Berker Pekoz

Assistant Professor

Berker.Pekoz@erau.edu

Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Dept

Daytona College of Engineering

Areas of Expertise

design, verification and testing of secure explainable AI-driven resilient cyber-physical systems for compute, sensing, communication, localization, positioning, navigation and timing in non-terrestrial networks

Berker Pekoz

Overview

Dr. Berker Peköz is a faculty member in the Department of Computer, Electrical and Software Engineering. His teaching and research focus on the design, verification and testing of secure, explainable and resilient AI-driven cyber-physical systems. His areas of expertise include computing, sensing, communication, localization, positioning, navigation and timing for next-generation non-terrestrial networks.

Peköz earned his B.S. in Electrical and Electronics Engineering from Middle East Technical University in Ankara, Türkiye, where he specialized in signal processing methods for microprocessor-based biomedical imaging systems. He later earned both his M.S. in Electrical Engineering and Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from the University of South Florida. His graduate research focused on secure multicarrier mobile communication systems, including 5G networks, with an emphasis on statistical signal processing, estimation and time-series analysis. His doctoral research introduced adaptive MIMO waveform design techniques to support coexistence between ultra-reliable low-latency vehicular networks and massive machine-type communications in shared-spectrum environments.

Prior to joining Embry-Riddle, Peköz worked in Qualcomm Technologies’ Wireless Research and Development division as a senior wireless DSP/ASIC systems engineer, where he developed digital signal processing implementations for receiver systems supporting uplink channels in second-generation femtocell modem platforms. He also created automated verification tools that enhanced system resilience, performance and hardware efficiency.

Peköz later served as a senior communication systems engineer at CesiumAstro Space and Defense Systems, where he led the development of advanced wireless communication algorithms and contributed to satellite system technologies, including alternative positioning, navigation and timing payload concepts.

At Embry-Riddle, Peköz serves as faculty advisor for the Embry-Riddle 3-D Printing student organization and Spectrum Control, Testing, and Research in Electronic Warfare (SPECTRE). He also serves as the department representative for the Embry-Riddle Open and Accessible Textbook Initiative.

Ph.D. - Doctor of Philosophy in Electrical Engineering, University of South Florida

M.S. - Master of Science in Electrical Engineering, University of South Florida

  • Scientific Advisor @ Kenyi Technologies, Inc. (2025-ongoing)
  • Senior Communication Systems Engineer & Scientific Consultant @ CesiumAstro Space & Defense Systems (2023-2024)
  • Senior Wireless DSP/ASIC Systems Engineer @ Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. (2020-2023)
  • National Academy of Inventors
  • Tau Beta Pi
  • Consortium for Space Mobility and in-space servicing, assembly, and manufacturing (ISAM) capabilities (COSMIC) Academia caucus
  • Internet Society Interplanetary Chapter [formerly known as InterPlanetary Networking Special Interest Group (IPNSIG)]
2026 NASA Glenn Faculty Fellow for Project: Assessment of 3GPP Capabilities for Lunar Surface Communications

Teaching

  • ELEC 525: Avionics & Radio Navigation
  • ELEC 307: Avionics I
  • CS 800: Dissertation
  • CS399/CS599 – Secure Wireless Sensor Networks
  • CS527 – System Exploitation and Penetration Testing
  • EE307 – Avionics I
  • EE327 – Electrical Engineering FUNdamentals
  • EE395E/EE595E – Introduction to Satellite Navigation Using Software Defined Radios
TR 1415-1515

Research

  • (Chinmay Gaikwad, Filipe Senra, Thomas Alan Lovell, Hao Peng, Berker Pekoz, Tianyu Yang) Publications (2026)

Selected Journal Articles. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

[J7] Y. Mustafa, B. Peköz, and S. Köse, “Reed-Muller error-correction code encoder for SFQ-to-CMOS interface circuits,” IEEE Trans. Appl. Supercond., vol. 36, no. 5, pp. 1-6, Aug. 2026, Art no. 1300906, doi: 10.1109/TASC.2026.3664826.

