Milijana Surbatovich, an assistant professor of computer science, has received funding from the National Science Foundation (NSF) to advance her research on intermittent computing platforms—a class of battery-free devices that draw power directly from their environment.
Surbatovich, who holds an appointment in the University of Maryland Institute for Advanced Computer Studies and is a core member of the Maryland Cybersecurity Center, is principal investigator of an NSF Faculty Early Career Development Program (CAREER) award, expected to total $680,000 over the next five years.
This highly competitive award, one of NSF’s most prestigious for early-career faculty, recognizes researchers with the potential to serve as academic role models and drive advances in their fields.
Surbatovich’s project focuses on building a specialized operating system for devices that lack a steady power source. Unlike a laptop or phone, these platforms pull energy from their surroundings—using sources like light, motion, or radio waves—allowing them to work in remote or high-stakes areas like disaster zones, medical implants, and tiny satellites.
The core challenge is that this harvested energy is often unpredictable, causing devices to “blink” on and off as power fluctuates. Surbatovich is developing mathematical methods to ensure that these repeated restarts don’t crash the software or create security loopholes. By building a system that is provably secure, she ensures these devices can pick up exactly where they left off without error.
Beyond the lab, Surbatovich is using the grant to train the next generation of researchers. By involving both graduate and undergraduate students, the project aims to prepare future engineers to design reliable software for the increasingly complex world of “extreme edge” computing.
—News brief adapted from an article by the Department of Computer Science
Award Information:
"Formally Verified Intermittent Systems with Tiered Trust" is supported by NSF grant #2543611 from the NSF’s Division of Information & Intelligent Systems
PI: Milijana Surbatovich, an assistant professor of computer science with an appointment in the University of Maryland Institute for Advanced Computer Studies.
About the CAREER award: The Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Program is an NSF activity that offers the foundation’s most prestigious awards in support of junior faculty who exemplify the role of teacher-scholars through outstanding research, excellent education and the integration of education and research within the context of the mission of their organization.