Prof Marcian Cirstea

Marcian is an active professional in digital systems, focusing on artificial intelligence and the use of computer aided design tools and methods applied to digital systems modelling and rapid prototyping using VHDL and FPGAs.

[email protected]

Background

Marcian’s research is focused on digital controllers. With over 30 years of academic experience, he has published one research monograph, one text book and more than 155 peer-reviewed papers (three with awards). He has delivered seven international tutorials on Digital Systems Design Methodologies using VHDL and FPGAs, coordinated a European FP6 control of renewable integrated systems project consortium, supervised 13 research degrees to completion and examined 19.

General Chair of 10 IEEE international conferences and track chair/ tutorials chair/ special sessions chair for many others, Marcian is also Associate Editor for IEEE Transactions on Industrial Informatics.

Research interests

• Artificial Intelligence applied to electronic system-on-chip design, including new tools for top-down design, Hardware Description Languages and FPGAs
• Intelligent systems – modelling, Digital Twins, software engineering approach to hardware systems design, prompt engineering

Marcian is a member of our Computing, Informatics and Applications research group.

Areas of research supervision

• Digital systems design methods using Artificial Intelligence
• Design of FPGA-based intelligent systems

Find out more about our Computing and Information Science PhD.

Teaching

Modules taught: Digital Systems and Power Conversion Systems

Qualifications

• PhD Electronic/Electrical Engineering, Nottingham Trent University, UK
• PGCE Learning & Teaching, De Montfort University, UK
• MEng Electrical Engineering, Transilvania University of Brasov, Romania

Memberships, editorial boards

• Fellow, the Institute of Electrical & Electronics Engineers (FIEEE)
• Vice-President Planning and Development (Jan. 2024 – Dec. 2025) IEEE Industrial Electronics Society 
• Fellow, the Institution of Engineering & Technology (FIET)
• Chartered Engineer, Engineering Council UK (CEng)
• European Engineer of the European Federation of National Engineering Associations (EurIng)
• Associate Editor, IEEE Transactions on Industrial Informatics
• Member of various IEEE Industrial Electronics Society Committees
• Doctor Honoris Causa title awarded by Transilvania University of Brasov, Romania (2016)
• Past Vice-President for Membership Activities (2013-2016) IEEE Industrial Electronics Society 
• Referee (by invitation) in Assessment Panel in the Aalto University Research Art and Impact Assessment, RAI 2018, Helsinki,Finland, 26-31 August 2018.

Research grants, consultancy, knowledge exchange

Consultancy

• Introductory training courses on digital systems design methodologies
• Delivering Training Courses to Industry:Introduction to VHDL Design – to Datalink Ltd. (2003), Transmitton Ltd. (2003), Audio Processing Technology Ltd. (2005), range of companies in Cambridge (course delivered at Anglia Ruskin University, 2010): Cambridge Silicon Radio (CSR) Ltd, Plastic Logic Ltd, Bertrandt Ltd, Displaylink Ltd, Exquisite IT Ltd, ADI Ltd.
• Framework 6 European Commission Programme: Control of Renewable Integrated Systems Targeting Advanced Landmarks (CRISTAL) – Coordination Action, including 11 institutions from 7 EU countries, Euro 130 K. Proposalauthor and Consortium Coordinator. Dec.’07 – Dec.’09.
• Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) with Transmitton Ltd. (Siemens), Ashby-de-la Zouch: Redesign fastflex range of products using hardware description languages (HDLs) and FPGA implementation.Value: £ 105 K, Oct.’03-Oct.’05.

Selected recent publications

Petreus, D., Patarau, T., Szilagyi, E., Cirstea, M. N.: “Electrical Vehicle Battery Charger Based on Smart Microgrid”, MDPI Energies, 2023, 16(9), 3853; https://doi.org/10.3390/en16093853

Monmasson, E., Hilairet, M., Spagnuolo, G., Cirstea, M.N., 2021. System-on-Chip FPGA Devices for Complex Electrical Energy Systems Control. IEEE Industrial Electronics Magazine, 19 Feb. 2021. DOI: 10.1109/MIE.2021.3052179. 

