Microwave Journal
www.microwavejournal.com/articles/22127-rfic-2014-welcome-message

RFIC 2014 Welcome Message

May 8, 2014

RFIC Chairman

We invite you to join us for the 2014 IEEE Radio Frequency Integrated Circuits (RFIC) Symposium (http://rfic-ieee.org/), to be held in Tampa, Florida on 1-3 June 2014. RFIC is the premier IC conference focused exclusively on the latest developments in RF, microwave and millimeter wave integrated circuit technology and innovation.

RFIC, the International Microwave Symposium (IMS), ARFTG, WAMICON, and the IMS Industry Exhibition make up “Microwave Week 2014,” the largest worldwide RF/microwave meeting of the year. Come to Microwave Week to learn from the world’s experts through a wide variety of technical sessions, interactive forums, panel sessions, workshops, short courses, industrial exhibits, application seminars and historical exhibits. Share your knowledge with others by presenting your latest results. Expand your network. Catch up with old friends and colleagues. Return invigorated with new ideas and enthusiasm.

For the first time in 2014, RFIC will offer a number of new initiatives specifically geared toward the RFIC industry. First, a new two-page industry brief format is introduced that allows the latest state-of-the-art RF IC design results to be presented, without requiring die photos and detailed schematics (as required in full-length, four-page submissions). Nevertheless, these two-page briefs were subjected to the same technical criteria and rigorous review as full length papers. Secondly, the most innovative and highly-rated industrial papers, both two- and four-page, have been invited to present a poster (and optional demo) at a special Industry Showcase Session to be held concurrent with the popular evening RFIC reception on Sunday, 1 June 2014. In addition to all of the RFIC attendees, the media will be invited to cover this event, making it an excellent opportunity to announce the latest RFIC developments and breakthroughs.

Another new initiative in 2014 was aimed at increasing academic submissions through programs supporting students. All of the RFIC student paper finalists will now receive complimentary RFIC registration. In addition, the lead authors of the top three student papers will receive $500 honorariums along with special recognition at the RFIC Plenary Session where these awards will be announced.

Students have even more ways to participate (and receive financial assistance) this year (http://rfic-ieee.org/student-prgrams).Students may volunteer to help with RFIC (and/or IMS) conference logistics in exchange for complimentary conference registration, meals, t-shirts and other benefits. For the first time in 2014, first- and second-year RFIC PhD students may also participate in the PhD Student Sponsorship Initiative Program, joint with IMS. This program, established and sponsored by the MTT-S Administrative Committee, aims to engage these PhD students in the conference by having them complete technical assignments during the conference and report on them later in the week. Sponsorship includes complimentary conference registrations (RFIC and IMS), lodging and meals.

The 2014 RFIC Symposium will open on Sunday, 1 June 2014 with a lineup of eight full-day and five half-day workshops (http://rfic-ieee.org/workshops), four of which will be co-sponsored by IMS. Three additional joint RFIC/IMS workshops will be held on Monday. RFIC workshops cover a wide array of topics with presentations from experts in their respective fields, and historically have been highly attended and well received. This year’s workshops cover some of the hottest topics in RFIC design. There are a number of workshops focused on power amplifier (PA) design including: silicon and GaN PAs for RF and mm-wave applications, highly-efficient power amplifiers and smart transmitters, power amplifiers for software defined radios, and critical supporting circuit designs such as GaN-based power supply modulators. In the frequency synthesis area, the “frequency synthesis for 60 GHz and beyond: architectures and building blocks” workshop focuses on design techniques for low phase noise frequency synthesizers at mm-wave frequencies. Workshops focused on some of the emerging technologies in RF transceivers include techniques for handling interference and self-interference, RF and wideband data-converters for transmitters and receivers, and EMC/EMI-aware design practices for reducing coupling and interference in integrated circuits.

The RFIC Plenary Session (http://rfic-ieee.org/sunday/plenary) will be held on Sunday evening, in the Marriott Hotel directly across from the convention center. The plenary will begin with some overall conference highlights, followed by the student paper awards. The plenary continues with two outstanding keynote addresses, given by two renowned industry leaders in the RF/microwave community. The first speaker is Pieter Hooijman, vice president R&D and strategy at NXP Semiconductors, whose talk is entitled “How to Differentiate with RF Silicon Technologies in High Volume Applications?” The second speaker is Prof. Lawrence Larson, dean of the School of Engineering at Brown University, who will present a talk entitled “The Next Era of Wireless Communications –Enabling Revolutions in Health Care, Transportation, Energy and the Environment.” Be sure not to miss these engaging presentations.

Immediately following the Plenary Session is the new Industry Showcase Session (http://rfic-ieee.org/sunday/showcase) concurrent with the RFIC reception, providing a mix of “hot chips” and cold drinks.
These events will be held in the foyer just outside of the Plenary Session, with a wonderful view of the water and marina. You’ll want to be here.

The inaugural RFIC Plenary Round Table Discussion (http://rfic-ieee.org/sunday/roundtable) will be held next, with the stage set “talk show style.” Leaders from the RFIC community will engage in a lively discussion on “Beyond 4G Wireless Communications: An RFIC Perspective.” Audience participation will be welcome. Once the round table adjourns, the reception will continue where it left off, with plenty of cold beverages to keep everyone cool.

Technical papers will be presented during RFIC oral sessions throughout Monday and on Tuesday morning, followed by the RFIC Interactive Forum on Tuesday afternoon. The Interactive Forum features papers presented in poster format, giving the attendees a chance to speak directly with the authors regarding their work.

During lunchtime on both Monday and Tuesday, the conference features panel sessions (http://rfic-ieee.org/panels) that are sure to draw lively debate among the panelists and audience. Monday’s RFIC panel session is titled “Fabless Design: Got Any Problem with That?” and will debate the pros and cons of the fabless design model. The Tuesday panel session, held jointly with IMS, is titled “Is Spectrum Explosion Muffled without Tunable RF?” This panel brings together experts from across the wireless ecosystem to discuss the end user benefits, market opportunities, technical challenges and projected solutions surrounding the spectrum explosion and its impact on RF hardware, and whether or not tunable RF front ends will step in to save the day.

Tampa offers a unique and exciting experience for everyone. A visit to the ever-growing downtown area, or the exciting Channelside and Ybor entertainment districts, will provide you with plenty to see. Tampa has a diverse selection of great restaurants and some of Florida’s best attractions, including the Florida Aquarium, Busch Gardens Tampa Bay, the Straz Center for the Performing Arts and Lowry Park Zoo. Of particular note are the new Tampa Bay History Center and the recently opened Tampa Museum of Art.

On behalf of the entire RFIC Steering Committee, we would like to extend to all of you a warm welcome to attend the 2014 RFIC Symposium. We are looking forward to an exciting program and hope you can join us in Tampa! For more details, please visit our website http://rfic-ieee.org.