In this first “Chapter News” column of 2023, I would like to welcome and express appreciation to many new Chapter officers who dedicate their time for their local communities and IEEE Members. It is also appropriate to remind our Chapter officers of the coming deadlines for submitting 2022 annual Chapter reports and making requests for funding and Chapter support for 2023 Chapter activities. The submission deadline for the Chapter annual reports is 1 March 2023. The report template and preparation guidelines are posted at the IEEE Antennas and Propagation Society (AP-S) Chapter webpage (https://aps.ieee.org/chapters/chapters). Requests for annual support and special project funding can be sent to AP-S Chapter Activity Committee (CAC) Chair Dr. Ajay K. Poddar at akpoddar@ieee.org; the deadline is 1 March 2023. Chapter chairs may also want to apply for the travel grant to attend the Chapter Chairs Meeting at our flagship 2023 IEEE International Symposium on Antennas and Propagation and U.S. National Committee of the International Union of Radio Science (URSI) Radio Science Meeting, which will be held from 23 to 28 July 2023 in Portland, OR, USA.
Many Chapters have organized numerous technical webinars, workshops, tutorials, outreach drives, and social events for their members around the world, after in-person meetings were restricted during the pandemic, depending on local government directives. It is very important for Chapters to upload their events to IEEE vTools (https://meetings.vtools.ieee.org) and submit a minimum of two L31 reports so that they can remain active and eligible for financial support from IEEE. This year’s flagship conference program will include a wide range of technical sessions, workshops, and short courses as well as exhibits. It will also have a range of specific activities for Students and Young Professionals (SYPs). This meeting is intended to be the premier international forum for the exchange of ideas on state-of-the-art research in antennas, propagation, electromagnetic engineering, and radio science. Through a range of technical and social activities, it will provide an opportunity to interact with the world’s leading experts in antennas and propagation from academia, industry, and government. We welcome you to attend the conference, workshops, Chapter Chairs Meeting, and awards function at AP-S/URSI 2023.
Forming new Chapters is an excellent way to ensure that our IEEE Members can be served at the local level, which is crucial for the future well-being of our Society in a global environment. If any of you reside in a location where you do not have access to an existing AP-S Chapter and are interested in establishing a new one, please feel free to contact Dr. Poddar and AP-S Region coordinators for guidance through the petition process.
FIGURE 1. From left: George Kannell, L3Harris, Clifton, NJ, USA; Kirit Dixit, AP-S/IEEE Microwave Theory and Technology Society Symposium chair; and Dr. Poddar receive the 2022 Section Membership Recruitment and Retention Performance award from 2022 IEEE Region 1 Director-Elect Bala Prasanna.
Figure 1 shows Dr. Poddar, George Kannell, and Kirit Dixit receiving the IEEE Member and Geographic Activities (MGA) 2022 Section Membership Recruitment and Retention Performance award from 2022 IEEE Region 1 Director-Elect Bala Prasanna. I want to thank Dr. Poddar for his direction, mentorship, and voluntary undertaking of the following:
On behalf of IEEE MGA Vice President Maike Luiken and IEEE Technical Activities Vice President Kazuhiro Kosuge, it is a pleasure to inform you that the requirements of the IEEE Member and Geographic Activities Operations Manual have been met, and the IEEE Russia Section, IEEE Sensors Council, IEEE Council on Radio-Frequency Identification, IEEE Council on Electronic Design Automation, IEEE Systems Council, AP-S, IEEE Microwave Theory and Technology Society (MTT-S), IEEE Control Systems Society, and IEEE Oceanic Engineering Society Joint Chapter has been formed, effective on 7 January 2021. Start by researching your area, then decide which route will best suit your needs and support a healthy, active Society/Technical Council Chapter environment. Information is available at.
FIGURE 2. From left: Prof. Joabso Carvalho (MTT-S vice-chair), Prof. Simone Genovesi, Prof. Pavlos Lazaridis, Prof. Alexandre Jean René Serres, Prof. Adaildo Gomes D’Assunção, Prof. Marcos Tavares de Melo, Prof. Antonio Luiz Pereira de Siqueira Campos, Prof. Alfredo Gomes Neto gather at the AP-S Northeast Brazil Section workshop.
The first AP-S Northeast Brazil Section workshop, organized by the AP-S Northeast Brazil Chapter, was hosted from 14 to 15 November in the city of Natal, in collaboration with the MTT-S Northeast Brazil Chapter. Figure 2 presents the speakers and Chapter officers. This first in-person event following the pandemic brought together speakers and participants from all around Brazil. Two renowned speakers were invited: Prof. Pavlos Lazaridis, University of Huddersfield, U.K., and Prof. Simone Genovesi, University of Pisa, Italy (many thanks to the AP-S MGA for its support). Moreover, members of academic institutions in the northeast of Brazil presented recent research in the field of antennas and propagation:
At the same time, it was a great opportunity to promote the AP-S among professionals and students in Brazil.
