Leyla Nazhandali

Leyla Nazhandali is a Professor in the Bradley Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at Virginia Tech. Her research focuses on low-power computing, hardware security, and VLSI design with applications in embedded systems and cybersecurity. She has advised over 13 PhD and Master’s students, many of whom now work in leading tech companies like Intel, Samsung, and NVIDIA. Her work has been supported by NSF, SRC, NIST, and other agencies.

Education: B.S. from Sharif University of Technology (2000), M.S./Ph.D. from the University of Michigan (2002/2006). She is a recipient of the NSF CAREER Award (2008) and the Bradley Faculty Fellow of Education (2024). Her teaching emphasizes cognitive disruptive techniques and threshold concepts in introductory courses, contributing to inclusive STEM education reforms.

Research Interests: Low-power architectures, secure hardware design, and embedded systems for environmental monitoring. Notable projects include micro gas chromatography systems for hazardous air pollutant detection and fault-resistant cryptographic hardware. She co-leads initiatives integrating MEMS-based power-gating techniques for energy efficiency.

Key Awards:

• 2025: W.S. 'Pete' White Innovation in Engineering Education Award
• 2024: Bradley Faculty Fellow of Education
• 2008: NSF CAREER Award
• 2008: IEEE Real World Engineering Project Contest Winner

Outreach: Leads initiatives like the CEED Imagination Camp (middle school outreach) and Women in Computing Day, aiming to diversify STEM participation. Served as a NASA INSPIRE session chair and advisor for IEEE Women in Engineering programs.

Grants & Labs: Active projects include NSF-funded work on fault-aware microprocessor extensions and NIST-supported cryptographic hardware evaluations. Her lab collaborates on implantable medical devices and secure embedded systems through Virginia Tech's ICTAS grants.