Degree(s):

• BSc in Electrical Engineering, Sharif University of Technology, Iran, 1998.
• MSc in Control Engineering, Iran University of Science and Technology, 2000
• PhD in Mechanical Engineering, University of California, Santa Barbara, 2006

Research Interests:

• Optimization and design problems in dynamical networks;
• Synchronization and consensus in multi-agent networks;
• Optimal control subject to sparsity/architectural constraints.

Current Research:

Makan Fardad’s research interests are in the analysis and optimization of dynamical networks. Particular focus is on extending ideas from controls, dynamical systems, and optimization theory to problems in network science. Application areas include synchronization of oscillator networks, optimal control of vehicular formations, design of sensor networks, and problems in social networks such as community detection, leader selection, and consensus formation.

Courses Taught:

• Optimization and optimal control (ELE 712)
• Modern control (ELE 612)
• Functional methods of engineering analysis (ELE 603)
• Signals and systems (ELE 351)
• Classical control systems (ELE 312)

Honors:

• Dean’s Award for Excellence in Engineering Education, 2015.
• Recipient of 3 National Science Foundation Awards, 2009, 2013, 2015.

Selected Publications:

Fardad, F. Lin, and M. R. Jovanovic, “Design of Optimal Sparse Interconnection Graphs for Synchronization of Oscillator Networks,” IEEE Transactions on Automatic Control, vol. 59, pp. 2457-2462, 2014.

Lin, M. Fardad, and M. R. Jovanovic, “Algorithms for Leader Selection in Stochastically Forced Consensus Networks,” IEEE Transactions on Automatic Control, vol. 59, pp. 1789-1802, 2014.

Lin, M. Fardad, and M. R. Jovanovic, “Design of Optimal Sparse Feedback Gains via the Alternating Direction Method of Multipliers,” IEEE Transactions on Automatic Control, vol. 58, pp. 2426-2431, 2013.

Lin, M. Fardad, and M. R. Jovanovic, “Optimal Control of Vehicular Formations with Nearest Neighbor Interactions,” IEEE Transactions on Automatic Control, vol. 57, pp. 2203-2218, 2012.

Fardad and M. R. Jovanovic, “Design of Optimal Controllers for Spatially Invariant Systems with Finite Communication Speed,” Automatica, vol. 47, pp. 880-889, 2011.