Pawel Niewczas

Professor Pawel Niewczas is a leading academic in the Department of Electronic and Electrical Engineering at the University of Strathclyde, where he leads the Advanced Sensors Team within the Institute for Energy and Environment. He serves as Director of the Graduate School and Director of the Electrical Power and Energy Systems (EPES) MSc course, playing a key role in academic leadership and postgraduate education.

His expertise lies in the development and application of photonic sensing technologies, particularly fibre-optic and FBG-based sensors, for use in power and energy systems. Research areas include power system metering and protection, structural health monitoring of wind turbines, downhole and subsea sensing, and instrumentation for nuclear fission and fusion environments. He focuses on sensor design, fabrication, packaging, deployment, and interrogation in harsh industrial conditions.

His recent publications highlight a strong trend toward photonic solutions for HVDC networks, fault detection, optical current sensing, and smart grid resilience. These works reflect a focus on real-time monitoring, calibration accuracy, distributed sensing, and integration of photonic technologies into existing energy infrastructure. The interdisciplinary nature of his research spans electrical engineering, materials science, photonics, and industrial metrology.

• Winner in the 'Best University Technology' category at the Fourth Annual UK Energy Innovation Awards 2014
• "Highly Commended" title awarded to Synaptec Ltd and University of Strathclyde at the IET Innovation Awards 2014

Professor Niewczas actively supervises PhD, MSc, MPhil, and EngD students and leads multiple funded research projects, including EPSRC IAA, PHOENIX, EMERGE, and YETIS. He collaborates with industry partners such as SSE, Scottish Power Renewables, EDF Energy, GE Oil & Gas, and Rolls-Royce. He is also co-founder and R&D Director of Synaptec, a university spin-out commercializing photonic sensing technology. He contributes to the academic community through editorial roles in IEEE Transactions on Instrumentation and Measurement and as General Co-Chair of the IEEE I2MTC 2024 conference.

He leads the Advanced Sensors Team, which focuses on developing spectrally encoded sensors, fibre-to-metal bonding techniques, and low-cost, high-performance interrogation systems. The team works on integrated photonics and nano-resolution measurement systems, supporting both academic research and industrial applications.