Sensors | Interview with Prof. Dr. Vittorio Ferrari—Section Editor-in-Chief of Section “Electronic Sensors”

We are honored to present an exclusive interview with Prof. Dr. Vittorio Ferrari, Section Editor-in-Chief of the “Electronic Sensors” Section. Prof. Ferrari shares his cutting-edge research focus, valuable editorial experience, and visionary perspective on the journal's future development.

Prof. Dr. Vittorio Ferrari has been a Full Professor of electronics at the University of Brescia since 2006. From 2016 to 2022, he was the Rector’s Delegate for research quality management and postgraduate studies at the University of Brescia. He holds an MSc-equivalent in physics and a PhD in electronic instrumentation. In 1994, he was employed at HP Labs, Palo Alto, CA, USA. In 2013, he collaborated with CERN, Switzerland, on electronics for particle detectors. In 2017, he was a visiting professor at the Institut Polytechnique de Grenoble, France. He and his group are active in research projects, with both academic and industrial participation, on piezoelectric transducers and resonant microsensors, energy harvesting for autonomous sensors, MEMS and microsystems, sensors with contactless interrogation, electronic interfaces for sensor signals, sensing systems for fluidics, and wearable devices. He has authored or coauthored more than 250 publications in international peer-reviewed journals and conference proceedings, invited presentations, and book chapters, and he holds eight patents. He is an IEEE senior member and is affiliated with the Italian National Research Council (CNR) and the National Institute of Nuclear Physics (INFN). He serves on international panels; conference committees, including IEEE UFFC-IUS Group 5; and boards in the field of sensors and electronic instrumentation.

The following is an interview with Prof. Dr. Vittorio Ferrari:

1. What are the main areas of your current research?
My group and I are active in both research and application-oriented projects on sensors, microsystems, and electronics for measuring instrumentation. Current topics of interest include piezoelectric transducers, acoustic-wave and resonant sensors, energy harvesting for sensors and microsystems, electromechanical and piezoelectric MEMS, and sensor electronics.

2. How has your experience been as an Editor-in-Chief so far, and what made you choose to work with us, knowing that we are an open access publisher?
My experience has been very positive. In the role, I have had the chance and privilege to come in touch with the forefront research in our field presented in a large number of high-quality submitted and published papers. In return, I am doing my best to deliver an appropriate service in terms of timely and balanced judgment and insight.
We are all aware that open access journals have changed the world of scientific publishing. In a way, authors and publishers today bear an even higher responsibility than in the past, since the results of their work and effort now become public domain in a very short turnaround time. This demands our best commitment in the interest of the journal, the readers, and the scientific community at large.
I am very grateful for the collaboration and support offered by the colleagues on the Editorial Board, the reviewers, and the professional Editorial Office of the journal.

3. What are your expectations and suggestions for the future development of our Section and the journal?
As a general trend for the journal, I think we should continue on the ongoing path to encourage and promote quality in the published papers. Authors and readers perceive and value a publication environment where current high-quality research in their field is collected, and this in turn creates a strong pull for the journal’s further improvement and growth.
In our Section, an increase in contributions on functional integration between sensors and electronics will be likely and desirable, along the development roadmap going from devices to systems/microsystems.

4. In the field of sensors, which research topics do you think are more popular and will attract more attention?
Sensors continue to represent a lively and ever-expanding research field. Among the more promising and attractive aspects and topics, I would mention the following:
- Innovative devices based on the convergence of additive manufacturing/3D printing/new deposition processes using nonconventional materials and substrates;
- Ongoing progress from devices to systems with an increasing role of electronics to provide extended functionality and local intelligence;
- Strategies for power consumption optimization in sensor nodes through ultra-low-power electronics and energy harvesting;
- Expansion of the number and diversity of application fields, within a general trend of augmented sensor pervasiveness;
- Strong advancement in the integration of artificial intelligence within sensors in a new framework where sensors will be expected to output not only data but information of an increasingly high level.

5. What suggestions do you have for young scholars in related fields?
I can say that what so far has worked for me in terms of personal fulfillment and a few accomplishments is to be curious and passionate enough, to learn as much as possible from the literature, and to always take the time and put the best effort to go deep to the heart of the matter avoiding superficiality, with the goal of contributing a tiny increment to the knowledge in the field.