Once again, WUT students in the final of the international competition

A team of students from the Faculty of Electrical Engineering at the Warsaw University of Technology will compete for the top prize in the prestigious international competition The International Future Energy Challenge. The event brings together the best academic teams from around the world working on innovative solutions in the field of power electronics. The IFEC 2026 final will take place in Belgium on July 13–17. It is worth noting that last year, another team of our students won the main prize in this competition.

The team that advanced to the IFEC 2026 grand final consists of students of Electrical Engineering and Electromobility: Adam Cieplak, Piotr Guz, Oskar Kędzierski, Bartosz Majczyna, Olaf Osiński, Jakub Sokołowski, Jakub Sztencel, and Michał Zakrzewski. The team is supervised by Jan Sitnik, MSc, and during the semifinals in San Antonio they were also supported by Rafał Kopacz, PhD.

In the semifinal, held on March 22 in San Antonio, USA, our students competed against 13 top teams from around the world. The team impressed the jury with a well-thought-out and robust concept of the proposed project, as well as the clarity of their ambitious single-stage solution.

“Our students’ project involves developing a 1 kW onboard charger for an electric vehicle. With a solid theoretical foundation, they decided to present two different approaches to solving the same research problem, which earned recognition from the jury. The competition involved presenting current achievements, and our team had plenty to show — the students carried out comprehensive simulations, designed PCBs, and presented preliminary laboratory tests. What the students appreciated most was the international nature of the event and the opportunity to gain valuable experience. Personally, I was impressed by their enthusiasm and high level of technical preparation. They also had the opportunity to exchange experiences with other teams during the gala dinner,” said  Jan Sitnik, MSc, the team’s supervisor.

In the grand final, which will take place in July in Belgium, the students will be required to demonstrate the operation of their converter in front of the jury — an entire day in the laboratory will be dedicated to this task. There will also be a presentation. The team is currently working on commissioning all parts of the converter, spending long hours in the lab and gaining invaluable hands-on experience.

Additionally, the team, together with academic staff, has been invited by one of the sponsors —Infineon Technologies AG — to present the results of their research and demonstrate their devices at the company’s R&D center in Villach, Austria. The visit will also include a dinner and an opportunity to engage with industry specialists.