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The committee discussed ECE 398 YZ “Bioinspired Photonics“ submitted by Yang Zhao for first time offering in Spring 2025. Generally, the idea of the course was well received, but there were questions the technical content of the course which prompted a robust discussion. Since there are no stated prerequisites, several committee members expressed the need to understand how in-depth the topics would be covered. Many of the listed topics would probably require some level of sophistication in order to treat the theoretical background. Would this course be suitable at all as a technical elective? Will Should it be rather at the 298-level? Jian Huang asked whether the material will cover in some detail aspects of semiconductor photonics and the impression was that semiconductor examples are not specifically included and that biological and electromagnetic aspects are the main focus. The chair will communicate with Yang Zhao to clarify these aspects of the submission and report back to the committee.
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