Abhi Adhikari

Overview

I am a fifth-year PhD candidate in Electrical Engineering at Columbia University, where my research focuses on edge–cloud computing and integrated sensing and communication for smart city systems. My work involves millimeter-wave (mmWave) and sub-terahertz (sub-THz) data acquisition and analysis. I am advised by Prof. Gil Zussman and collaborate with Nokia Bell Labs, NOAA-CESSRST, WINLAB, IBM Research, and the NSF Center for Smart Streetscapes.

Research

Investigating mmWave communications and sensing for Beyond-5G systems, including urban propagation models (MobiHoc '22, Infocom '25), interference mitigation for weather instruments (MobiCom '24), and backscatter localization.

Publications

Conferences and Journals

• Y. Fu, M. Turkcan, M. Ghasemi, Z. Mo, C. Zang, A. Adhikari, Z. Kostic, G. Zussman, X. Di, “AI-Powered CPS-Enabled Vulnerable-User-Aware Urban Transportation Digital Twin: Methods and Applications,” submitted to IEEE Trans. Intelligent Transportation Systems, November 2025.
• D. Chizhik, J. Du, J. Sapis, R. Valenzuela, A. Adhikari, G. Zussman, M. Almendra, M. Rodriguez, R. Feick, “Backscatter Measurements and Statistical Models for RF Sensing in Indoor Cluttered Environments,” in IEEE Trans. Antennas Propag., October 2025.
• D. Chizhik, J. Sapis, J. Du, R. Valenzuela, A. Adhikari, J. Drogo, G. Zussman, M. Almendra, M. Rodriguez, R. Feick, “Measured RF Backscatter Power Statistics in Indoor Sensing,” in Proc. of IEEE AP-S/URSI, Ottawa, Canada, July 2025.
• A. Adhikari, “mmWave Communications, Sensing, and Interference Mitigation,” in Proc. of ACM MobiSys Rising Stars Forum, Anaheim, CA, June 2025.
• A. Adhikari, S. Mukherjee, A. Mehta, M. Kohli, D. Chizhik, J. Du, R. Feick, R. Valenzuela, G. Zussman, "Around-corner and Over-top 28 GHz measurement in manhattan: Path loss and AoA for MU-MIMO," in Proc. of IEEE INFOCOM'25, London, UK, May 2025.
• D. Chizhik, J. Du, J. Sapis, R. Valenzuela, A. Adhikari, G. Zussman, M. Almendra, M. Rodriguez, R. Feick, “Backscatter Measurements and Statistical Models for RF Sensing in Indoor Cluttered Environments”, in IEEE Trans. Antennas Propag. 2025.
• D. Chizhik, J. Sapis, J. Du, R. Valenzuela, A. Adhikari, J. Drogo, G. Zussman, M. Almendra, M. Rodriguez, R. Feick, “Measured RF Backscatter Power Statistics in Indoor Sensing”, in Proc. of IEEE AP-S/URSI 2025.
• M. Kohli, A. Adhikari, G. Avci, S. Brent, J. Moser, S. Hossain, A. Dash, I. Kadota, R. Feick, D. Chizhik, J. Du, R. Valenzuela, G. Zussman, "Outdoor-to-Indoor 28 GHz Wireless Measurements in Manhattan: Path Loss, Environmental Effects, and 90% Coverage," in IEEE/ACM Transactions on Networking, 1-16, January 2024.
• D. Chizhik, J. Du, J. Sapis, R. Valenzuela, A. Adhikari, G. Zussman, M. Almendra, M. Rodriguez, R. Feick, “Average Backscatter Clutter Power for RF Sensing Applications in Indoor Environments”, in Proc. of IEEE COMCAS 2024.
• T. Chen, P. Maddala, P. Skrimponis, J. Kolodziejski, A. Adhikari, H. Hu, Z. Gao, A. Paidimarri, A. Valdes-Garcia, M. Lee, S. Rangan, G. Zussman, I. Seskar, "Open-access millimeter-wave software-defined radios in the PAWR COSMOS testbed: Design, deployment, and experimentation," in Computer Networks, Volume 234, 109922, October 2023.
• D. Chizhik, J. Du, M. Kohli, A. Adhikari, R. Feick, R. Valenzuela, G. Zussman, "Accurate Urban Path Loss Models Including Diffuse Scatter," in Proc. of European Conference on Antennas and Propagation (EuCAP) 2023, Mar. 2023.
• M. Kohli, A. Adhikari, G. Avci, S. Brent, J. Moser, S. Hossain, A. Dash, I. Kadota, R. Feick, D. Chizhik, J. Du, R. Valenzuela, G. Zussman, "Outdoor-to-Indoor Measurements of 28 GHz Wireless in a Dense Urban Environment," in Proc. of ACM MobiHoc'22, Seoul, South Korea, Oct. 2022.
• A. Adhikari, S. Parihar, S. Das, M. Jacovic, A. Trezza, V. Pano, K. R. Dandekar, "Software-Defined Radar Testbed for Multi-Target Tracking," in Proc. of IEEE RadarConf'22, NYC, NY, Mar. 2022.

Patents

• A. Adhikari, "System and method for controlling, sharing, release and management of digital data between smart mobile device(s) and external device(s) using a connector pad," U.S. Utility Patent 10,348,691, filed May 14, 2018, and issued July 9, 2019.
• A. Adhikari, "System and method for making a quick connection between a smart mobile device and external audio speakers and video monitors using a connector pad," U.S. Utility Patent 9,998,848, filed Nov. 13, 2015, and issued June 12, 2018.

