For researchers in the domain of information and communication technology, an IEEE award is a significant achievement. The IEEE is the world’s largest technical professional organisation dedicated to advancing technology for the benefit of humanity, and their awards recognise exceptional contributions to a large variety of technical disciplines. This spring the work of researchers from the University of Luxembourg’s Interdisciplinary Centre for Security, Reliability and Trust (SnT) was put in the spotlight by the IEEE twice.
First, in April, Liz Martinez Marrero received a best paper award at the in Texas. Marrero was the lead author the paper titled “IEEE Wireless Communications and Networking Conference (WCNC)”. She completed this work as part of her PhD studies in Differential Phase Compensation in Over-the-air Precoding Test-bed for a Multi-beam Satellite, and her co-authors on the paper were the SIGCOM research group, Dr. Juan Merlano , Duncan, Dr. , Jorge Queroland Dr. . Nicola MaturoJevgenij KrivochizaProf. Symeon Chatzinotas Prof. Björn Ottersten
In the paper Marrero details a technique to make it possible for multi-beam satellites to use their frequency more efficiently. Multi-beam satellites are now the industry standard, but each beam on a satellite interferes with signal from the beam next to it. Therefore, to protect the service for the end-users on Earth, the beams are not used to their fullest extent. Making it possible to use each beam fully, without interfering with the signal of the next beam, is a crucial topic for the satellite communications industry. A satellite is a significant investment and so it is always important to maximise the way this resource is used. Marrero’s paper proposed a new technique to precode satellite signals and validated it on an existing satellite network in orbit, making this work stand-out.
Then in May, Dr. Konstantinos Ntontin became the second SnT researcher to receive recognition from the IEEE this year. A paper he worked on before joining SnT was selected as t. This is an award that is given to one paper a year for making a significant impact on the field since its publication in the prior three years. Ntontin was the second author of the 2020 paper titled “he IEEE Communications Society Outstanding Paper Award,” which he worked on with a team at the Wireless Communications Laboratory, Institute of Informatics and Telecommunications, National Centre of Scientific Research – “Demokritos”, Greece. for 2022Reconfigurable Intelligent Surfaces vs. Relaying: Differences, Similarities, and Performance Comparison
The paper is significant because it presented an alternative method to increase the performance of a wireless environment with less complexity and lower power consumption, using Reconfigurable Intelligent Surfaces (RISs). The paper was one of the few at the time that looked at the emerging technology of RISs, and since then much more investigation has been done on RISs, making it a key trigger for this field of research.
Now at SnT in the SIGCOM research group, Ntontin is continuing his research on RISs. He is currently looking at the potential of powering RISs by harvesting the energy from the signals the wireless environment is transmitting.
“I have been studying reconfigurable intelligent surfaces since 2019, so it is very meaningful to have my work be validated in such a strong statement from the IEEE,” said Ntontin. “Receiving the IEEE Communications Society Outstanding Paper Award is certainly a highlight of my research career.”
Our warm congratulations are extended to all the authors of the two papers!