[J6] M. Karabacak, B. Peköz, G. Mumcu, and H. Arslan, “Arraymetrics: Authentication through chaotic antenna array geometries,” IEEE Commun. Lett., vol. 25, no. 6, pp. 1801–1804, Jun. 2021, issn: 2373-7891. doi: 10.1109/LCOMM.2021.3063049.

[J5] B. Peköz, M. Hafez, S. Köse, and H. Arslan, “Reducing precoder/channel mismatch and enhancing secrecy in practical MIMO systems using artificial signals,” IEEE Commun. Lett., vol. 24, no. 6, pp. 1347–1350, Jun. 2020, issn: 2373-7891. doi: 10.1109/LCOMM.2020. 2978058.

[J4] B. Peköz, Z. E. Ankaralı, S. Köse, and H. Arslan, “Non-redundant OFDM receiver windowing for 5G frames & beyond,” IEEE Trans. Veh. Technol., vol. 69, no. 1, pp. 676–684, Jan. 2020. doi: 10.1109/TVT.2019.2953233.

[J3] B. Peköz, S. Köse, and H. Arslan, “Extensionless adaptive transmitter and receiver windowing of beyond 5G frames,” IEEE Trans. Veh. Technol., vol. 69, no. 2, pp. 1888–1902, Feb. 2020. doi: 10.1109/TVT.2019.2961915.

[J2] A. F. Demir, B. Peköz, S. Köse, and H. Arslan, “Innovative telecommunications training through flexible radio platforms,” IEEE Commun. Mag., vol. 57, no. 11, pp. 27–33, Nov. 2019. doi: 10.1109/MCOM.001.1900245.

[J1] Z. E. Ankaralı, B. Peköz, and H. Arslan, “Flexible radio access beyond 5G: A future projection on waveform, numerology & frame design principles,” IEEE Access, vol. 5, no. 1, pp. 18 295–18 309, Mar. 2017, issn: 2169-3536. doi: 10.1109/ACCESS.2017.2684783.

Selected Proceedings and Presentations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

[C11] T. J. Neubert, L. Niure Kandel, and B. Peköz, “Threat-oriented digital twinning for security evaluation of autonomous platforms,” in 2026 56th Annu. IEEE/IFIP Int. Conf. Dependable Syst. Netw. Wkshps. (DSN-W), Charlotte, NC, Jun. 2026, pp. 1–6. doi: 10.48550/arXiv.2604.25757.

[C10] C. Gaikwad, F. Senra, A. Lovell, H. Peng, B. Pekoz, and T. Yang, “Simulation results of spaceborne SSA using a comprehensive passive radar model,” in AIAA SCITECH 2026 Forum, Jan. 2026, p. 1074. doi: 10.2514/6.2026-1074.

[C9] K. Gharami, H. Aluvihare, S. S. Moni, B. Peköz, "Clone What You Can't Steal: Black-Box LLM Replication via Logit Leakage and Distillation," in Proc. 7th IEEE Int. Conf. Trust, Privacy and Security in Intell. Syst. Appl. (IEEE TPS-ISA 2025), Pittsburgh, PA, Nov. 2025, pp. 140-147, doi: 10.1109/TPS-ISA67132.2025.00024.

[C8] A. S. Okatan, M. I. Akbaş, L. N. Kandel, and B. Peköz, "Seed-Induced Uniqueness in Transformer Models: Subspace Alignment Governs Subliminal Transfer," in Proc. 2025 Cyber Awareness and Research Symp. (IEEE CARS 2025), Grand Forks, ND, Oct. 2025, pp. 1-6. doi: 10.1109/CARS67163.2025.11337559.

[C7] A. S. Okatan, M. I. Akbaş, L. N. Kandel, and B. Peköz, "Keys in the weights: Transformer authentication using model-bound latent representations," in Proc. 2025 Cyber Awareness and Research Symp. (IEEE CARS 2025), Grand Forks, ND, Oct. 2025, pp. 1-6. doi: 10.1109/CARS67163.2025.11337776.

