sciences and Technology, who conducts her research at the Baltic Biomaterials Centre of Excellence (BBCE), receives the Young Scientist of the Year 2025 award. She is currently conducting postdoctoral research to develop an in vitro model that will allow for a more in-depth and reliable assessment of the cellular response to bone replacement materials, promoting the development of new biomaterials and their more effective use in clinical practice.
Evaluate scientific publications
In order to promote scientific development at RTU and increase the number of citations of publications, which is essential for achieving RTU's strategic goal of entering the TOP 500 universities in the world, a special award, "RTU Scientific Article of the Year," is being presented for the second time. On behalf of the authors of the publication "The Oil Spray Cooling System of Automative Traction Motors: The State of the Art", the award is received by Andrejs Podgornovs, Professor at the Institute of Industrial Electronics, Electrical Engineering and Energy, Faculty of Computer Science, Information Technology and Energy. In collaboration with researchers from Estonia, Finland, and Portugal, a comprehensive study was conducted on the oil spray cooling method for electric motors used in electric vehicle traction drive systems. The article provides guidelines on the selection of spray nozzles and cooling fluids, their performance, spray characteristics and heat transfer coefficient evaluation.
This award is presented to a scientist or group of scientists for an article published in one of the world's best scientific journals, indexed in the Scopus database within the last three years and addresses challenges related to one of the UN Sustainable Development Goals.
Congratulations to the new tenured professors
The awards are presented at the plenary session of the 66th RTU International Scientific Conference. RTU's new tenured professors Francesco Romagnoli and Miguel Mendonça Reis Brandão, outstanding internationally recognized scientists who conduct modern scientific research and provide high-quality studies, also receive their diplomas. The new tenured professors will work at the RTU Faculty of Natural Sciences and Technology.