Tutorials

• A. Adhikari, M. Kohli, J. Shane, P. Netalkar, T. Chen, D. Raychaudhuri, I. Seskar, G. Zussman, "The COSMOS Testbed – a Platform for Advanced Wireless, Smart Cities, Edge-cloud, and Optical Experimentation," presented at 2023 Midscale Experimental Research Infrastructure Forum, Boston, MA, Tutorial, May 2023.
• A. Adhikari, J. Raulin, A. Raj, Z. Wang, J. Shane, J. Kolodziejski, P. Skrimponis, B. Lantz, D. Kilper, I. Seskar, T. Chen, S. Rangan, G. Zussman, "COSMOS Testbed for Advanced Wireless and Edge Cloud Research," presented at 2022 ACM SIGCOMM, Amsterdam, NL, Tutorial, Aug. 2022.

Posters and Demos

• P. Maddala, J. Kolodziejski, A. Adhikari, K. Hermstein, D. Chen, L. Zhu, T. Chen, I. Seskar, G. Zussman, "Demo: Experimentation with Mobile 28 GHz Phased Array Antenna Modules," in Proc. of ACM MobiCom'24, Washington, D.C., Demo, Nov. 2024.
• A. Adhikari, K. Hermstein, Y. Wu, T. Legbandt, C. Bastidas, T. Chen, F. Moshary, I. Seskar, G. Zussman, "28 GHz Phased Array Interference Measurements and Modeling for a NOAA Microwave Radiometer in Manhattan," in Proc. of ACM MobiCom'24, Washington, D.C., Poster Presentation, Nov. 2024.
• D. Chen, T. Wang, E.S.F. Portillo, A. Adhikari, R. Feick, J. Du, D. Chizhik, G. Zussman, "28 GHz mmWave Measurements for Joint Sensing and Communications," presented at 2023 IEEE MIT Undergraduate Research Technology Conference (URTC), Cambridge, MA, Poster Presentation, Oct. 2023.
• A. Adhikari, S. Mukherjee, A. Mehta, M. Kohli, R. Feick, D. Chizhik, J. Du, R. Valenzuela, G. Zussman, "Turning the Block in NYC and Still Getting 5G Coverage? mmWave Around-the-Corner Measurements for Dense Urban Deployment," presented at Columbia Smart Cities Poster Session, NYC, NY, Poster Presentation, Apr. 2023.
• A. Adhikari, S. Mukherjee, A. Mehta, M. Kohli, R. Feick, D. Chizhik, J. Du, R. Valenzuela, G. Zussman, "Turning the Block in NYC and Still Getting 5G Coverage? mmWave Around-the-Corner Measurements for Dense Urban Deployment," presented at 2023 Columbia Data Science Day, NYC, NY, Poster Presentation, Apr. 2023.
• The Clinton School, Traceroute Lab w/ COSMOS Edu. Toolkit, NYC, Jan. 2023.
• S. Mukherjee, A. Mehta, A. Adhikari, D. Chizhik, J. Du, R. Feick, R. Valenzuela, G. Zussman, "Turning the Block in NYC and Still Getting 5G Coverage? mmWave Around-the-Corner Measurements for Dense Urban Deployment," presented at 2022 IEEE MIT Undergraduate Research Technology Conference (URTC), Cambridge, MA, Poster Presentation, Oct. 2022.
• A. Adhikari, M. Kohli, G. Avci, S. Brent, J. Moser, S. Hossain, A. Dash, S. Mukherjee, C. Garland, I. Kadota, R. Feick, D. Chizhik, J. Du, R. Valenzuela, G. Zussman, "mmWave Measurements for Fixed and Mobile Wireless Access Algorithm Development," presented at 2022 Columbia Data Science Day, NYC, NY, Poster Presentation, Apr. 2022.
• Silicon Harlem, Demo of COSMOS Edu. Toolkit to various communities and stakeholders, West Harlem, NYC, Feb.-Apr. 2022.
• G. Avci, S. Brent, S. Hossain, J. Moser, A.D. Estigarribia, M. Kohli, I. Kadota, A. Adhikari, D. Chizhik, J. Du, R. Feick, R. Valenzuela, G. Zussman, "Outdoor-to-Indoor 28 GHz mmWave Measurements in the COSMOS Testbed Deployment Area," presented at 2021 IEEE MIT Undergraduate Research Technology Conference (URTC), Cambridge, MA, Poster Presentation, Oct. 2021.
• Silicon Harlem, Demo of COSMOS Edu. Toolkit to Silicon Harlem, West Harlem, NYC, Sept. 2021.

Datasets

• NIST, 28 GHz Outdoor-to-Indoor Measurements Taken at a Middle School, NextG CMA Dataset on NIST Public Dataset Repository (nextg.nist.gov/submissions/131).

Projects

Developed MediaPad for secure, easy device connectivity via NFC/Bluetooth, and a $150 Edge AI Sensing Robot with Raspberry Pi 5 for real-time sensing and autonomous navigation.

Experience

Collaborated with Nokia Bell Labs, IBM Research, NOAA, and Lockheed Martin on mmWave propagation, software-defined radar, and spectrum security solutions.