CNR-IEIIT-SRE works on millimeter-wave and subTHz technology since 2002, with particular reference to antenna feed systems, digital-beam-formed arrays and scattering surfaces. The group carried out more than 60 research projects in the field of astrophysics, remote sensing, aerospace and telecommunications. The relevant results have been disseminated in more than 40 journal papers. The measurement expertise has been achieved with the millimeter-wave laboratory, which is capable of both guided and free-space scattering measurements up to 110 GHz.
Main instruments are Vector Network Analyzers (VNAs), portable spectrum analyzers and digital oscilloscopes. Such laboratory is undergoing an upgrade to 750 GHz featuring a 4-port VNA (up to 67 GHz) and three pairs of miniature millimeter-wave extenders (equipment available by March 2022). Several test fixtures such as calibrated antennas, waveguide components and robotic positioners are available. Numerical modelling and design of electromagnetic devices are also key activities that are carried out with several proprietary and commercial software tools. Two workstations with 128 and 512 GB of RAM are available. The CNR-SRE laboratory combines the experience on millimeter-wave with an equally twenty-year experience in the study, design and performance analysis of systems and equipments for wireless telecommunications. The project of wireless systems was often accompanied by the development of hardware and/or software demonstrators built using software defined radio or Field Programmable Gate Array technology. Over the years the group has gained a great deal of experience in the study of systems with multiple antennas, an experience that was then transferred to the design and performance analysis, from a transmission point of view, of wireless communications exploiting the presence of intelligent reconfigurable surfaces to either enhance transmission capacity or to reach users who would, otherwise, experience bad channel conditions.
The combination of measurement and simulation capabilities are very relevant for the development of the future Smart Radio Environments, with particular reference to the design, manufacturing and measurement of metasurfaces and their integration within a communication system. It is also worth noting that researchers of the laboratory participated to three European networks of excellence (NEWCOM, NEWCOM++, and NEWCOM#) and worked on the activity to make research resources (i.e. software libraries and data obtained via real world measurements) available to people from the network and external laboratories.
Institute of Electronics, Information Engineering and Telecommunications
CNR-IEIIT-SRE | Torino