On 7 December 2005 Queen's University Belfast (QUB) announced the inception of a world-class microwave and millimeter-wave research facility within its new Research Institute in Electronics, Communications and Information Technology (ECIT). The facility will have access to state-of-the-art test and measurement equipment, valued at over $1 million and supplied by Agilent Technologies Inc.
The equipment consists of a 110 GHz performance network analyzer configured for on-wafer probing to W-band, and a PNA-L vector network analyzer used to control an NSI antenna near-field scanner. Furthermore, the time-domain measurement, pulsed power and active-device characterization capabilities of the laboratories will be enhanced by a 6 GHz multi-channel oscilloscope, a Ka-band power meter and a semiconductor parameter analyzer.
The systems being put in place at QUB will be used for the characterization of advanced research prototype monolithic integrated circuits and antenna systems. These ultimately will be deployed in applications such as short-range wireless sensors, mobile telephony, vehicular telemetry and vehicular radar systems.
"These state-of-the-art capabilities will facilitate the leading research we conduct in the fields of microwave and millimeter-wave integrated circuits and antennas for use in the electronics communications industry," said professor Vincent Fusco, head of high frequency research at QUB. "In addition, the linkage between QUB and Agilent is of major significance as we develop an environment in which we train undergraduate and postgraduate students in microwave theory and techniques, through internships and collaborative research with Agilent Laboratories."