On June 19, Professor Jose Rodriguez, Academician of the Chilean Academy of Engineering and President of the University of San Sebastián, along with Associate Professor Cristian Garcia from the University of Talca, Invited by Professor Li Yongdong, visited the Department of Electrical Engineering and Applied Electronics (EEA) at Tsinghua University. They delivered academic lectures titled “Model Predictive Control: Basic Concepts, Applications, Advances and Challenges” and “How to Write Highly Cited Papers.” The lectures were hosted by Professor Li Yongdong, with over 30 students in attendance. The event was supported by the Tsinghua University Member Center of the Chinese Society of Electrical Engineering.

During the lecture held from 9:30 AM to 12:00 PM, Professor Jose Rodriguez and Associate Professor Cristian Garcia systematically elaborated on the development history, research hotspots, future trends, and challenges of Model Predictive Control (MPC) under the topic “Model Predictive Control: Basic Concepts, Applications, Advances and Challenges.” They demonstrated the unique advantages of MPC, offering attendees both forward-looking and practical research perspectives. Later, the two experts discussed “How to Write Highly Cited Papers,” detailing the evaluation standards, structural framework, and writing techniques for high-quality academic papers. They particularly shared methods for writing review papers and provided targeted academic writing advice for young scholars. There was a lively exchange and discussion between the speakers and Tsinghua University’s faculty and students, including Professor Li Yongdong, Professor Sun Kai, Associate Researcher Wang Kui, and Distinguished Visiting Professor of Tsinghua University and Fellow of the American International Engineering Academy, Professor Dushan Boroyevich.

In the afternoon, Professor Jose Rodriguez met with Professor Li Yongdong and Dr. Chen Qing to discuss jointly hosting international academic conferences in China and furthering collaboration between the two universities.

Speaker Biography:

Jose Rodriguez is an Academician of the Chilean Academy of Engineering, President of the University of San Sebastián, former President of Andrés Bello University, and former President of Federico Santa María Technical University. He is an IEEE Life Fellow and has been dedicated to high-performance control of electric drive systems and control of new energy conversion systems for over twenty years. His pioneering research in model predictive control has been at the forefront of innovation. As of now, Professor Rodriguez has published over 1,000 academic papers, with more than 400 published in leading international journals, accumulating over 100,000 citations and an H-index of 120. He is the only scholar from South America to have been listed for 11 consecutive years (2014-2024) as a “Highly Cited Scientist” by Clarivate Analytics. In 2014, he received the National Award in Applied and Technological Sciences from the Chilean government. In 2015, he was awarded the IEEE Industrial Electronics Society’s Dr. Eugene Mittelman Achievement Award and was named one of the “World's Most Influential Scientific Minds” by Thomson Reuters in 2014 and 2015. He is also the only scientist from Chile to receive this recognition and has won the IEEE Transactions Best Paper Award seven times.

Cristian Garcia holds a Ph.D. from the University of Talca and is an IEEE Senior Member. He earned his Master's and Doctorate in Electronic Engineering from the Federal Technical University of Santa María in Valparaíso, Chile, in 2013 and 2017, respectively. In 2016, he conducted research as a visiting doctoral student at the Power Electronics, Machines, and Control Research Group at the University of Nottingham, UK. From 2017 to 2019, he was an Associate Professor at the School of Engineering, Andrés Bello University, Santiago, Chile. Since 2019, he has been an Associate Professor in the EEA at the University of Talca. He is currently an Assistant Editor for the IEEE Transactions on Transportation Electrification. He has published over 100 academic papers in international journals and conferences, with over 3,000 citations and an H-index of 34.