Past Events

Millimeter-Wave In-Package Antennas

on 22-11-2018

Prof. Zhang Yue Ping, from the Nanyang Technological University, Singapore

Date & time: Thursday, November 22nd, 11:00h – 13:00h
Location: Instituto Superior Técnico, Meeting Room, 5th floor, Torre Norte

Abstract:
Antenna-in-package (AiP) technology, in which there is an antenna (or antennas) with a transceiver die (or dies) in a standard surface-mounted device. AiP technology has been widely adopted by chip makers for 60-GHz radios and gesture radars. It has also found applications in 77-GHz automotive radars, 94-GHz phased arrays, 122-GHz imaging sensors, and 300-GHz wireless links. This lecture will start with a review of basic packaging ideas for AiP technology, particularly on the co-design of antennas and packages, complemented by a probe-based setup to measure impedance and radiation of mmwave in-package antennas. Finally, the lecture will present some recommendations on research topics to further the state of the art of AiP technology.

Biography:
Zhang Yue Ping is a full Professor of Electronic Engineering with the School of Electrical and Electronic Engineering at Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, a Distinguished Lecturer of the IEEE Antennas and Propagation Society (IEEE AP-S), and a Fellow of IEEE. Prof. Zhang has made pioneering and significant contributions to the development of the antenna-in-package (AiP) technology that has been widely adopted by chip makers for millimeter-wave applications. His current research interests include the development of antenna-on-chip (AoC) technology and
characterization of chip-scale propagation channels at terahertz for wireless chip area network (WCAN). More Information..

Electronic devices for biomedical applications and Internet of the Body

on 21-11-2018

IT will be organizing the seminar “Electronic devices for biomedical applications and Internet of the Body”, with talks by Dr. Martin O´ Hallaran, from the National University of Ireland Galway, and Professor Gaetano Marrocco, from the University of Rome Tor Vergata.

Date & time: Wednesday, November 21st, 14:30h
Location: Lab RF1, floor -1, North Tower, Técnico Lisboa

Title: “Electronic Medical Device Development: Close to patient and close to market”, by Martin O´ Hallaran (see biography in: http://www.nuigalway.ie/our-research/people/engineering-and-informatics/martinohalloran/)

Abstract:
Medtech is a major employer in Europe, employing 675,000 citizens and represents some 27,000 companies, of which 95% are Small and Medium-sized Enterprises. The sector is responsible for the highest number of patent submissions each year in Europe, highlighting the inherent innovation involved. However, up to 75% of new investor-backed medtech companies fail within the first 5 years, and the average cost of bringing a medical-device technology to the market is approximately €9 million. These statistics present a very daunting vista for academic medical device researchers, who wish to improve patient care and support local industry. To address the significant commercial risk associated with medtech innovation, academics need to partner closely with both industry and clinicians from a very early stage. In this talk, the experience of such collaborations in Ireland (based primarily on Stanford’s BioDesign model and the NSF iCORPS Programme) will be discussed. Finally, how that approach is supporting novel electronic medical device developed at NUI Galway will also be described.

Title: “Recovery/Expanding Human Senses by Bio-integrated Epidermal RFID”, by Prof. Gaetano Marroco (see biography in: http://www.pervasive.ing.uniroma2.it/marrocco.html

Abstract:
The human skin is a complex and powerful interface between the body processes and the external environment. Skin is provided with receptors to sense material objects and quantify their intrinsic properties like the texture and the temperature. Skin also generates physical signals such as sweat and thermal gradients, that may tell much about the psycho-physical status of a person. But what if the epidermis interface would be augmented with a "second digital skin" suitable to be interconnected to Internet?
This talk will address the emerging Epidermal or Skin Radioelectronics, a research trend combining multi-disciplinary expertise such as Material Science, Mechanics, Electronics and Electromagnetics. Recent worldwide published papers demonstrated the feasibility of flexible circuits over thin and bio-compatible conformable membranes for direct placement over the human body.
In this scenario, the virtuous synergy of Epidermal Radio-Electronics with the latest research trends in sensor-oriented Radiofrequency Identifications (S-RFID) could boost the applicability of skin technology in the real world, thus providing further stimuli to the rapidly emerging "Internet of the Bodies".
Starting from the basics of epidermal antennas and their technology and open challenges, I will show some pioneering medium-range digital radio-skins for measurements and transmission of body parameters like temperature, sweat and respiration rate. Finally, I will introduce the concept of Radiofrequency Finger Augmented Devices (R-FAD) comprising skin sensors for application onto the fingertips and an interconnected on-wrist reading system suitable to artificially replace lost touch senses in impaired people and even to the cognitive remapping of sensorial unafferents. More Information..