Abstract: The ability to create functional items relies on the availability of adequate materials and the access to
appropriate tools. The knowledge to exploit fundamental properties of new materials as well as the experience in
manipulating tools will allow building of devices that are relevant to our existence or comfort-from simple mechanical
structures to highly sophisticated electronics. Therefore, as new materials or novel technologies emerge, new knowledge
has to be generated so that the materials or technologies can be utilized for the benefits of the society. Properties
and phenomena enabled by the availability of the new materials need to be thoroughly understood and investigated in
order to engineer them into functional devices. To this end, there is a strong emergence of nanoengineering due to the
increased understanding of micro/nanofabrication and material properties, and an ability to exploit the unique mechanical,
electrical, and thermal properties of nanomaterials. Equipped with this fundamental understanding of micromachining and
nanotechnology, the talk will focus on the development of micro/nanodevices for real-world applications. Specifically
fundamental findings of the properties of nanomaterials will be engineered and exploited to create superior prototype
devices such as x-ray and ultrasound devices.
About the Speaker:
John T. W. Yeow received the B.A.Sc. degree in electrical and computer engineering, and M.A.Sc. and Ph.D. degrees in
mechanical and industrial engineering from the University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada. He is a Professor in the
Department of Systems Design Engineering at University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON, Canada. His current research
interests are in the field of developing miniaturized biomedical instruments. He is a recipient of the Professional
Engineering Ontario Engineering Medal, Natural Science & Engineering Research Canada Innovation Challenge Award,
Douglas R. Colton’s Medal of Research Excellence, Micralyne Microsystems Design Award, Ontario Ministry of Research
and Innovation’s Early Researcher Award, and University of Toronto Alumni Association 7T6 Early Career Award. He is
currently a Canada Research Chair in Micro/Nanodevices. His team has received an Excellent Paper Award from 2011
IEEE NANO, and was placed 2nd at the 2011 Global Innovation Nano Contest. Dr. Yeow is serving on the Editorial
Advisory Board of the Journal, Nanoelectromechanical Systems. He is the Editor-in-Chief of the IEEE Nanotechnology
Council Newsletter. He is also an  Editor-in-Chief of the IEEE Nanotechnology Magazine and the IEEE Transactions
on Nanotechnology. He is a General Co-Chair of the 2014 IEEE NANO in Toronto, Canada.