Dr Walia, from RMIT’s School of Engineering, has been recognised for his work with nanoscale electronics which is leading the way for next-generation devices with unparalleled performance.
Focusing on alternative materials to silicon, Walia is fabricating ultra-thin coatings for application in wearable electronics, artificial electronic memories and high-speed transistors.
His work paves the way for smarter computers, USB sticks with larger memories, wearable smart sensors for health monitoring, and energy efficient, ultra-fast electronic devices such as smartphones and smart TVs.
Dr Salim, a computer scientist from RMIT’s School of Science, received the fellowship to continue her research into how people interact with computers.
She is currently investigating how data on human mobility can be used for a range of applications, from smart transport to crime prediction, and traffic management to workplace productivity.
Salim will use the fellowship to take a six month sabbatical to the University of Kassel, Germany, and Cambridge University, England, where she will work with high profile industry partners on developing the next generation of intelligent personal assistant apps.
Walia said the fellowship would also support him to build valuable research and industry partnerships with overseas organisations and bring back valuable knowledge and skills to Victoria.
“The Victoria Fellowship is an exciting recognition of our research here at RMIT University and I would like to thank VESKI and the Victorian Government for running this annual fellowship scheme which I believe is important to sustain innovation,” he said.
“In a world where innovation is occurring at a rapid pace, we need to constantly learn from the best, to be the best.”
Walia has this year also been named joint recipient of the 2018 Phillip Law Postdoctoral Award for the Physical Sciences, been included in Engineers Australia’s list of 30 most innovative engineers and been recognised with the RMIT Award for Research Excellence for an Early Career Researcher.
RMIT’s Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Research and Innovation, Professor Calum Drummond said the Victoria Fellowships were excellent recognition of some of RMIT's exciting next generation reserchers conducting leading international research.
"My sincere congratulations to Flora and Sumeet, we are very proud of them for receiving this well-deserved honour and look forward to watching them continue to grow as researchers,” he said.
“RMIT is strongly focused on working with industry to pursue research that makes a positive difference on a global scale. We are delighted that this fellowship will give Sumeet and Flora an opportunity to work with international partners.”
The Victorian Government awards Victoria Fellowships in recognition of the important role of innovation to Victoria’s economic future and the need for Victorians to be skilled in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.
Story: Grace Taylor
