Student Design Competition Research Articles

Loading the Third Harmonic: A Linear and Efficient Post-Matching Doherty PA

Among the most exciting parts of the IEEE Microwave Theory and Techniques Society (MTT-S) 2017 International Microwave Symposium (IMS2017) was the High-Efficiency Power Amplifier Student Design Competition (SDC) sponsored by Technical Coordinating Committee MTT-5. This competition focuses on RF power amplifiers (PAs) having both high efficiency and linearity. Competitors are required to design, construct, and measure a high-efficiency PA with a specified linearity at a frequency of their choice between 1 and 10 GHz. The winner is determined by a figure of merit (FOM), with other requirements [1] that must also be satisfied:

A Compact Single-Stage Wide-Band Balun: A 4:1 Wide-Band Transmission-Line Balun Based on a Combination of Two Different Ferrite Cores

This article presents the design procedure and measurement results for a 4:1 wide-band transmission-line balun based on a combination of two different ferrite cores. The balun ranked first at the Student Design Competition for "Wide-Band Baluns" that took place during the IEEE Microwave Theory and Techniques Society (MTT-S) 2017 International Microwave Symposium (IMS2017) in Honolulu, Hawaii, last May and sponsored by Technical Coordinating Committee MTT-17. Each competition team was required to bring a balun designed by the students. The team that achieved the widest measured bandwidth, from 300 kHz to 1 GHz under the competition rules, was named the winner.

IMS2017 Student Design Competition Results

IMS2017 Student Design Competition Results

Experiential learning in engineering education: The role of student design competitions and a case study

Student competitions can play an important role in education: they promote interest and engagement of the students, as well as of the teachers. In the case of engineering, one of the most challenging contests in Europe is the Motostudent event, joined by the University of Brescia (UniBS) in 2016 for the first time. It is a typical implementation of Kolb’s theory of experiential learning, where engineering theory and application meet in an intensive, ‘hands-on’ team work experience, resulting in a very effective learning process that involves the so-called soft skills as well. The paper aims at briefly reviewing the scope of competitions like the Formula SAE and sharing the authors’ experience in a similar event, the Motostudent contest.

インスピレーションマーズ国際学生設計競技 : 私たちが国際共同プロジェクトで学んだもの(トピックス)

インスピレーションマーズ国際学生設計競技 : 私たちが国際共同プロジェクトで学んだもの(トピックス)

IMS2017 Student Design Competitions

IMS2017 Student Design Competitions

The Importance of Scientific Publishing: Teaching an Undergraduate How to Swim the Entire Length of the Pool

The Importance of Scientific Publishing: Teaching an Undergraduate How to Swim the Entire Length of the Pool

IMS2016 Student Design Competitions

Presents information on the IMS 2016 Student Design competitions.

A Better Balun? Done The Design of a 4:1 Wideband Balun Using a Parallel-Connected Transmission-Line Balun

This article presents a 4:1 wide-band balun that won the student design competition for wide-band baluns held during the 2016 IEEE Microwave Theory and Techniques Society (MTT-S) International Microwave Symposium (IMS2016) in San Francisco, California. For this contest, sponsored by Technical Committee MTT-17, participants were required to implement and evaluate their own baluns, with the winning entry achieving the widest bandwidth while satisfying the conditions of the competition rules during measurements at IMS2016. Some of the conditions were revised for this year's competition compared with previous competitions as follows.

Nano Probing for Microwave Engineers: Calculating Probe-Sample Capacitance and Charge Distribution of a Near-Field Scanning Microwave Microscope on a Nanoscale

The app described in this article was presented at the student design competition of the 2016 IEEE Microwave Theory and Techniques Society (MTT-S) International Microwave Symposium. As sponsored by Technical Committee MTT-25 on RF nanotechnology, the competition's objective was to develop user-friendly interfaces to facilitate the design and application of RF nanotechnology. To this end, the app is capable of simulating the capacitance and charge distribution of the probe-sample interaction on a nanoscale in near-field scanning microscopes, such as the scanning microwave microscope (SMM), the atomic force microscope (AFM), and the scanning tunneling microscope (STM).

Hitting the Sweet Spot: A Single-Ended Power Amplifier Exploiting Class AB Sweet Spots and Optimized Third Harmonic Termination

The single-ended RF power amplifier (PA) is a standard design approach in the RF engineer?s tool kit, but high efficiency and good linearity may only be achieved if the harmonic terminations and biasing conditions are carefully examined. This is demonstrated in a single-ended PA using class-AB sweet spots and an optimized third harmonic termination, which won first place at the 2016 IEEE Microwave Theory and Techniques Society (MTT-S) International Microwave Symposium?s high-efficiency PA student design competition, sponsored by Technical Committee MTT-5.

A Multitude of RFID Tags: A Broadband Design for Stackable Applications

RFID technology has been a part of our lives for a number years. However, research and development are ongoing to produce novel, improved tags for higher ranges working at lower power as well as to differentiate between tags in logistic applications for conventional chip-based RFIDs. Because of such improvements in already existing infrastructures and close-proximity scenarios, the second ultrahigh-frequency (UHF) RFID student design competition was held in May in San Francisco during the 2016 IEEE Microwave Theory and Techniques Society (MTT-S) International Microwave Symposium (IMS2016).

