We are excited to share that Dr. Damena Agonafer, Principal Investigator of the NEIT Lab, and Ph.D. student Vivek Manepalli have been awarded the 2025 Invention of the Year at Innovate Maryland, the University of Maryland’s annual celebration of research and innovation.

They were recognized for their groundbreaking invention, done in collaboration with Northrop-Grumman: an efficient microchannel cooling system for high-powered electronics. This novel technology employs a clever combination of encapsulated phase change materials within dielectric coolants integrated into specially designed microchannels, vastly improving thermal management in compact, high-performance devices. By enhancing the transfer and removal of heat, their system offers a smarter, more energy-efficient approach—vital for advancing supercomputing, AI accelerators, and other power-intensive electronic

To learn more about this recognition, please see the official University of Maryland news release.