Principal Investigator
Dr. Alexander R. Uhl
Contact: alexander.uhl@ubc.ca
Research Project Managers
Dr. Maria Tsemperouli
Maria Tsemperouli received her PhD in chemistry from the Université de Genève in Switzerland, a position funded by the National Centre of Competence in Research (NCCR) Chemical Biology and the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF). She continued her research as a Postdoctoral Research Associate in the Nanobiology Institute and School of Medicine at Yale University under the supervision of Prof. Erdem Karatekin. Her multidisciplinary research interests focused on a range of scientific fields including electrochemistry, molecular biology, biophysics, electrophysiology, and nanotechnology. She joined as a Research Project Manager of the Solar Energy for Net Zero Cluster of Research Excellence at the School of Engineering at the University of British Columbia in September 2023.
Education: Ph.D. in Chemistry, University of Geneva, Switzerland
Contact: maria.tsemperouli@ubc.ca
Postdoctoral Fellows
Dr. Abraha Tadese Gidey
Abraha Tadese Gidey is an expert in perovskite photovoltaics, perovskite thin films & single crystals for optoelectronic applications as well as various characterization techniques. His research interests mainly focus on Materials for Sustainable Energy and Optoelectronic applications. He joined LSEF at UBC – Okanagan Campus in September 2022, and working on solution-processed solar cells.
Education: Ph.D. in Sustainable Chemical Science and Technology, National Yang Ming Chiao Tung University (NYCU) in collaboration with Academia Sinica, Taiwan
Contact: abraha.gidey@ubc.ca
Dr. Haritham Khan
Haritham Khan received his PhD in Materials and Chemical Engineering from Hanyang University, South Korea, in August 2023 through the prestigious Korean Government Scholarship (KGS). His research primarily focused on artificial photosynthesis targeting CO2 reduction, hydrogen evolution, and water treatment. After completing his doctoral studies, he conducted short postdoctoral research at Sungkyunkwan University (SKKU) in Suwon, Korea, under the supervision of Professor Yoo Pil Jin from September 2023 to April 2024. Dr. Khan also has four years of undergraduate teaching experience at National Textile University, Faisalabad, Pakistan, and over two years of textile manufacturing and R&D experience at top textile companies, including Nishat Chunian Pvt. Ltd. and Interloop Hosiery Ltd, in Pakistan.
Dr. Khan joined LSEF in May 2024 with focus on low-dimensional materials and technologies for solar energy conversion, particularly photoelectrochemical devices for CO2 conversion and hydrogen evolution reactions. To date, he has authored several top-tier Q1 journal research papers, contributed to two book chapters, and attended multiple national and international conferences.
Education: Ph.D. in Materials Science and Chemical Engineering, Hanyang University, South Korea
Contact: haritham.khan@ubc.ca
Ph.D. Students
Elnaz Ghahremani Rad
Elnaz is a PhD candidate in Electrical Engineering and joined LSEF in September 2020. She received her BSc and MSc degrees in Electrical Engineering in Iran. She previously worked on the design and modeling of nanophotonic devices, pleasmonic-based perovskite solar cells and impedance spectroscopy characterization. Her current research focuses on fabrication, optoelectronic characterization, and modelling of perovskite solar cells. Outside of the lab, she enjoys hiking, photography, and dancing.
Education: Electrical Engineering, Shahed University, Iran
Contact: elnaz.ghahremanirad@ubc.ca
Abdul-Mubarak Yussif Yidana
Abdul-Mubarak Yussif Yidana is a Ph.D. student in Mechanical Engineering at the University of British Columbia, where he joined the Laboratory for Sustainable Energy and Fuels (LSEF) in May 2024. With a Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering from SRM University in India, Abdul-Mubarak is dedicated to advancing sustainable energy solutions. His current research focuses on modelling the feasibility of solar energy implementation, aiming to harness solar potential for a more sustainable future. Outside the lab, he enjoys programming and biking.
