Jon M. Peha

Professor

Bio

• Carnegie Mellon 1991-

Education

• Ph.D. (Electrical Engineering, minor in Computer Science), Stanford University
  
• M.S. (Electrical Engineering), Stanford University
  
• B.Sc./B.A. (Engineering/Computer Science), Brown University

Research

Professor Peha's research spans technical and policy issues of information and communications technology, including broadband Internet, spectrum, universal access and digital inclusion, satellites, connected and autonomous vehicles, technology for disaster resilience and emergency response (firefighters, police, emergency medical), privacy and cybersecurity, policies for Internet content, secure payment systems, smart cities, and information infrastructure for developing countries.

Some of Professor Peha’s research addresses different types of wireless networks.  One example is vehicular networks.  If motor vehicles can establish wireless links between each other, and with roadside devices, the resulting network can be used to prevent car crashes, to reduce commute times and carbon emissions by improving traffic flow, and to enable the creation of valuable new products and services.  Another area of wireless research advances the domestic and international public policies that govern constellations of non-geosynchronous satellites, such as SpaceX and OneWeb.  These satellite constellations have the potential to bring high-quality broadband service to every point on earth, but only if appropriate policies are adopted both domestically and internationally.  This includes policies regarding spectrum, space debris, and subsides that promote universal access to broadband. A third area is spectrum management.  A shortage of available spectrum impedes the creation of valuable new wireless products and services. This shortage can be greatly alleviated through new spectrum policies that take advantage of emerging technology, and especially the potential for spectrum sharing.  A fourth area concerns the communications systems used in response to disasters such as hurricanes and earthquakes, or by emergency responders such as firefighters, paramedics, and police. Changes to both technologies and policies associated with these systems can save lives, as well lowering costs and conserving spectrum. 

Professor Peha’s research interests also include broadband networks, which can be fixed or wireless. Research issues include policies intended to promote fair and open competition such as “network neutrality” and designing consumer-friendly broadband labels, universal service policies intended to make Internet more available and affordable to disadvantaged communities and individuals (in both developed and developing countries), policies intended to advance security or privacy, and surveillance polices that must both help law enforcement and intelligence agencies do their jobs and protect the privacy and security of individuals and organizations.

Evolution of wireless and broadband networks can spark the creation of new applications that revolutionize industries and policies. In this realm, Professor Peha has studied the dissemination of copyrighted material over broadband networks, and its technical and policy implications. He has also addressed Internet payment systems, and the related complexities of bringing financial services to people without bank accounts, enforcing tax law on electronic commerce, protecting privacy, enhancing security, and combating fraud. Broadband has also facilitated the growth of less desirable applications, such as spyware, spam, and viruses, that must be considered.

Publications

1. J. M. Peha, "Sharing Spectrum through Spectrum Policy Reform and Cognitive Radio," Proceedings of the IEEE, vol. 97, no. 4, April 2009.
2. J. M. Peha, "Bringing Connected Vehicle Communications (V2X) to Shared Spectrum," Proc. of IEEE WiMob, June 2023.
3. A. Hills, J. M. Peha, and J. Munk, "Feasibility of Using Beam Steering to Mitigate Ku-Band LEO-to-GEO Interference," IEEE Access, July 2022.
4. J. M. Peha, "The Network Neutrality Battles that will Follow Reclassification," I/S: A Journal of Law and Policy for the Information Society, 2015.
5. A. Ligo and J. M. Peha, "Cost-Effectiveness of Sharing Roadside Infrastructure for Internet of Vehicles," IEEE Transactions on Intelligent Transportation Systems, July 2018.
6. J. M. Peha, "A Public Private Approach to Public Safety Communications," Issues in Science and Technology, National Academy Press, Summer 2013.
7. J. M. Peha, "Cellular Economies of Scale and Why Disparities in Spectrum Holdings are Detrimental," Telecommunications Policy, Oct. 2017.
8. N. Zhang, J. M. Peha, and M. A. Sirbu, "Multi-Network Access in 5G: Economies of Scale, without the Scale," IEEE Transactions on Cognitive Communications and Networking, Aug. 2021.

9. Rajkarnikar, J. M. Peha and A. Aguiar, "Location Privacy from Dummy Devices in Database-Coordinated Spectrum Sharing," Proc. of IEEE DySPAN, March 2017.
10. C. Choy, E. Young, M. Li, L. F. Cranor and J. M. Peha, "Consumer-Driven Design and Evaluation of Broadband Labels," Proc. of TPRC, 2023.
11. M. Peha and M. S. Yu, "Broadcasting Emergency Information to Non-English Speakers," Proc. of IEEE International Conference on Technologies for Homeland Security, April 2017.
12. R. Bettencourt and J. M. Peha, "Reducing Spectrum Use in Traditional and SFN-based Television for Uniform and Non-Uniform Deployments," Telecommunications Policy, March 2017.
13. J. M. Peha and M. G. Morgan, "The Case for COSTA: Learning from the old OTA model to design a new Congressional Office of Science and Technology Analysis suitable for today," chapter in Creating a Modern Technology Assessment Office in Congress, 2020.
14. S. Dahiya, L. N. Rokanas, S. Singh, M. Yang, and J. M. Peha, "Lessons from Internet Use and Performance During COVID-19," Journal of Information Policy, 2021.
15. R. Hallahan and J. M. Peha, "The Business Case of a Network that Serves both Public Safety and Commercial Subscribers," Telecommunications Policy, April 2011
16. Maitland and J. M. Peha, "Telecommunications Resilience and Recovery: Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria," Proc. of TPRC, September 2018.
17. M. Goetschel and J. M. Peha, "Police Perceptions on Body-Worn Cameras," American Journal of Criminal Justice, Dec. 2017.
18. J. M. Peha and A. M. Mateus, "Policy Implications of Technology for Detecting P2P and Copyright Violations," Telecommunications Policy, Jan. 2014.

Research Interests

Technology and policy issues of computer and telecommunications networks and other information technologies.