01/10/2024
By Danielle Fretwell

The Francis College of Engineering, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, invites you to attend a Doctoral Dissertation Proposal defense by Christopher Areias on: Improved Component Design, Simulation, and Processing for Additively Manufactured Microwave Electronics.

Candidate Name: Christopher Areias
Degree: Doctoral
Defense Date: Friday, Jan. 19, 2024
Time: 9:15 to 11:45 a.m.
Location: Saab/ETIC Building, 4th Floor, RURI Conference Room

Committee:
Advisor: Alkim Akyurtlu, Professor and Associate Chair, EECE Department, UMass Lowell

Committee Members

  • Craig Armiento, Professor Emeritus, EECE Department, UMass Lowell
  • Corey Shemelya, Assistant Professor, EECE Department, UMass Lowell
  • Hualiang Zhang, Professor, EECE Department, UMass Lowell
  • Daniel Hines, Director, Raytheon - UMass Lowell Research Institute (RURI), Raytheon Technologies

Brief Abstract:

As conventional fabrication techniques for high-frequency electronics mature and reach peak performance, new wireless communications and imaging technologies are pushing to bring about a new radio age. These fabrication techniques, though heavily optimized for older applications, fall short in enabling the levels of connectivity required by new communications technologies. An interconnected world of smart devices requires denser circuitization, not only of flat, rectangular objects, but also objects with arbitrary geometries which serve other purposes. Additive manufacturing (AM) techniques have already been demonstrated in various applications, either improving performance over conventional methods for existing designs or enabling entirely new designs. However, several challenges remain which present obstacles to continued progress in additive high-frequency electronics. These issues can be categorized generally as pertaining to materials, print geometries, and/or heterogeneous interfacial interactions. This work endeavors to study a variety of specific topics: 1) impedance mismatch in additive and hybrid additive applications, which features significantly in recent literature but remains an issue; 2) process-dependent surface roughness in aerosol-jet printed conductive traces, which has been overlooked in the literature despite exhibiting a significant influence on high-frequency performance; 3) novel device synthesis using AM’s unique capabilities in realizing components not practical or possible with conventional techniques; and 4) holistic electromagnetic and mechanical analysis of high-frequency AM components in order to inform design and process optimization.