Ed Niehenke
John Bandler, a Life Fellow of IEEE, passed away on 28 September 2023 at the age of 82. He was married to Beth Budd Bandler for 32 years and was the devoted son-in-law of Sybil Cohos. He was the father of Lydia Bandler Martin (Graham) and Zoe Bandler Belvedere (Dan) and the proud granddad of Eric, Matthew, and Colin Martin and Una and Sam Belvedere.
John Bandler will be missed by the Microwave Theory and Technology Society.
John was an engineer; an internationally renowned teacher, researcher, and inventor; a world traveler; an art and opera enthusiast; an accomplished playwright; an avid photographer; a Ping-Pong- and chess-playing granddad, happy to lose a game to the younger generation; and a dedicated colleague, friend, and mentor to the many people whose lives he touched.
John grew up in Cyprus and entered the Imperial College of Science and Technology, University of London in 1960, graduating in 1963 with first-class honors in electrical engineering and in 1967 with a Ph.D. degree in microwaves. He worked as an engineer at Mullard Research Laboratories (later called Philips Research Laboratories) in Redhill, Surrey, U.K., from 1966 to 1967.
John came to Canada in 1967 as a postdoctoral fellow at the University of Manitoba, joined McMaster University as an associate professor two years later, and then went on to become the dean of the Faculty of Engineering. In 1976, he received his D.Sc. (Eng.) from the University of London in microwaves, computer-aided design, and optimization of circuits and systems. John published more than 500 technical articles and is known internationally for having invented space mapping technology and making significant contributions to device modeling, computer-aided design, microwave engineering, mathematical optimization, and yield-driven design.
John was the recipient of the 2023 IEEE Electromagnetics Award in recognition of advancing optimization technologies for engineering modeling and design, including modeling and electromagnetic optimization of devices, circuits, and systems in the RF, wireless, and microwave arenas. Other awards include the following:
Former Dean of Engineering John Bandler lit the way for student innovation and success.
John was active with many groups within the IEEE Microwave Theory and Technology Society (MTT-S) at the annual MTT-S International Microwave Symposium, such as the Three Minute Thesis (3MT®) competition. John will be missed by the MTT-S and IEEE.
Digital Object Identifier 10.1109/MMM.2023.3324844