Education: Bachelor of Technology in Mechanical Engineering, SRM University-Andhra Pradesh, India
Contact: a.yidana@ubc.ca
Ahmed Galal Mahmoud
Ahmed Galal Mahmoud is a Ph.D. student in Electrical Engineering at the University of British Columbia, where he joined the Laboratory for Sustainable Energy and Fuels (LSEF) in September 2025. He holds a Master’s degree in Engineering Mathematics and a Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering, both from Cairo University, Egypt. Ahmed’s research focuses on advancing PV technologies through the development of accurate models for PV systems. Ahmed has extensive teaching experience across multiple universities as a teaching assistant and enjoys exploring applications of mathematics and computation in energy systems.
Education: Master’s in Engineering Mathematics and Bachelor’s in Electrical Engineering, Cairo University, Egypt
Contact: ahmed.mahmoud@ubc.ca
Masters Students
Alex Sol
After completing an NSERC USRA-funded undergraduate research appointment at LSEF, Alex began his MASc studies in Mechanical Engineering at LSEF in September 2025, supported by the BC Graduate Scholarship. His current research focuses on optimizing low-bandgap, printed chalcogenide solar cells through advanced surface treatment techniques.
Education: Mechanical Engineering, University of British Columbia, Canada
Contact: alex.sol@ubc.ca
Tim Webster
Education: Bachelor in Mechanical Engineering, UBC Okanagan, Canada
Contact: tim.webster@ubc.ca
Shahrukh Hossain Rian
Education: Bachelor in Electrical and Electronic Engineering, BAIUST, Bangladesh
Contact: shahrukh.rian@ubc.ca
Katherine Latosinsky
Education: Bachelor of Applied Science in Engineering Science, University of Toronto, Canada
Contact: katherine.latosinsky@ubc.ca
Undergraduate Students
Jason Schultz
Jason Schultz is an undergraduate student in mechanical engineering. He joined the LSEF in May of 2022 focusing on the instrumentation for Perovskite Solar Cells, with parallel J-V curves and efficiency measurements of multiple cells performed simultaneously. His current research is on MPPT software for long term stability testing under various external conditions.
Education: Mechanical Engineering, University of British Columbia, Canada
Contact: jasons07@student.ubc.ca
Alumni
Research Project Managers
Amandine Drew
(Now at Carbon Engineering, Squamish, BC)
Postdoctoral Fellows
Dr. Ela Nurlaela
(PDF, now PDF at CatEC group, , Japan)
Dr. Towhid Chowdhury (PDF)
Dr. Mahboob Alam
(now at Ballard, Vancouver, BC)
Dr. Mohamed Hamada Abdel Kodous
(now at Alexander von Humboldt Postdoc Fellow at Halter Group, TU Munich, Germany)
Dr. Pravin Pawar
(now National Korean Brain Pool Fellow at the Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST), Korea)
PhD Students
Dr. Sunil Suresh
(PhD, now Marie Skłodowska-Curie Postdoctoral Fellow at IMEC, Belgium)
Dr. Sonia (Zahra) Azimi Dijvejin
(PhD, now PDF at SintonLab, University of Toronto)
Dr. Sadaf Shabanian
(PhD, now Research Associate at UBC Vancouver)
MASc Students
Amandine Drew (MASc, now Project Manager at LSEF, UBC)
Noah McIntosh (MASc, now at Selkirk College)
MEng Students
Artur Santos (MEng, now at Mercer)
Aly Merchant (MEng, now at TYCROP)
Jinhua Zhang (MEng, now at Parsons Corp.)
UG Students
Chris Paul (UG, now graduate student at UBC)
Swarna Nagaraj Kasi (UG, now at Essential Systems & Services, EES Middle East)
Sonia Mann (UG, Mech. Eng. Student at UBC Okanagan)
Andrea Santiago (UG, now Ph.D. Student in Chemistry at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, USA)
Alex Sol (UG, now MASc student at LSEF, UBCO)
