IEEE Microwave Magazine, October 2023From the Editor's Desk

A Look at the October IssueRobert H. Caverly24mmm10-editorial-opener2-3297165IMAGE LICENSED BY INGRAM PUBLISHINGEven though the date on the cover of this issue says October, as I write this editorial, it has been only a few weeks since the 2023 IEEE Microwave Theory and Technology Society (MTT-S) International Microwave Symposium (IMS) closing ceremony occurred in San Diego, CA, USA. The Steering Committee did an outstanding job organizing and running the conference, and IMS 2023 and Microwave Week were back “at full strength” after the pandemic years. The attendance was up to prepandemic levels; the exhibit hall was as busy as I can remember, with as many vendors as I can recall; and one could not walk too far before meeting colleagues from all around the world and stop to have a short conversation, in person. There were many opportunities to learn the latest technologies, both in the technical sessions and on the exhibit floor; network; meet old and new colleagues; and enjoy the area around the San Diego Convention Center. Everyone is looking forward to next year’s version in the capital city of the United States, Washington, DC. Speaking about IMS 2024, the call for papers (CFP) is now out and can be found later in the magazine. The four-page CFP describes the conference themes, the various competitions, and 32 topical areas for you to submit manuscripts for consideration.In this month’s issue, we have another one of our focus issues devoted to technical features highlighting the work done by one of MTT-S’s technical committees (TCs), TC-23, the RFID, Wireless Sensors, and IoT Committee. There are four interesting technical features in the issue, and the “From the Guest Editor’s Desk” column [A1], by Thomas Ussmueller, provides a great introduction to each of the features as well as some background on the work done by the TC. In addition to these four technical features, we also have an “Application Notes” column [A2], “OTA Testing of Electronically Scanned Antenna Arrays,” by Jia-Chi Samuel Chieh et al. While the title of the note may include antennas, the authors go into great detail about the microwave switching matrix and performance parameters that are an integral part of the phased-array system.In this month’s “President’s Column” [A3], MTT-S President Nuno Borges Carvalho provides his perspective on IMS 2023 and also discusses formalizing inter-Society relationships with several IEEE Societies that are related to and use microwave theory and technology as part of their work. In his “MicroBusiness” column [A4], Fred Schindler talks about the differences between having a vision of a project versus having the details of a project and also provides a short history of smartphone technology development. Steve Cripps is back with another installment of the “Microwave Bytes” column [A5]. Steve defines a new acronym (SWAP—see the column for the definition!) and discusses the trapped plasma and avalanche-triggered transit (TRAPPAT) device. While I was somewhat familiar with the TRAPPAT device, I never really understood the device and the circuits using it until reading Steve’s column. While I may not have as much success as Steve did in getting the circuit to work, I did come away with a better understanding of the device and its operation; I’m sure you will too. In our “MTT-S Society News” column [A6], TC-3, the Microwave Measurements Committee, provides a report on its activities during the 2021–2022 period. Bringing these reports to the magazine’s readers, I believe, helps us all better understand the roles of the MTT-S TCs and how they advance various technologies, and I hope to continue to bring these reports to the community as they become available. Sherry Hess’ “Women in Microwaves” column [A7] this month highlights panel discussions centered on two reports outlining the advantages of diverse engineering teams as well as a call to action on how to foster these advantages. Finally, we have the solution to last month’s “Enigmas, etc.” column challenge [A8], CFPs for several conferences, and our “Conference Calendar” [A9] that provides you a look ahead to the microwave conference scene for the next six months.Enjoy the issue!

Appendix: Related Articles

[A1] T. Ussmueller, “Focus on RF identification, wireless sensors, and the internet of things [From the Guest Editor’s Desk],” IEEE Microw. Mag., vol. 24, no. 10, pp. 10–11, Oct. 2023, doi: 10.1109/MMM.2023.3294899.

[A2] J.-C. S. Chieh et al., “OTA testing of electronically scanned antenna arrays [Application Notes],” IEEE Microw. Mag., vol. 24, no. 10, pp. 59–67, Oct. 2023, doi: 10.1109/MMM.2023.3294878.

[A3] N. B. Carvalho, “Hybrid conferences [President’s Column],” IEEE Microw. Mag., vol. 24, no. 10, pp. 8–9, Oct. 2023, doi: 10.1109/MMM.2023.3297164.

[A4] F. Schindler, “Unicorns, rainbows, and butterflies [MicroBusiness],” IEEE Microw. Mag., vol. 24, no. 10, pp. 12–13, Oct. 2023, doi: 10.1109/MMM.2023.3294877.

[A5] S. C. Cripps, “Swapping tales [Microwave Bytes],” IEEE Microw. Mag., vol. 24, no. 10, pp. 68–72, Oct. 2023, doi: 10.1109/MMM.2023.3294879.

[A6] A. Raffo, D. Schreurs, and M. V. Bossche, “IEEE microwave theory and technology society microwave measurements technical committee report for 2021–2022 [MTT-S Society News],” IEEE Microw. Mag., vol. 24, no. 10, pp. 73–74, Oct. 2023, doi: 10.1109/MMM.2023.3294880.

[A7] S. Hess, “State of the industry: Diversity in the workplace [Women in Microwaves],” IEEE Microw. Mag., vol. 24, no. 10, pp. 75–77, Oct. 2023, doi: 10.1109/MMM.2023.3294881.

[A8] T. Ohira, “Solution to last month’s quiz [Enigmas, etc.],” IEEE Microw. Mag., vol. 24, no. 10, p. 82, Oct. 2023, doi: 10.1109/MMM.2023.3294882.

[A9] “Conference calendar,” IEEE Microw. Mag., vol. 24, no. 10, p. 83, Oct. 2023, doi: 10.1109/MMM.2023.3294915.

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