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The Power Electronics, Machines and
Control (PEMC) Group is one of largest
university centres of its kind worldwide
with 16 academics (6 Full Professors,
3 Associate and 7 Assistant Professors)
dedicated to the field. The research team
also includes ca. 45 Postdoctoral Contract
Research Fellows and 64 PhD students.
Funding for the Group’s research (current
portfolio ca. €28M) comes from a diverse
range of national/international agencies
and industry. The Group coordinates the
EPSRC National Centre for Power Elec-
tronics, a UK-wide activity supported by
an investment of ca. €30M over 7 years
including capital equipment and research
funding.
Core technology expertise of the Group
covers 4 main areas:
•
Power Electronic Energy Conversion,
Conditioning and Control
•
Power Electronics Integration, Packaging,
Thermal Management and Reliability
•
Motor Drives and Motor Control
•
Electrical Machines.
The Group strategy is to sustain an in-
house, internationally renowned research
capability and portfolio spanning the en-
tire range from power device and com-
ponent technology to complete power
conversion systems. The PEMC Group
collaborates closely with complementary
groups at Nottingham, and with a number
of other Groups in the UK and worldwide.
Research activities cover basic technology
(e.g. component physical characterisation
and technology validation) to applied re-
search (e.g. professionally engineered ad-
vanced technology demonstrator hard-
ware for aerospace industries).
The PEMC Group has very strong links
with industry, both nationally and inter-
nationally, ranging from component sup-
pliers to OEMs, where it applies its core
technology expertise to application ori-
ented research. The portfolio of applica-
tions is currently orientated towards aero-
space, renewable/sustainable energy and
future energy networks, but it continually
evolves to reflect new opportunities and
challenges. Other significant industrial col-
laborations exist in marine systems, indus-
trial drive systems and power conversion
for high power RF sources.
Research in the Group is underpinned by
world class experimental and workshop
facilities allowing realistic practical valida-
tion of novel components and systems.
Work up to 1MVA (continuous) is possible.
State-of-the-art specialist facilities exist
for power device and packaging research,
as well as reliability studies, for in-house
prototype electrical machine construc-
tion and testing (up to 120,000rpm) and
for power converter construction. Dedi-
cated electronic supplies provide emula-
tion of aircraft generation systems up to
270kVA. Extensive modelling capabilities
also exist with expertise in most of the es-
tablished specialist simulation and CAD
environments. Reflecting the Group’s suc-
cess, investments from internal and ex-
ternal sources for infrastructure develop-
ments and equipment have continued and
increased, leading among others to the
creation of a dedicated multi-disciplinary
Aerospace Research Centre (ARC) and the
FlexElec Laboratory, dedicated to research
in microgrids and HVDC.
A team of Group members developed the
winning 2015 MotoE series race bike!
The University of Nottingham
The PEMC main research laboratory at University Park Campus.
