Brian T. Cunningham

Brian T. Cunningham is an Intel Alumni Endowed Chair and Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign (UIUC), with affiliations in Bioengineering, Materials Science, and the Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology. His roles include Director of the Center for Genomic Diagnostics and Program Leader at the Cancer Center at Illinois. He holds faculty positions in multiple departments across the campus, including the Holonyak Micro and Nanotechnology Lab and the Beckman Institute.

Education: PhD (1990), MS (1987), and BS (1986) in Electrical and Computer Engineering from UIUC. His thesis work focused on carbon doping of semiconductor materials. He has held prior industry roles at Raytheon, Draper Laboratory, and as Founder/CTO of SRU Biosystems, commercializing biosensor technologies.

Research: Focuses on nanophotonics, biosensors, and medical diagnostics. Innovations include photonic crystal biosensors, plasmonic nanostructures, and portable diagnostic devices. His lab develops tools for point-of-care diagnostics, including smartphone-linked microscopes (PRAM Mini) and DNA-based viral detection systems like NanoGripper. Key areas include ultrasensitive detection of nucleic acids, proteins, and intact viruses.

Awards: Over 20 major honors include Fellowships from the Royal Society of Chemistry, AAAS, OSA, and IEEE. Recognized for teaching excellence (multiple student ratings) and innovation in medical instrumentation.

Leadership: Directed the Center for Genomic Diagnostics, NSF-funded CiiT, and the Micro and Nanotechnology Laboratory. Served on NIH review panels, IEEE Sensors Council, and UIUC Senate. Active in interdisciplinary initiatives like the Cancer Measurement Technology and Data Science program.

Labs & Teams: Leads the Cunningham Nanosensors Group, producing over 400 peer-reviewed publications. Collaborates with industry (e.g., SRU Biosystems) and academic partners globally, including ZJU-Illinois programs. Research spans from fundamental material science to clinical translation of diagnostic technologies.