The AP-S/MTT-S North Jersey Chapter successfully organized an in-person event, 36th Annual Symposium and Mini-Show on 6 October 2022, at Hanover Manor, East Hanover, NJ, USA. The symposium offered a series of lectures describing the state of the art in antenna design, wireless communication, filter circuit design, wideband reduced graphene optics, metamaterials, radio-frequency integrated circuits (ICs), application-specific ICs, wideband channelizers, software-defined radio, direction finding, 5G spectrum and 5G wireless networks, and quantum radio-frequency and wireless technologies. With eminent speakers delivering high-quality technical talks and exhibitors showcasing their state-of-the-art products, the event drew more than 400 attendees. Glimpses of the AP-S booth, audiences, speakers, and exhibits are available in Figures 3–6. The exhibits included components, subsystems, test equipment, and CAD tools. Registration was free for IEEE Members and nonmembers, and complimentary breakfast, lunch, and refreshments were included.
FIGURE 3. The AP-S North Jersey Section member registration booth at the 36th Annual Symposium and Mini-Show.
FIGURE 4. Dr. Poddar addresses audiences at the symposium.
FIGURE 5. (a) Prof. Levent Sevgi (AP-S DL), (b) Prof. Ulrich L. Rohde, (c) Sohail Mohammed, and (d) Dr. Allen Katz receive plaques during the symposium.
FIGURE 6. Numerous vendors exhibit at the symposium.
There is additional funding available for supporting Student Design Contest (SDC) cosponsored by local AP-S Chapters for the engagement of SYPs. The template for the SDC is in the special project category, and when completed, it can be sent to Dr. Poddar. The SDC and special project form and preparation guidelines are posted at the AP-S Chapter webpage (https://aps.ieee.org/chapters/chapters). Requests for annual support and special project funding can be sent to Dr. Poddar; the submission deadline is 30 April 2023. The selected SDC project will be published in IEEE Antennas and Propagation Magazine as a part of the “Chapter News” column.
FIGURE 7. Prof. Boag presents his seminar to the AP-S Shanghai Chapter.
Building tomorrow’s technical community today! Let’s build our STEM community by coming together to encourage, support, and inspire one another. Register for the free IEEE STEM Summit virtual event, from 6 to 10 December 2022, at https://stem-summit.tryengineering.org/. Sessions include topics on STEM pedagogy, engineering education, best practices in STEM outreach, inspirational talks, and resources to empower our STEM community.
The IEEE Teaching Excellence Hub (TEH) is a collaboration between the IEEE Educational Activities Board and the IEEE Education Society, which contains articles with an emphasis on current developments and best practices in electronic component and technology, access to current and on-demand events, and more! Explore how the TEH connects faculty to vetted and trusted resources so that they can be put into immediate practice. Share your content today by visiting https://teaching.ieee.org/.
The IEEE–Eta Kappa Nu GrabLab YouTube series offers insightful conversations, presentations, and resources for students in or considering graduate schools. A recent episode addressed a very common concern among Ph.D. students: how to guide interpersonal relationships to manage connections in different scenarios, including those among group members, students, and principal investigators as well as among students and other collaborators. Here, the goal was to unravel the dynamics that can occur and discuss ways to overcome uncomfortable situations and enhance relationships even beyond their preassigned roles.
I would like to encourage everyone to find more opportunities to volunteer and contribute toward a worthy cause and benefit our Members and community.
Proposals containing project details and a budget can be submitted to Dr. Poddar and Dr. Jawad Siddiqui, AP-S SIGHT committee chair. The submission deadline is 31 March 2023. The project selection process is in line with IEEE SIGHT and HAC project Awards. The evaluation of proposals will be based primarily on technical content. After project completion, the Awards Committee will explore follow-up activities for low-cost production of the proposed technology, which is the key requirement for humanitarian needs. The announcement of the award will be made at the annual awards ceremony of the AP-S flagship conference. The recipient will receive a plaque and cash prize for the completion of the project. The name(s) of the award recipient(s) will be published in IEEE Antennas and Propagation Magazine and on the AP-S website. A complete explanation of the technology will be uploaded to the AP-S SIGHT webpage (https://www.ieeeaps.org/committees/ieee-aps-sight).
The AP-S and IEEE HAC have collaborated to offer a special call for proposals to support AP-S Chapter projects that utilize AP-S-relevant technology to address local challenges. Awards of up to US$3,000 will be made to selected projects that present a convincing plan to 1) understand the real needs of a local community or local stakeholder organization and 2) complete, in no more than six months, a pilot project utilizing AP-S-relevant technology to address those local community challenges. For more information, please visit the HAC website. The AP-S and IEEE HAC special call for proposals is supported, in part, by the IEEE SIGHT Fund of the IEEE Foundation.
The AP-S Education Committee posts design contest reports and lecture videos on YouTube, at https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCW1mPyKpC0Fhqt1zD89knHg, and educational materials are hosted at https://ieeeaps.org/education/educational-resource. Some of our program coordinators would like to use other social media channels to disseminate more types of content. The AP-S has a Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/IEEE-Antennas-and-Propagation-Society-491735170842395/. Please contact Dr. Poddar for more information. On behalf of the CAC, I encourage Chapter officers and volunteers to create new contents for the benefit of our members. Our Society has a long-standing student research grant program for doctoral and undergraduate research (https://ieeeaps.org/education/education-research-travel-grants).