John A. Pearce
Professor
Electrical and Computer Engineering
Temple Foundation Endowed Professor No. 3
Phone: (512) 471-4984
Email: pearce@ece.utexas.edu
Dr. Pearce’s Web site
Dr. John Pearce earned his Ph.D. in electrical engineering from
Purdue University in 1980. He joined the faculty of The University of
Texas at Austin in 1982. He directs the
Process Energetics Laboratory in the
Center
for Energy and Environmental Resources at the J.J. Pickle Research
Campus. In 1985, he won a Presidential Young Investigator Award from the
National Science Foundation.
Dr. Pearce researches interactions between electromagnetic fields and
tissues, as well as industrial applications of radio frequency (RF) and
microwave (MW) fields. He has a long-term interest in the basic science
of “electrosurgery,” the application of RF current to cut and coagulate
tissues, dating from his work in the Department of Surgery at the
Medical University of South Carolina in the early 1970s. He is currently
investigating how the complex electrical properties of cardiac muscle
can be applied to identify changes in its state. His findings will be
used to help detect congestive heart failure and to differentiate
between hibernating and infarcted (dead) muscle. Pearce also studies the
application of RF energy to the regeneration of saturated activated
carbon adsorbents, soil remediation (removal of volatile organic
compound contaminants), and MW plasma generation at atmospheric
pressures.
Research interests:
- Tissue fusion and ablation processes with radio frequency current and lasers
- Applications of the complex electrical properties of and admittance measurements in tissues
- Industrial applications of radio frequency and microwave energy
Search for news articles about Dr. Pearce.