The next frontier for ultra-fast computing and wireless communications — the terahertz electromagnetic spectrum — will be examined in a series of seminars by foremost scientists and engineers and broadcast online. Organized by the NYU WIRELESS research center and NYU Tandon School of Engineering’s Electrical and Computer Engineering Department, the series at the school’s Brooklyn campus will be streamed for NYU WIRELESS industrial affiliate sponsors and the public and archived for later viewing.

“Circuits: Terahertz (THz) and Beyond” will explore the unknown that lies between the optical spectrum and millimeter wave frequencies, spectrum that will soon carry massive amounts of 5G data. Physicists, mathematicians and engineers have been working for decades trying to solve fundamental challenges of the THz spectrum and pushing the boundaries of quantum nanoelectronics, hoping to unlock more gains for communications, computing, sensing and materials.

The inaugural seminar will be held on Wednesday, September 5, 2018 and will feature Aydin Babakhani, presenting “Silicon-based Integrated Sensors with On-chip Antennas: From THz Pulse Sources to Miniaturized Spectrometers.” An associate professor of electrical and computer engineering at the UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science and director of the Integrated Sensors Laboratory at UCLA, Babakhani’s research could have major implications for biomedical devices. For example, Babakhani designed a wireless, battery-free pacemaker that receives energy through RF radiation and eliminates the need for risky surgeries to replace batteries.

All seminars begin at 11 a.m. Eastern and can be watched at engineering.nyu.edu/live.

Ted Rappaport, director and founder of NYU WIRELESS, said, “Recent breakthroughs in THz research, quantum computing and nanotechnology have opened exciting new vistas for the future of electrical and computer engineering, and NYU has made major investments in these promising areas already. While we have pioneered the use and understanding of millimeter wave frequencies for 5G, it is clear that new knowledge will be needed to bridge the gap between the fundamentals of these new areas with the design and fabrication of devices. In keeping with the NYU WIRELESS tradition, we also seek to amplify the global conversation in these exciting areas by organizing this series and making it free and open to all.”

Professor Ivan Selesnick, chair of the department, said, “The spectrum also holds great promise for communications and networks — both strongholds of NYU Tandon research — as well as sensing and optics. The THz seminar series reflects our commitment to both educate students and foster the pursuit of new important research areas in electronics and wireless communication.”

NYU Tandon Dean Jelena Kovačević said, “This new series will bring leaders in this emerging field of study to Brooklyn, to the benefit of our students, faculty and all of New York, as well as scholars worldwide. Our faculty and NYU WIRELESS established Brooklyn as a world-renowned center for millimeter wave technology, and the excitement is palpable here as they explore technologies that will drive communication and computing decades hence.”

“Circuits: THz and Beyond” is organized by NYU Tandon faculty members Shaloo Rakheja, Davood Shahrjerdi, Ramesh Karri and Ted Rappaport.