Institute for Systems Research

Welcome to ISR!

Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Reinforcement Learning, Computer Vision

Communications & Networks

Control, Optimization and Modeling

Energy Systems

Micro & Nanosystems

Neuroscience and Computational Biology

Operations Research, Decision Making

Robotics and autonomy

Security

Systems Engineering; Engineering Design

Founded in 1985

Originally the Systems Research Center, ISR is one of the National Science Foundation's original six engineering research centers.

Interdisciplinary by nature

More than 60 ISR faculty, from 13 departments and five University of Maryland colleges, develop basic solution methodologies and tools for a wide range of systems problems.

Graduate systems education

ISR offers M.S., M.Eng. and certificate options in systems engineering with a variety of specializations and both thesis and non-thesis options.

Enabling technologies

ISR research addresses issues associated with the technical development of systems.

Analysis and design tools

Engineering and biological system frontiers can be pushed because engineers have powerful analysis and design tools that ISR was key in developing.

News & Events

More News View Calendar

Aug 10, 2026

UMD Joins NSF's $400M AI Nanofabrication Initiative

UMD faculty join a Virginia Tech-led team building a self-driving nanofabrication lab as part of NSF's...

Aug 7, 2026

Two Patents Awarded to UMD Researchers

Aug 5, 2026

New Speech Model Reads Mouth Movement Across Languages

Aug 4, 2026

ISR/ECE Team Earns Best Presentation Award at IEEE PEASA

Jul 24, 2026

Securing Edge Devices for the Post-Quantum Era

Event

NanoColloquium: Kornelius Nielsch - Material Interfaces taking Control of Thermoelectric Transport

October 2, 2026