Submitted by Rachel Gardner on Wed, 02/07/2025 - 08:00
Thanks to a donation from AMD, we're expanding the number of PhD students we will welcome this autumn at CASCADE – our dedicated new Computer Architecture and Semiconductor Design Centre.
CASCADE focuses on research to address some of the grand challenges in computer architecture, design automation and semiconductors. This is a critical area of computing that underpins today’s technologies and drives the next generation of computing systems.
"We're very grateful to AMD," says Professor Timothy Jones, Director of the Centre. "Our vision is to create a Centre where research addresses key challenges in this field, informed and supported by our industrial partners, and this donation from AMD helps us move towards that.
"Our aim is to make the Centre a destination for collaboration between companies, generating pre-competitive open-source artefacts and driving development of novel computer architectures."
"This donation from AMD helps us move towards our vision of a Centre where research addresses key challenges in this field, informed and supported by our industrial partners."
Professor Timothy Jones
Fostering innovation
AMD's support reflects its commitment to fostering innovation and developing the next generation of computing leaders to accelerate solutions for the world’s most important challenges.
"At AMD, we believe that advancing computing starts with the people and ideas that will shape its future. The CASCADE Centre and its research align with our mission to push the boundaries of high-performance and adaptive computing. By helping develop the next generation of researchers in computer architecture and semiconductor design, we're proud to contribute to the innovations that will drive our industry forward and create broader societal impact," says Cathal McCabe, Director, AMD University Program, Americas, EMEA, and India.
For more than 55 years, AMD has driven innovation in high-performance computing, graphics, and visualisation technologies. Hundreds of millions of consumers, Fortune 500 businesses, and leading scientific research facilities around the world rely on AMD technology to improve how they live, work, and play.
AMD joins Arm in offering its support to students at the Centre.
A critical area of computing
Computer architecture is a critical area of computing. It underpins today's technologies and drives the next generation of computing systems. Here in the Department of Computer Science and Technology, we're proud of our research and innovation in this area.
"By helping develop the next generation of researchers in computer architecture and semiconductor design, we're proud to contribute to the innovations that will drive our industry forward and create broader societal impact."
Cathal McCabe, AMD
But to maintain this leading position, we need to invest in developing the research leaders of tomorrow. That's why we established the new CASCADE Research Centre to fund PhD students working in this area, through support from industry. Its first cohort of PhD students will begin their studies this October.
Addressing grand challenges
The Centre will focus on research that addresses some of the grand challenges in computer architecture, design automation and semiconductors.
PhD students will work alongside researchers here who have expertise across the breadth of the area, encompassing the design and optimisation of general-purpose microprocessors, specialised accelerators, on-chip interconnect and memory systems, verification, compilation and networking, quantum architecture and resource estimation. This will allow them to explore the areas they are most passionate about, while addressing industry-relevant research.
- The first cohort of PhD students will start at the CASCADE Research Centre in October 2025. We'll soon open applications for the second cohort to start in October 2026. We encourage prospective applicants to contact one of our supervisors, think about how their research will meet one of the challenges we're targeting, and understand how to make an application to us.
- For more information about the CASCADE Centre and how organisations can get involved in its work, please email Centre Director Professor Timothy Jones. Individuals and companies who want to support the Centre should contact our Research Strategy Manager Helen Francis.