Balan, A., Balan, T., Cirstea, M., Sandu, F., 2020. A PUF-based cryptographic security solution for IoT systems on chip. EURASIP Journal on Wireless Communications and Networking (EURASIP JWCN), Springer, 4 Nov. 2020, 231 (2020), USA. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13638-020-01839-6

Petreus, D., Patarau, T., Etz, R and Cirstea, M.N., 2018. An islanded microgrid energy management controller validated by using Hardware-In-the-Loop Emulators. International Journal of Electrical Power and Energy Systems, Elsevier, Vol. 106, March 2019, Pages 346-357, DOI: org/10.1016/j.ijepes.2018.10.020.

Stanciu, A., Cirstea, M.N. and Moldoveanu, F., 2016. Analysis and Evaluation of PUF-based SoC Designs for Security Applications. IEEE Transactions on Industrial Electronics, 63(9), DOI: 10.1109/TIE.2016.2570720.

Monmasson, E. and Cirstea, M.N., 2013. Industrial Control Applications of FPGAs. IEEE Transactions on Industrial Informatics, 9(3), editorial review, DOI: 10.1109/TII.2013.2270011.

Alecsa, B., Cirstea, M.N. and Onea, A., 2012. Simulink Modeling and Design of an Efficient Hardware-constrained FPGA-based PMSM Speed Controller. IEEE Transactions on Industrial Informatics, 8(3), DOI: 10.1109/TII.2012.2193891.

Monmasson, E., Cirstea, M.N., 2007. FPGA Design Methodology for Industrial Control Systems – a Review. IEEE Transactions on Industrial Electronics, Special Issue on FPGAs used in Industrial control Systems, vol. 54, no. 4, August 2007, pp. 1824-1842, ISSN 0278-0046. DOI: 10.1109/TIE.2007.898281.

Cirstea, M.N., Dinu, A., Khor, J., McCormick, M. 2002. Neural and Fuzzy Logic Control of Drives and Power Systems. Elsevier Science, Oxford, 2002, ISBN 0750655585.

Recent presentations and conferences

Dinita, G. Wilson, M. Cirstea: “Novel Autonomous Software for Enhanced Datacenter Operational Efficiency and Botnet Detection”, Proc. of IEEE Int. Conf. on Ind. Electronics (IECON’23), Singapore, Oct. 2023

Tutorial (3 hours) presented and video recorded, M. Cirstea together with Prof. Eric Monmasson (CY Cergy Paris University): “Modelling and Design of Digital Electronic Systems (targeting FPGAs) – Methods, Trends and Application to the Control of Electrical Systems', Annual International Conference of IEEE Industrial Electronics Society, IECON 2019, Lisbon, Portugal, 14 October 2019. Open access for IEEE members (240,000 members worldwide) at: https://resourcecenter.ies.ieee.org/conferences/iecon-2019/IESIECON2019VID0080.html

Hazzaa, F., Yousef, S., Sanchez, E., Cirstea, M.N., 2018. Lightweight and Low-Energy Encryption Scheme for Voice over Wireless Devices. IEEE International Conference on Industrial Electronics (IECON 2018), Washington, USA, Oct. 2018, pp.2992-2997.

Darvill, J., Tisan, A., Cirstea, M.N., 2017. A Novel ANFIS Architecture for FPGA Implementation. IEEE International Conference on Industrial Electronics (ISIE 2017), Edinburgh, UK, 19-21 June 2017, pp.1244-1248. DOI: 10.1109/ISIE.2017.8001423

Cirstea, M.N., 2016. Modelling and Design of Digital Electronic Systems. Proceedings of IEEE International conference on Development and Application Systems, University of Suceava, Romania, 19-21 May 2016, pp.189-194. Plenary/keynote presentation.

Cirstea, M.N., 2015. Modern Methodologies for Digital Systems Modelling and Design. Presented at Hubei University of Technology, Wuhan, China, 9 April 2015.