About Me

• 

I am an experienced academic with research and teaching experience of nine years as a Lecturer/Assistant Professor and four years as a Research Post-Graduate. I have also worked as a Post-Doctoral Research Associate on multiple projects. Currently, I am working as a Senior Teaching Fellow at Imperial College London. 
I am a Senior Member of IEEE (SMIEEE), a Fellow of The Higher Education Academy (FHEA), a Chartered Engineer (CEng) registered with the Engineering Council UK, and a Professional Engineer registered with Pakistan Engineering Council.
I received BSc (Honours) in Electrical Engineering from the University of Engineering and Technology (UET), Lahore, Pakistan. I received a gold medal from the Prime Minister of Pakistan on the 19th Convocation of UET Lahore for securing the first position in Electrical Engineering specialisation in Power Systems. I received my master’s degree in Electrical Power Engineering from UET Lahore. During my master’s studies, I was an Erasmus Mundus (EURECA) exchange student at the University of Paderborn, Germany. I received my PhD in Electrical Engineering from Imperial College London. The prestigious Commonwealth Scholarship funded me for my PhD studies.
The detail of my teaching and research is given below:

Teaching:

I am currently working as a Senior Teaching Fellow in the Electrical and Electronics Engineering Department, Imperial College London. I joined the department as a Strategic Teaching Fellow in October 2017 and became a Senior Teaching Fellow in August 2020.
In my current role as a Senior Teaching Fellow at Imperial College London, I have been teaching both theory classes and laboratory sessions. I have taught laboratories for Analysis and Design of Circuits, Digital Electronics and Computer Architecture, Power Electronics (Switch-Mode-Power-Supplies), Communication Systems, and Control Systems. In addition, I have taught a theory course on Introduction to Matlab. I have also been conducting oral/written examinations, supervising master’s theses and group projects. I am also supervising a PhD student. 
I am working with the department’s IT and the educational team to contribute to developing the departmental IT strategy and policy. I am trying to lead the technology-driven teaching in my department. I am responsible for all the online exams on WiseFlow. I am also leading the VLE (Blackboard) management for the whole department. I try to act as a bridge between the academics in my department and the Educational Technology team. 
I have taken several initiatives in the last three years. For example, I managed the midterm tests on Wiseflow. In addition, I trained the education office staff on conducting the exams on Blackboard during the College closure due to the pandemic. Furthermore, I lead the remote teaching organisation during the COVID-19 pandemic. I designed remote and virtual laboratories. I have won several departmental awards like Inspiration Award, Teamwork Award and Collaboration Award for outstanding contribution to teaching and learning during the pandemic. I was also nominated for President’s Award for Excellence (Student Experience).
As an active member of the Curriculum Review Team, I conducted interviews of all the faculty members of EEE the department to build a curriculum map by determining the learning outcomes of all modules. This curriculum map highlighted the links between different modules based on their learning outcomes which were vital for revising the curriculum. I have been actively involved in curriculum revision to transform teaching and learning pedagogy using modern technology. 
I have also recently finished my PG Cert in University Learning and Teaching. I focused on modules related to digital learning and assessment and feedback as I am primarily involved in these activities in the department. I am also working as an external examiner for Teesside University.
Previously, I have worked as a Lecturer/Assistant Professor at the Department of Electrical Engineering, University of Engineering and Technology (UET), Lahore, Pakistan. I joined UET Lahore as a Lecturer in September 2008 and became an Assistant Professor in December 2012. I worked there until September 2013. I taught various theory courses like Circuit Analysis and Design, AC and DC Machines, Power Transmission and Distribution, Electric Machine Design, Power System Protection, Power Systems Operation and Control, and High Voltage Engineering.

Research:

Currently, I am supervising a PhD student. His PhD project focuses on solving the weak-grid instability problem, which threatens the sustainable operation of futuristic power systems. The research aims to build system models and subsequently design optimal control parameters on both AC and DC sides of a voltage source converter (VSC) that ensures smooth operation of the power system. The research also targets to develop a coordination strategy among multiple converters to provide highly reliable power operations and market participation.
I have worked as a Post-Doctoral Research Associate at Queen Mary University, London, on two different research projects. The first project developed control strategies for autonomous control of AC/DC microgrids with energy storage and power electronic compensators for voltage and frequency control. It involved the investigation of reduction in energy storage requirements of AC/DC microgrids in the presence of power electronic compensators. It also involved a study on the coordination of power electronic compensators in a distribution system.
The second project involved the development of a multi-physics sensor array for power electronic converter prognostics. The aim was to create a sensing platform to quantify the health status of power electronic modules with electric vehicle drive systems, using an array of multi-physical sensors to generate a spatially sparse IMAGE of measurements. This IMAGE consisted of temperature, electrical quantities (V, I, Z), mechanical displacement (wire bond movement/device deformity) at different time scales. There were four partner universities and two industrial partners in this project. I also provided guidance and supervision to PhD students working in the group. I have published several papers in high impact factor journals and international conferences.
I worked on a PhD under the supervision of Dr Balarko Chaudhuri at Control and Power Group, Imperial College London. During my PhD, I worked on developing an integrated approach to voltage control and demand response in distribution networks by autonomous control of power electronic compensators to increase the number of renewable energy units in power systems. It involved the modelling of distribution systems, distributed generation, and electric vehicles. I studied the effects of high penetration of renewable generation and electric vehicles in a distribution system and how system parameters can be controlled using distributed power electronic converters (with or without battery storage).
My current research interests include distributed voltage control, demand response, renewable energy integration in distribution networks, and smart grids.

Get in Touch	Visit Me
Professional Email: z.akhtar@imperial.ac.uk Personal Email: zohaibakhtarkhan@gmail.com Office: +44 (0)20 7594 6310 Mobile: +44 (0)7425 308292 Click here for other ways to get in touch	Room 401 EEE Building, South Kensington Campus Imperial College London, SW7 2AZ London, United Kingdom Click here for directions