Notre Dame Ranks in Top 100 U.S. Universities for Utility Patents Again
The University of Notre Dame secured a place on the National Academy of Inventors’ Top 100 U.S. Universities Granted Utility Patents for 2025. The annual list highlights academic institutions that protect inventions through utility patents.
Notre Dame again ranked among top U.S. patenting universities. The result reflects steady activity in translating research into protected technologies.
Patents and technologies
Patents issued to Notre Dame over the past year span multiple fields. These inventions aim to move discoveries from lab to market.
- Printable electronics and biosensing devices.
- Highly specific insecticides.
- Methods for cancer drug development.
- Single-cell capture techniques.
- Nanoparticle assembly processes.
- Systems to enable fast flight.
- Novel dyes for bioimaging.
- Technologies for secure, energy-efficient wireless communication.
Faculty recognition
Several Notre Dame researchers hold honors from the National Academy of Inventors. The campus community includes both NAI fellows and senior members.
- Nosang Myung — Bernard Keating-Crawford Professor of Engineering. He directs the ASEND core facility.
- Edward Maginn — Keough-Hesburgh Professor of Engineering. He serves as associate vice president for research.
- Ashley Thrall — Myron and Rosemary Noble Collegiate Professor of Structural Engineering.
- Hsueh-Chia Chang — Bayer Corporation Professor of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering.
- Gary Bernstein — Frank M. Freimann Professor of Electrical Engineering.
- Jonathan Chisum — Associate professor, Department of Electrical Engineering. Recently named an NAI senior member.
- Patrick Fay — Stinson Professor of Nanotechnology, selected as an NAI senior member.
- Tom O’Sullivan — Frank M. Freimann Collegiate Professor of Biomedical Electronics, also an NAI senior member.
NAI context and institutional impact
The National Academy of Inventors has published a worldwide Top 100 list since 2013. It launched the focused Top 100 U.S. Universities list in 2023.
University leaders note that patents help move ideas toward commercialization and economic benefit. Notre Dame’s innovation ecosystem supports researchers in protecting and licensing new technologies.
Karen Deak, executive director of the IDEA Center, emphasized the campus commitment to translation and impact. Paul R. Sanberg, president of the NAI, highlighted the role of academic patents in national competitiveness.
More information and media contact
Learn more about Notre Dame innovation at Filmogaz.com. The site provides additional context on university research and translation efforts.
Media contact: Brandi Wampler, associate director of media relations. Phone: 574-631-2632. Email: [email protected].
Photo credit: Wes Evard / College of Engineering.
