Three electrical engineers at the University of Notre Dame in the fields of next-gen wireless networks, advanced semiconductors, and biomedical imaging have been named 2026 Senior Members of the National Academy of Inventors (NAI). This year’s honorees include Jonathan Chisum, Patrick Fay, and Thomas O’Sullivan.
NAI enhances the visibility of academic technology and innovation, promotes the disclosure of intellectual property, and educates and mentors innovative students. Senior Members are active faculty, scientists, and administrators who have successfully produced, licensed, patented, and commercialized new technologies that significantly impact society.
Jonathan Chisum, associate professor of electrical engineering, develops circuit and antenna systems for millimeter-wave (MMW) wireless communications and sensing. Chisum’s research has led to innovations in gradient refractive index (GRIN) lens antennas, which enable extremely power-efficient beam-steering antennas for 5G and 6G wireless networks, and low-earth-orbit (LEO) space-based internet connectivity. His patents are licensed by industry for innovative products powering next-generation wireless networks.
Patrick Fay, Stinson Professor of Nanotechnology, is internationally recognized as a leader in semiconductor technology, advancing the design, fabrication and characterization of microwave and millimeter-wave devices. He has developed transistors for high-frequency wireless communications and remote sensing; pioneered high-performance packaging technologies that enable ultra-high-speed chip-to-chip communications; developed efficient electronic devices for power control and conversion, and created high-speed integrated circuits and photodetectors that enable rapid, reliable data transmission across fiber optic networks.
Thomas O’Sullivan, Frank M. Freimann Collegiate Professor of Biomedical Electronics, leads a research group advancing noninvasive, light-based biomedical imaging and treatment technologies. By bridging the gap between advanced engineering and clinical application, his work aims to provide safer, personalized, and more effective treatment options. His team’s flagship invention—a handheld scanner commercialized through his startup, NearWave—can determine a breast cancer patient’s response to chemotherapy in as little as one week, potentially saving months of ineffective treatment.
The 2026 class of Senior Members will be honored during the Senior Member Induction Ceremony at NAI’s 15th Annual Conference, June 1-4, 2026 in Los Angeles, California.
Previously elected NAI Senior Members within the College of Engineering are Tengfei Luo, Dorini Family Professor of Energy Studies and associate chair of Aerospace and Mechanical Engineering, as well as director of the MONSTER Lab (MOlecular/Nano-Scale Transport & Energy Research Laboratory) and Matthew Webber, Keating-Crawford Collegiate Professor of Engineering, professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering, as well as director of the Berthiaume Institute for Precision Health.
A complete list of NAI Senior Members is available on the organization’s website.
—Mary Hendriksen, Notre Dame Engineering