CD Laboratory for Distributed Microwave- and Terahertz-Systems for Sensors and Data Links

This CD Laboratory is dedicated to researching methods to optimise the performance and energy efficiency of radio frequency (RF) systems in a range of applications. These applications range from high-speed connections in data centres to sensors that can be used in electric urban air transport.

Many services and devices that people use every day operate in the radio frequency range. Examples include the voice and data connections of smartphones as well as various other applications that may not be obvious to end users: See, for example, contactless radar sensors for cars that prevent accidents through automatic stops or even enable autonomous driving, navigation satellites or even (as a non-wireless communicating example) high-speed data connections in data and computing centres.

In many areas of RF technology, there is a trend towards the use of ever higher operating frequencies, for which there are several reasons: Firstly, these particularly high frequencies allow more compact integration of complex systems through miniaturisation of components. Secondly, higher frequencies offer a greater available bandwidth and thus enable better performance of sensors and data connections. And the third reason is simply that many of the lower frequencies in the RF range are already occupied by existing services, so new developments often have to switch to "higher realms".

However, the use of very high frequencies up to the THz range for the applications mentioned brings its own challenges, which is why the research of this CD Laboratory is so important. It focuses in particular on three (partly overlapping) subject areas: For example, the interaction between digital signal processing and analogue high-frequency ranges is central to today's RF systems. However, if very high frequencies are used for this purpose, effects occur that are negligible in the lower RF range. These effects need to be analysed in detail in order to counteract them. Research will also be carried out into how overall systems (consisting of distributed components such as numerous antennas) can be realised so that they can bridge the desired distances with their signals. Finally, the interfaces and transitions required for transmission and their susceptibility to interference must be analysed.

In short, the CD Laboratory's research focuses equally on several sub-aspects on the one hand and RF systems in their entirety and with regard to application-specific features on the other - for example, with regard to the important question of how integrated semiconductor circuits can be realised in such high frequency ranges.