Fresh Ideas, Young Minds-2016 IMS Student Design Competition Winners [From the Guest Editor's Desk

Fresh Ideas, Young Minds-2016 IMS Student Design Competition Winners [From the Guest Editor's Desk

The Sky's the Limit: A Switchable RF-MEMS Filter Design for Wireless Avionics Intracommunication

The switchable RF-microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) filter described in this article was presented as part of the student design competitions at the 2016 IEEE Microwave Theory and Techniques Society (MTT-S) International Microwave Symposium held in San Francisco in May 2016. The goal of this competition, sponsored by Technical Committee MTT-21, was to design a switchable filter to separate the industrial, scientific, and medical (i.e., ISM) band (2.4-2.5 GHz) from the wireless avionics intracommunication (WAIC) band (4.2-4.4 GHz). The upcoming availability of the 4.2-4.4 GHz band for WAIC to implement wireless connectivity inside passenger aircraft cabins provided the main motivation for this design, and the filter footprint was the most important requirement.

System for Corrosion Inspection and Monitoring

This paper contains has conducted research and analysis on different corrosion identification and monitoring methods to develop an autonomous corrosion inspection system to solve the challenge issued by the University Student Design and Applied Solutions Competition. This challenge is to build an autonomous corrosion detection and monitoring system to help provide new ideas and innovations to the Department of Defense. Using research and stakeholder analysis, this research produced a system to best meet the demands of the competition and determine the best possible solution to the design challenge. Our integrated team used a systems engineering approach to produce the design that will be fielded at the competition in April 2016.

Is Architectural Pedagogy Prepared for Buildings of the Future?

Assuming that buildings in our near future can achieve carbon neutrality, what next? More importantly, what is necessary in the short term to transform the way we design and think about buildings to achieve carbon neutrality and beyond? Can architectural pedagogy deal with how buildings integrate with the larger community and ecosystem around them, how buildings are constructed and/or manufactured to optimize resource use, and how they adapt to changes and are repurposed to meet future needs? Pedagogy for this future is about instilling a way of thinking about environmental design that is both conscious of and active in energy and carbon emissions, but also the health, wellbeing, and productivity of building occupants. Expounding on these questions, this paper will analyze current architectural curriculum and recent student design competitions against the U.S. Department of Energy’s Future of Buildings initiative. The discussion of the gap analysis results shows a deficiency about thinking about architectural design for the future. The paper will highlight where our design education succeeds and falls short toward preparing students. Additionally, thinking about this future context will highlight beneficial and detrimental aspects of the current pedagogical landscape to further whole-building design concepts to achieve a carbon neutral future for the built environment.

Enhancement of Mechanical Engineering Degree through student design competition as added value. Considerations and viability

ABSTRACTThis paper proposes using a student design competition as a learning tool in the Mechanical Engineering Degree for enhancing the general competences and motivation of the students, transferring theoretical knowledge to practical situations and bringing together all courses involved under a common framework. This constitutes an added value that the in-person universities should offer to their students as a consequence of the Bologna process and the raising of open online resources for self-learning. In order to assess the viability of this proposal, a pilot competition design activity (CDA) is presented using project-based learning methods during a Mechanism Theory course for sophomore students. Meanwhile, 27 participants of a 45-student course from a European university took part in the pilot CDA, which consisted of redesigning the motorbike rear suspension used in a student design competition. Participants also completed mid-term and final exams as well as a survey to get their perception of this activity. Based on the success of the pilot CDA, the authors are planning to implement the proposal, including similar CDAs in other Mechanical Engineering courses to use the competition as a link between them and to encourage students to participate on the competition.

Smooth Moves in Power Transition: New Yagi-Uda Antenna Design for Wireless Energy

During last year?s International Microwave Symposium (IMS) in Phoenix, Arizona, the IEEE Microwave Theory and Techniques Society held its fourth Student Design Competition (SDC) in the category Wireless Energy Harvesting. Seven teams from different countries presented their designs during IEEE Microwave Week 2015.

Architectural acoustics—Hear here

The discipline of Architectural Acoustics consistently produces more than 100 papers across six or more special sessions, at each meeting of the ASA. Student paper awards, student design competitions, and Knudsen lectures augment these activities. Joint sessions, particularly with noise, musical acoustics, psychological and physiological acoustics, and signal processing in acoustics, add more still to the architectural acoustics goings-on at every ASA conference. The sphere of influence is not limited to ASA alone, as TCAA members participate in the Green Construction Code of the International Code Council, Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers Study Group: Movie Theater Sound System Measurement and Adjustment Techniques, Classroom Acoustics Standards, the American Institute of Architects Continuing Education System, and more. This busy committee also produces a steady stream of publications documenting recent work and deciphering standards for key stakeholders. Anyone with an interest in the...

Innovating RFID for Future Applications: A Capacitive Coupled Antenna Design for UHF RFID Application

In the 2015 International Microwave Symposium (IMS 2015) Student Design Competition (SDC) held in Phoenix, Arizona, a new challenge was introduced by the Microwave Theory and Techniques Committee for RFID Technologies (MTT-24), dealing with the topic of ultrahigh-frequency (UHF) RF identification (RFID) tag sensitivity.