By Shams Shad Rafi.
If you find it hard to imagine your life without your smartphone or any other wireless communication device, you are not alone. Wireless technologies such as broadband internet, cell phones and television have reshaped the way mankind communicates, since the inception of Radio two centuries ago. The research in this field is fueled by the endless need of the customers paving way for new innovations. Through the joint initiative of IEEE MTT-S American International University-Bangladesh (AIUB) Student Branch Chapter and IEEE Young Professionals Bangladesh, an informative seminar on Microwave Engineering was organized and made it possible for students and prospective researchers to interact with the leading researchers of the field. The seminar was focused onto giving an insight into the designer’s perspectives of microwave engineering and its current research.
On 24th May 2016, Dr. Md. Abdur Rahman (Director of Faculty of Engineering & Associate Professor, AIUB) delivered the opening remarks of the seminar. He talked about recent research possibilities in sector of communication and advanced 4G. He also described how he was motivated to work in the field of Antenna/RF/Microwave techniques.
The keynote speaker of the seminar was Mr. Sagar K. Dhar (PhD Student, iRadio Lab, Schulich School of Engineering, University of Calgary, Canada). He is a member of IEEE, IEEE MTT-S and IEEE Antenna and Propagation Society. His research interests include efficient RF front-end design, active and reconfigurable antennas, RF integrated circuits and non-invasive biomedical devices. Apart from his active participation in IEEE societies, Mr. Dhar has filed 3 US patents (1 published and 2 pending) as well as more than 20 publications in highly reputed journals and conferences.
The seminar mostly focused on the different aspects of microwave engineering, which prospective researchers can pursue in future. Various aspects of microwave engineering were discussed by the speaker, including the basic concepts of microwaves, its applications, the difference between transmission lines and microwave and many other topics essential from the industrial viewpoint. He then went on to describe processes of antenna miniaturization, such as slotting, bending, loading and numerous other methods. He also highlighted the challenges faced while improving the parameters such as power consumption due to non-linearity of the electronic devices. The speaker also discussed the challenges of printed monopole antennas and non-foster matching of antenna. He gave an overview about RF-Band selection filter, power amplifiers and future of communications systems, including the fifth generation (5G) cellular networks. The session concluded with an interactive question and answer session with the speaker.
There on, Mr. Nasim Al Islam (Chair, IEEE MTT-S AIUB Student Branch Chapter and Treasurer, IEEE Young Professionals Bangladesh) spoke about the importance of the seminar and accomplishments of the chapter. Later, Mr. Rinku Basak (Head of Graduate Program, Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering & Assistant Professor, Faculty of Engineering, AIUB) discussed about the interesting and challenging field of microwave engineering. He gave insights about radar application, electromagnetic waves and fourth generation (4G) communications systems.
The keynote speaker was presented a token of appreciation, on behalf of IEEE MTT-S AIUB Student Branch Chapter, by Dr. M. Tanseer Ali (Counselor IEEE AIUB Student Branch & Assistant Professor, Faculty of Engineering, AIUB) and Mr. Rinku Basak.
Event Experience by the speakers:
Mr. Sagar K Dhar:
“I like the energy you guys shown there and I hope it will be continued in future too with greater extent. I really appreciate the interest and excitement from the young engineers shown there and I think such seminars from IEEE MTT-S will help them to involve and participate in this arena. Keep going, all the luck.
And more than thanks to Tushar as well for his endeavors and cooperation as always. IEEE Young Professionals in Microwaves (YPM) is a wonderful community of innovative members and an excellent opportunity of sharing and gathering knowledge. For me, microwave system design is like both science and arts which counts experience as a key factor of ultimate success. I think, IEEE YPM is an excellent platform for networking and sharing such design experiences.”
Mr. Nasim Al Islam:
“I am really grateful and indebted to Sagar sir for his enormous effort and that kind of informative and interactive speech. I am really glad to say that around 10-15 undergraduate students knocked me and showed their interest in microwave related topics after hearing your speech sir. That’s where the success of this event belongs. And again I’d like to express gratitude and thanks to you Mr. Tushar Sharma for supporting us always.”
Written by,
Shams Shad Rafi
