Patrick Mercier

Prof. Patrick Mercier is a Full Professor and Vice Chair of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of California, San Diego (UCSD), where he also co-directs the Center for Wearable Sensors and serves as Site Director for the Power Management Integration Center. His research focuses on energy-efficient microsystems, particularly RF circuits, power converters, and sensor interfaces for biomedical electronics, IoT, and wearable devices.

• B.Sc., Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Alberta (2006)
• S.M. and Ph.D., Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) (2008, 2012)

Mercier’s work explores the intersection of miniaturization and energy efficiency in electronics, often tackling challenges where battery size constraints limit device form factors. His expertise spans near-zero-power ICs, energy harvesting, neural interfaces, and RF systems. Recent projects include vibrational-energy-powered microactuators, sweat-powered wearables, and battery-free smart tags.

His publications address trends in biomedical sensors, IoT, and energy-efficient microelectronics. A prolific contributor to high-impact journals like Nature Biomedical Engineering, Nature Communications, and Science, he has co-authored over 200 peer-reviewed papers, including 30 ISSCC and 34 JSSC publications. Notable collaborations include Dinesh Bharadia on low-power WiFi backscatter communication.

Scientific Awards

• IEEE Fellow (2025)
• ISSCC Author Recognition Award (2023)
• ECE Teacher of the Year Award (2023)
• NSF CAREER Award (2018)
• DARPA Young Faculty Award (2015)
• Beckman Young Investigator Award (2015)
• Hellman Fellowship (2014)
• ISSCC Jack Kilby Award for Outstanding Student Paper (2010)

Mercier leads the Energy-Efficient Microsystems (EEMS) Lab at UCSD, managing a 20-person team. He has secured over $24MM in research funding (2012–2019) and contributes to academic leadership as a member of the ISSCC Executive Committee and former TPC member for ISSCC, CICC, and VLSI Symposium. His industry engagements include co-founding startups like Traq and advisory roles at QuantalRF, Nanovision, and Neurovigil.