Dr. Dinesh Bhatia

Career Highlights

Professional

Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, UT Dallas

Director of the Integrated Design, Engineering, Algorithmics (IDEA) Laboratory

Associate Professor and Director of the Design Automation Laboratory at the University of Cincinnati

Senior Member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE)

Member of Phi Kappa Phi honor society

Member of Editorial Board of IEEE Transactions on Computers

General Chair, International Conference on Body Sensor Networks

IEEE Circuits and Systems Society Distinguished Lecturer

Founder and Technical Advisor, Cirasys Inc.

Board Member, US India Chamber of Commerce

Member of Jonsson School Executive Council

University Leadership

Interim co-Head, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, 2022-2023

Associate Head, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, 2014-2020

Program Head, Computer Engineering, 2004-2006

Member, Faculty Senate, 2006-present

Member, Academic Council, 2018-present

Member, University Committee on Committees, 2019-2021

Vice Chair, University Advisory Committee on Research, 2010-2012

Member, UT Dallas–UT Southwestern Medical Center Joint Committee for Bioengineering Program, 2008

Vice Chair, University Information Resources Security, Planning and Policy Committee, 2005-2006

Chair, University Library Committee, 2004-2005

Computer Engineering Expert, Longtime Faculty Leader Named Department Head

Dinesh Bhatia MS’87, PhD’90, longtime faculty member at The University of Texas at Dallas, is now head of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) in the Erik Jonsson School of Engineering and Computer Science. He began the new role on June 1, 2023. Bhatia is a department leader and researcher who has interdisciplinary interests related to computer engineering, including focuses on high-performance computing, electronic design automation and medical devices.

He has a special interest in graduate education and served as associate head for graduate education in ECE from 2014 to 2020. He was interim co-head of the ECE department during the 2022-2023 academic term along with Dr. Rashaunda Henderson, professor of electrical and computer engineering and Eugene McDermott Professor, who is returning to regular faculty duties.

“I am really excited about the vision Dinesh laid out and look forward to partnering with him, the faculty, staff, students and industry partners to deliver,” said Dr. Stephanie G. Adams, dean of the Jonsson School, holder of the Lars Magnus Ericsson Chair at UT Dallas and professor of systems engineering. “As he shepherds ECE researchers with his visionary and interdisciplinary approach, innovations will be compounded.

“That Dinesh is a Jonsson School alumnus who served as interim co-head allows him to have a personal, comprehensive and unique perspective. I think his love and passion for UTD and technology are not only tremendous assets for our students and the Jonsson School but also are contagious. I believe that will serve us well as we chart a new path for the department.”

Bhatia has served the Jonsson School for more than two decades as the school has grown exponentially in programs complementary to electrical engineering such as materials science and engineering, mechanical engineering, bioengineering and systems engineering. He has deep institutional memory from when the School was founded in 1986 with only programs in computer science and electrical engineering, including serving as the inaugural program head of computer engineering when it was initially founded in the early 2000s.

“Leadership is about creating a vision that aligns with the strategic plans,” Bhatia said. “Converting vision to goals and then building a collaborative team of students, staff and faculty to contribute to overall growth is very important.”

Bhatia plans to use a multifaceted approach to facilitate inclusive learning experiences.

“I’m a technology and data-driven person, so I think we should use advanced technologies throughout the student pipeline,” Bhatia said. “We can use advanced tools to remove impediments, improve efficiency and create engaging experience. But the real student experience comes down to interactions that students have working with and engaging with highly talented faculty. We need to motivate them, so the nurturing should happen early. I believe learning should happen by osmosis inside the department. Students should have many opportunities for diverse interactions.”

Bhatia’s commitment to UT Dallas and the Jonsson School extends beyond ECE. He worked with his wife Tulika Bhatia BA’91 to create the Jonsson School’s first website. His children Manu Bhatia BS’14, MBA’16 and Manasi Bhatia MS’21, MBA’21 earned degrees from UT Dallas.

As a researcher, Bhatia has focused his published work on architecture and computer-aided design for field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) and has served on several related technical program committees at international conferences.

“Throughout my career, I have focused on reconfigurable computing or domain-specific computing,” Bhatia said. “In the 1990s, we made fundamental contributions to the reconfigurable architectures. We built electronic design automation tools to automate the application mapping on reconfigurable architectures. Today, we are focused on using machine learning and AI to map some large applications on very complex domain-specific architectures.”

Bhatia’s research has been supported by the U.S. Air Force, the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA), the Department of Justice, the National Science Foundation and several industries.

Additionally, Bhatia has focused on biomedical devices, one of the Jonsson School’s key emerging areas of research.

“We created complete wireless-enabled patient monitoring systems at a time when those were new concepts,” Bhatia said. “I am working on domain-specific architecture for surgical imaging and also re-exploring medical devices, including wearables. These topics will involve collaboration with other departments including bioengineering and systems engineering. That’s where we are planning to go in the future.”

Bhatia has expanded his expertise beyond academia as a technology consultant and expert witness for corporations and law firms, in addition to participating in intellectual property (IP) litigation cases. He co-founded Cirasys Inc., a company focused on power converters, with founding professor Dr. Louis “Bob” Hunt who died in 2021 and Dr. Poras Balsara, vice dean of the Jonsson School and professor of electrical and computer engineering. Bhatia’s experience as an entrepreneur is significant as the University provides opportunities for technology commercialization and entrepreneurship for students, faculty and alumni. He particularly enjoys disruptive technologies and has expanded his creative skills as a photographer.

“We should look at KPIs – key performance indicators as they’re referred to in the business world – as we move toward growth in ECE,” Bhatia said. “But I would say they can stand for ‘keep people informed.’ When we’re steering the ship, these can provide guidance for course correction.”

Bhatia has served as a board member of the US. India Chamber of Commerce and member of the Jonsson School’s Executive Council as he is bridging a gap between industry and academia.

“ECE has some of the best faculty in the nation,” Bhatia said. “We have very diverse research and one of the largest PhD programs in the nation. The department really should be recognized for high quality and the impact it can make. We have all the elements – it’s how we bring the energies together. I don’t think anything can stop us.”

Academic Experience

Education

PhD in Computer Science
The University of Texas at Dallas

MS in Computer Science
The University of Texas at Dallas

BE in Electrical Engineering
National Institute of Technology, Suratkal, India

Research Areas

Reconfigurable computing, domain-specific architectures, electronic design automation, biomedical systems and devices, patient monitoring and telemedicine, AI in medicine, power electronics and energy systems