Dr. Ayat Taha

Prior to joining TII, Dr. Ayat served as an Associate Postdoctoral Researcher at New York University in Abu Dhabi for one and a half years, where she worked on a range of applications including artificial intelligence and 2D material integration on silicon photonics platforms. Before her appointment at NYU Abu Dhabi, she spent three years at Khalifa University, leading collaborative research projects with GlobalFoundries, and Semiconductor Research Corporation, focused on silicon photonics-based artificial intelligence accelerators for data center integration. Dr. Ayat’s research encompassed optical sensors, photonic/spiking neural networks, optical communications, and multiplexer/demultiplexer design. She received her PhD from Khalifa University, United Arab Emirates, in 2020, where her research addressed multiple applications of integrated optics within silicon photonics platforms. She possesses extensive chip design expertise, with experience across multiple semiconductor foundries, including GlobalFoundries, Applied Nanotools, and Advanced Micro Foundry. Her experience spans design, simulation, fabrication, and characterization of integrated chips, primarily on silicon-on-insulator platforms. In January 2026, she joined TII’s Quantum Communication Laboratory as a senior researcher, focusing on integrated quantum photonics.