Dean’s Lecture Series

Abstract:
Smart grid is a term applied to an emerging generation of the electricity grid in which a cyber-infrastructure of computers, networks, sensors and controls, is overlaid on the electromechanical infrastructure of the traditional grid. The purposes of this transformation are to make the grid more efficient and secure, to allow for the integration of renewable energy sources and distributed storage capabilities, and to give consumers a greater role in managing their energy resources.  This talk will describe this so-called “internet of energy”, beginning with a brief introduction to how electric energy is currently produced and distributed, followed by an overview of emerging and possible future smart grid technologies, including their potential impact on our energy infrastructure and some challenges associated with their introduction.

Bio:
H. Vincent Poor is the Michael Henry Strater University Professor at Princeton University, where he has been on the faculty since 1990, working in the areas of wireless networks, energy systems and related fields. During 2006 – 2016 he served as Dean of Princeton’s School of Engineering and Applied Science, and he has also held visiting positions at several other universities, including most recently at Berkeley and Cambridge. Dr. Poor is a member of the National Academy of Engineering and the National Academy of Sciences, and is a foreign member of the Royal Society and other national and international academies. Recent recognition of his work includes the 2017 IEEE Alexander Graham Bell Medal, the 2109 ASEE Benjamin Garver Lamme Award, and honorary doctorates and professorships from several universities, including a D.Sc. honoris causa from Syracuse in 2017 and a D.Eng. honoris causa from the University of Waterloo in 2019.