Grant: Discovery Grants Program - Individual

Existing wireless technologies operating below 6 GHz have recently offered data intensive systems using innovative techniques including cognitive radio and multiple antenna systems. However, these techniques are not sufficient to address the ever exponential increase of enhanced data rate needs for future wireless systems. In the meantime, millimeter wave (mmWave) frequencies are one key enabling solution for future wireless systems and have attracted a strong interest within the wireless community. They offer the advantage of availability of much wider bandwidth and provide additional spectrum for wireless communications. However, one disadvantage is the weaker propagation characteristics of radio waves at mmWave bands due to high losses at these frequencies. Such a challenge can be overcome by using directive mmWave arrays that can house ten times more elements, due to smaller wavelength and can provide enough gain to ensure high signal to noise ratio at the receiver and boost the capacity of mmWave networks. For imaging systems and radars applications, mmWaves also offer high resolution and sensitivity. The main objective of the proposed research program is to significantly enhance mmWave wireless communication and imaging systems performance and improve both the data rate and capacity through: �development and advancement of high gain broadband array transceiver technology for beam scanning and multi-beam employing engineered electromagnetic structures �controlling the wireless channel and mitigating the unfavorable mmWave high propagation and ohmic losses; and multipath fading effect using smart antenna hybrid beamforming (HBF) networks that benefit from both analog and digital beamforming schemes. The aim is to advance the state of the art in mmWave technology and develop better understanding of different components' characteristics leading to improved system performance. The proposed main research thrusts include investigation and development of mmWave high gain broadband antenna elements, circuits, reconfigurable antenna arrays, and HBF that cover multiple mmWave frequency bands to serve next generation wireless communication and imaging applications employing emerging engineered electromagnetic surface technology. It also addresses challenges associated with implementation of mmWave antennas and HBF, and how their performance can be measured, assessed and improved. In addition, signal processing techniques pertinent to the proposed HBF structure will be applied. Rigorous modeling, testing, and implementation will be performed. The common theme of this program is learning, training, and developing expertise for emerging mmWave wireless communication and imaging systems. The proposed research will play a key role in training of undergrad, MSc and PhD students, and PDFs through building not only different levels of expertise in mmWave technologies for 5G and beyond, but also exposure to wireless communication and sensing science.