Fulbright Scholar Prof. Sidney Clements at MCI

The Mechatronics department was honored to host Professor Sidney Clements, Ph.D from Appalachian State University in North Carolina, USA

Prof. Sidney Clements joined MCI from March to July 2025, bringing a wealth of expertise in engineering physics, embedded systems, and data acquisition, and made significant contributions to both teaching and research during his time in Innsbruck.

As part of the master's program in Mechatronics, Prof. Clements taught the course Embedded Computing, focusing on the use of VHDL to implement digital circuits, components, and state machines on FPGA chips. Students worked with Intel/Altera Quartus for hardware synthesis and ModelSim for simulation, gaining valuable hands-on experience under his guidance.

In addition to teaching, he collaborated with the Mechatronics faculty on a cutting-edge R&D project involving gallium-nitride-based semiconductor switches. Working with Thomas Gadner, Leon Haffner, and Rene Feldkircher, he developed a robust LabVIEW-based data acquisition and control system to test the reliability of the switches. The project successfully launched a long-term test bench in late June.

Reflecting on his stay, Prof. Clements shared: “I really enjoyed my time at MCI. My embedded computing students were great, and the Mechatronics faculty, technicians, and office staff were incredibly welcoming. I always looked forward to going to work.”

Beyond the academic setting, Prof. Clements and his wife made the most of their time in Innsbruck, exploring the old town, hiking in the surrounding mountains, and even trying the toboggan run at Glungezer.

This visit also strengthened the long-standing dual-degree partnership between MCI Mechatronics and ASU’s Engineering Physics program, which Prof. Clements helped establish nearly a decade ago.

We are proud to have welcomed such a renowned academic and dedicated educator to MCI and are grateful for his contributions to our students and ongoing research collaborations.