[C6] O. Maute, B. Roberts, and B. Peköz, “Radaround: A field-expedient direction finder for contested IoT sensing & EM situational awareness,” in Proc. 2025 IEEE Mil. Commun. Conf. (MILCOM), Los Angeles, CA: IEEE, Oct. 2025, pp. 1–6. doi: 10.1109/MILCOM64451. 2025.11310632.

[C5] Y. Mustafa, B. Peköz, and S. Köse, “Lightweight Error-Correction Code Encoders in Superconducting Electronic Systems,” in Proc. IEEE Int. Syst.-on-Chip Conf. (SOCC), Dubai, UAE, Sep. 2025, pp. 1-5. doi: 10.1109/SOCC66126.2025.11235429

[C4] Y. Mustafa, B. Peköz, and S. Köse, "Lightweight Error-Correction Code Encoder for Single Flux Quantum (SFQ)-to-CMOS Interface Circuits," in Proc. 17th European Conf. Appl. Supercond. (EUCAS2025), Porto, PT, Sep. 2025. doi: 10.13140/RG.2.2.22275.98083

[C3] Panelist, “R&D activities on acceleration of interworking between terrestrial and non-terrestrial networks for beyond 5G-based society,” Workshop at the 26th Int. Symp. Wireless Pers. Multimedia Commun. (WPMC2023), Tampa, FL, Nov. 21, 2023.

[C2] B. Peköz, S. Köse, and H. Arslan, “Adaptive windowing of insufficient CP for joint minimization of ISI and ACI beyond 5G,” in Proc. 2017 IEEE 28th Annu. Int. Symp. Personal, Indoor, and Mobile Radio Commun., Montreal, QC: IEEE, Oct. 2017, pp. 1–5. doi: 10.1109/PIMRC.2017.8292389.

[C1] M. Elkourdi, B. Peköz, E. Güvenkaya, and H. Arslan, “Waveform design principles for 5G and beyond,” in Proc. 2016 IEEE 17th Annu. Wireless and Microwave Technol. Conf., Clearwater, FL: IEEE, Apr. 2016, pp. 1–6. doi: 10.1109/WAMICON.2016.7483859.

Patents. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

[P8] M. Karabacak, B. Pekoz, G. Mumcu, and H. Arslan, “Systems and methods for authentication using antenna array geometries,” U.S. Patent 12,621,164, May 5, 2026.

[P7] B. Pekoz, S. Kose, and H. Arslan, “System and method for extensionless adaptive transmitter and receiver windowing,” U.S. Patent 11,050,449, Jun. 29, 2021.

[P6] B. Pekoz, Z. E. Ankaralı, S. Kose, and H. Arslan, “OFDM reception under high adjacent channel interference while preserving frame structure,” U.S. Patent 10,547,489, Jan. 28, 2020.

[P5] B. Pekoz, M. Hafez, S. Kose, and H. Arslan, “Using artificial signals to maximize capacity and secrecy of multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) communication,” U.S. Patent 10,644,771, May 5, 2020.

[P4] B. Pekoz, M. Hafez, S. Kose, and H. Arslan, “Using artificial signals to maximize capacity and secrecy of multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) communication,” U.S. Patent 10,516,452, Dec. 24, 2019.

[P3] B. Pekoz, S. Kose, and H. Arslan, “Combined minimization of intersymbol interference (ISI) and adjacent channel interference (ACI),” U.S. Patent 10,476,705, Nov. 12, 2019.

[P2] B. Pekoz, S. Kose, and H. Arslan, “Combined minimization of intersymbol interference (ISI) and adjacent channel interference (ACI),” U.S. Patent 10,348,530, Jul. 9, 2019.

[P1] B. Pekoz, S. Kose, and H. Arslan, “Network-aware adjacent channel interference rejection and out of band emission suppression,” U.S. Patent 10,511,338, Dec. 17, 2019.

Book Chapters. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .

[B1] B. Peköz, S. Köse, and H. Arslan, “Flexibility through hybrid waveforms,” in Flexible and Cognitive Radio Access Technologies for 5G and Beyond, H. Arslan and E. Başar, Eds., Institution of Engineering and Technology, Oct. 22, 2020, ch. 4, pp. 99–142, isbn: 9781839530807. doi: 10.1049/pbte092e_ch4.