# Cedar Rose Leach

> Cedar Rose Leach is an Electrical and Computer Engineering student at USC (Class of 2027) building hardware for AI, robotics and neural systems: neural interfaces, wearable sensors, microfabrication and PCB design. Co-founder of Memoir Photos.

Building hardware for AI, robotics and neural systems, from the cleanroom to the circuit board.

## Contact

- Email: cdleach@usc.edu
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cedar-rose-leach
- Resume (PDF): https://www.cedarroseleach.com/files/cedar-rose-leach-resume.pdf
- Education: B.S. and M.S. in Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Southern California, Class of 2027

## Experience

- [NPU Power Analysis and Architecture](https://www.cedarroseleach.com/work/arm.md): Power analysis and architecture intern, Arm (Jun 2026 – Aug 2026). Modeled gate-level power for Arm's neural processing unit (NPU) interconnect, and built the automation that made those power runs faster to run, check and compare. Web page: https://www.cedarroseleach.com/work/arm/
- [Microelectronics @ Northrop Grumman](https://www.cedarroseleach.com/work/northrop-grumman.md): Electron Beam Lithography & Microelectronics Internship, Northrop Grumman (Jun 2025 – Aug 2025). Validated three wafer anti-charging agents for electron beam lithography through 40+ experiments, contributing to $26,000 in projected annual savings. Web page: https://www.cedarroseleach.com/work/northrop-grumman/
- [Semiconductor Nanofabrication](https://www.cedarroseleach.com/work/nanofabrication.md): Microelectronics Commons Scholars Program, John O'Brien Nanofabrication Laboratory, USC (Jun 2024 – Jul 2024). Member of the first Microelectronics Commons Scholars cohort; trained and certified in cleanroom fabrication, then recalibrated the lab's PECVD deposition rate. Web page: https://www.cedarroseleach.com/work/nanofabrication/
- [Boeing FPGA Intern](https://www.cedarroseleach.com/work/boeing.md): FPGAs, Satellites & Systems, Innovation Challenge, Boeing Satellite Development Center (Jun 2022 – Aug 2022). Configured a Versal VCK190 FPGA with Vivado and Vitis, and won Boeing's LINC Innovation Challenge with a campus navigation concept. Web page: https://www.cedarroseleach.com/work/boeing/

## Research

- [Neural Probe](https://www.cedarroseleach.com/work/neural-probe.md): Design, Fabrication, & Characterization, Biomedical Microsystems Laboratory, USC (Jul 2024 – May 2025). Helped design, fabricate and characterize a flexible neural recording probe that pairs polymer flexibility with silicon electrode density, including two custom PCBs and COMSOL coil simulations. Web page: https://www.cedarroseleach.com/work/neural-probe/
- [Modeling Capacitive Sweat Rate Sensor](https://www.cedarroseleach.com/work/sweat-rate-sensor.md): Coauthor of Paper Published in Advanced Intelligent Systems, Khan Lab, USC (Dec 2024). Co-authored a paper in Advanced Intelligent Systems on a fully printed, flexible sweat rate sensor, and built the 3D CAD models used in its published figures. Web page: https://www.cedarroseleach.com/work/sweat-rate-sensor/
- [Analog Front End of Electrochemical Sensing System](https://www.cedarroseleach.com/work/analog-front-end.md): Firmware Development, Testing and PCB Design, Khan Lab, USC (Jan 2024 – May 2024). Built firmware, test setups and a PCB layout for the analog front end of an extended-gate transistor sensor used for potassium ion sensing. Web page: https://www.cedarroseleach.com/work/analog-front-end/

## Building

- [Memoir](https://www.cedarroseleach.com/work/memoir.md): An Interactive & Accessible Photo Library for the Visually Impaired, Memoir Photos (Sep 2024 – Aug 2025). Co-founded an audio-based, accessible photo library that lets blind and visually impaired people explore, organize and relive their photos. Web page: https://www.cedarroseleach.com/work/memoir/
- [USC Makers](https://www.cedarroseleach.com/work/usc-makers.md): University Electrical Engineering Club, USC Makers (Sep 2023 – present). Built SmarTender, an autonomous drink-making robot, and an EEG-controlled drone driven by a custom brain-computer interface. Web page: https://www.cedarroseleach.com/work/usc-makers/

## Publications

- Journal article: Mohammad Shafiqul Islam, Sangwon Cha, Md Farhad Hassan, Wenxin Cai, Tahsin Sejat Saniat, Cedar Rose Leach, Yasser Khan "Printed wearable sweat rate sensor for continuous in-situ perspiration measurement." Advanced Intelligent Systems, December 25, 2024. https://doi.org/10.1002/aisy.202400927
- Conference abstract: Barrera, N.D., Nguyen, T.D., Ramirez, E., Leach, C.R., Abbasi, N., Molisch, A., Sideris, C., & Meng, E. "Implantable Flexible GHz Waveguide for High Data Throughput Neural Recording Interfaces." Neural Interfaces 2025 Conference, June 2025.
- Poster: Leach, C.R., Barrera, N., Ramirez, E., & Meng, E. "Development and Characterization of a High-Density Flexible Neural Recording Probe." Research symposium poster, University of Southern California, 2025. https://www.cedarroseleach.com/files/neural-probe-poster.pdf
- Poster: Leach, C.R., Coulon, E., Ferdoushi, M., & Khan, Y. "Firmware Development, Testing and PCB Design for the Analog Front End of Extended Gate Transistor Based Electrochemical Sensing System." CURVE research poster, University of Southern California, 2024. https://www.cedarroseleach.com/files/analog-front-end-poster.pdf

## Optional

- [Full text of every project write-up](https://www.cedarroseleach.com/llms-full.txt)
- [Sitemap](https://www.cedarroseleach.com/sitemap-index.xml)