We lucked out for our first seminar session. On April 30 2012 at 2PM in E2-001, ETLC, UofA the NCS AP-S/MTT-S Jt. Chapter will be inviting the famous Prof. Sean Hum from the University of Toronto. Prof. Hum will be presenting his latest research in Antenna Array Theory and Design and we invite anyone who is interested to attend. Expect light refreshments and snacks with Prof. Hum’s invigorating talk.  Watch for the flyers.

Abstract

Modern radio systems have expanded our ability to communicate, sense our world, and deliver information ubiquitously in new and exciting ways. Future systems will depend on adaptive radio technologies to provide agility in dynamic channel environments, increased system capacity, improved robustness to interference, and cost-effective communications and sensing solutions.  These needs have created exciting opportunities for innovation at the physical layer of these systems, particularly in the area of reconfigurable antennas.  These antennas possess the ability to electronically reconfigure their radiating and electrical characteristics, including their radiation pattern, polarization, and frequency of operation.  These high-speed “field-programmable” antennas are adding new dimensions to wireless system capabilities in applications ranging from spectrum-sensing for cognitive radio to low-cost beamforming for next-generation communication and remote-sensing antennas.

This talk will review a wide range of reconfigurable antenna architectures and technologies developed in recent years. 

Biography

Sean Victor Hum was born in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.  He received his B.Sc., M.Sc. and Ph.D. degrees from the University of Calgary in 1999, 2001, and 2006 respectively.  From 1997-2006 he also worked with TRLabs on a variety of projects in wireless and radio-over-fibre applications. In 2006 he joined the Edward S. Rogers Sr. Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at the University of Toronto where he currently serves as an assistant professor.  Prof. Hum leads the reconfigurable antenna laboratory at the UofT, and along with his students, he is conducting research in the areas of reconfigurable antennas and RF systems, antenna arrays, and antennas for space applications.

Prof. Hum received the Governor General’s Gold Medal for his master’s degree work on radio-on-fibre systems in 2001 and an IEEE Antennas and Propagation Society Student Paper award for his work on tunable reflectarrays in 2004.  In 2006, he received an ASTech Leaders of Tomorrow award for his work on reconfigurable antennas.  In 2012 he was awarded an Early Researcher Award by the government of Ontario. On the teaching side, Prof. Hum has received three UofT Departmental Teaching Awards since 2007, and most recently, an Early Career Teaching Award in 2011.  He received the Gordon R. Slemon Award for the Teaching of Design in 2011.  Prof. Hum is a Senior Member of the IEEE, a member of URSI (the International Union of Radio Science), and an Associate Editor of the IEEE Transactions on Antennas and Propagation.