My research develops mathematical and information-theoretic tools for modern communication systems, with an emphasis on non-Gaussian channel models, stochastic signal propagation, molecular communication, signal detection, and quantum information theory.
A central theme of my work is to understand how physical transport mechanisms induce structured channel laws. In diffusion-based molecular communication, for example, the received signal is determined not only by propagation delay, but also by first-hitting events, boundary geometry, drift fields, and stochastic transport dynamics. These mechanisms naturally lead to non-Gaussian distributions, heavy-tailed noise, and geometry-dependent information limits.
My current research directions include:
1. Molecular Communication and Stochastic Channel Modeling
I study diffusion-based and drift-diffusion molecular communication channels using tools from stochastic processes, probability theory, partial differential equations, change-of-measure techniques, and information theory. Recent topics include first-arrival-position channels, first-hitting-location distributions, exact channel impulse response modeling, time-varying drift environments, and field-assisted molecular communication.
2. Non-Gaussian Detection and Information-Theoretic Limits
Classical communication and signal processing theory often relies on Gaussian noise models and Euclidean-distance geometry. My recent work investigates detection, estimation, and capacity problems under non-Gaussian and heavy-tailed noise, especially Cauchy-type and geometry-induced channel laws. These problems reveal regimes where conventional distance-based intuition breaks down and new geometric descriptors, such as angular structure, become fundamental.
3. Quantum Information Theory
I also work on mathematical problems in quantum information theory, including quantum channel structures, channel capacities, entropy inequalities, and related topics in matrix analysis, operator theory, functional analysis, and representation theory.
Selected / Representative Journal Publications
17. Yen-Chi Lee*, “On the Tail Transition of First Arrival Position Channels: From Cauchy to Exponential Decay,” accepted in IEEE Communications Letters, vol. 30, April 2026.
16. Yen-Chi Lee*, Ping-Cheng Yeh, and Chia-Han Lee, “Exact 3-D Channel Impulse Response for Spherical Receivers with Arbitrary Drift Directions,” accepted in IEEE Communications Letters, vol. 30, March 2026.
15. Yen-Chi Lee*, Yun-Feng Lo, Jen-Ming Wu, and Min-Hsiu Hsieh, “Characterizing First Arrival Position Channels: Noise Distribution and Capacity Analysis,” IEEE Transactions on Communications, vol. 72, no. 7, July 2024.
(* Corresponding author)
Manuscripts Under Review and Preprints
14. Yen-Chi Lee*, “From Distance to Angle: One-Shot Detection Under Isotropic Multivariate Cauchy Noise,” submitted to IEEE Transactions on Signal Processing, 2026.
13. Po-Chun Chou, Yen-Chi Lee*, Chun-An Yang, Chia-Han Lee, and Ping-Cheng Yeh, “Field-Assisted Molecular Communication: Girsanov-Based Channel Modeling and Dynamic Waveform Optimization,” submitted to IEEE Transactions on Communications, 2026.
12. Yen-Chi Lee, “The Corrected Inverse-Gaussian: A Tractable First-Hitting-Time Channel Model for Nonstationary Molecular Communication,” submitted to IEEE SPAWC, 2026.
11. Yen-Chi Lee*, “First-Hitting Location Laws as Boundary Observables of Drift-Diffusion Processes,” revised and resubmitted to Physical Review E, 2026.
10. Yen-Chi Lee*, “Capacity Scaling Laws for Boundary-Induced Drift-Diffusion Noise Channels,” arXiv preprint arXiv:2602.07866
9. Yun-Feng Lo, Yen-Chi Lee*, and Min-Hsiu Hsieh, “Structural Conditions for Quadratic Degradability in Symmetric Quantum Channels,” under review in IEEE Transactions on Information Theory, 2026.
Earlier Journal Publications
8. Ya-Ping Hsieh, Yen-Chi Lee, Po-Jen Shih, Ping-Cheng Yeh, and Kwang-Cheng Chen, “On the Asynchronous Information Embedding for Event-Driven Systems in Molecular Communications,” Nano Communication Networks, vol. 4, no. 1, pp. 2–13, Mar. 2013.
7. Ping-Cheng Yeh, Kwang-Cheng Chen, Yen-Chi Lee, Ling-San Meng, Po-Jen Shih, Pin-Yu Ko, Wei-An Lin, and Chia-Han Lee, “A New Frontier of Wireless Communication Theory: Diffusion-Based Molecular Communications,” IEEE Wireless Communications, vol. 19, no. 5, pp. 28–35, Oct. 2012.
Conference Proceedings
6. Yen-Chi Lee and Min-Hsiu Hsieh, “On the Capacity of Zero-Drift First Arrival Position Channels in Diffusive Molecular Communication,” in Proc. IEEE International Conference on Communications (ICC), Denver, CO, USA, June 2024.
5. Yen-Chi Lee, Chiun-Chuan Chen, Ping-Cheng Yeh, and Chia-Han Lee, “Distribution of First Arrival Position in Molecular Communication,” in Proc. IEEE International Symposium on Information Theory (ISIT), Barcelona, Spain, July 2016.
4. Jiun-Ting Huang, Hsin-Yu Lai, Yen-Chi Lee, Chia-Han Lee, and Ping-Cheng Yeh, “Distance Estimation in Concentration-Based Molecular Communications,” in Proc. IEEE Global Communications Conference (GLOBECOM), Atlanta, GA, USA, Dec. 2013.
3. Pin-Yu Ko, Yen-Chi Lee, Ping-Cheng Yeh, Chia-Han Lee, and Kwang-Cheng Chen, “A New Paradigm for Channel Coding in Diffusion-Based Molecular Communications: Molecular Coding Distance Function,” in Proc. IEEE Global Communications Conference (GLOBECOM), Anaheim, CA, USA, Dec. 2012.
2. Wei-An Lin, Yen-Chi Lee, Ping-Cheng Yeh, and Chia-Han Lee, “Signal Detection and ISI Cancellation for Quantity-Based Amplitude Modulation in Diffusion-Based Molecular Communications,” in Proc. IEEE Global Communications Conference (GLOBECOM), Anaheim, CA, USA, Dec. 2012.
1. Ya-Ping Hsieh, Po-Jen Shih, Yen-Chi Lee, Ping-Cheng Yeh, and Kwang-Cheng Chen, “An Asynchronous Communication Scheme for Molecular Communication,” in Proc. IEEE International Conference on Communications (ICC), Ottawa, Canada, June 2012.