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Niklas Wingren developed software for microwave scattering.

2024-03-18

Niklas Wingren

Title of thesis: Computational Methods and Measurements for Direct and Inverse Scattering of Microwaves.

Link to thesis in Lund University Research Portal.

Defence: Friday April 5th, 09:15, room E:1406.
Zoom link.  Zoom ID: 62684643819.

Describe your research in a popular science way

We all use electromagnetic waves in our everyday lives with technologies like mobile phones, contactless payment, and car radars, to name a few. This explosion in wireless technology during the last 30 years or so has, in part, been made possible by the rapid development of computational tools used to simulate electromagnetic waves. It is fair to say that a modern mobile phone, with many antennas hidden inside, would not be possible to design without these tools. My research has focused on situations where electromagnetic waves are scattered by objects, which happens, for example, when an aircraft is located by radar. I have developed computational tools to simulate such situations, and worked with theoretical solutions and real measurements to verify that the computations are correct. I have also combined computational tools with measurements of waves scattered by structural components to locate defects inside the structure.

What made you want to pursue a PhD?

After studying the courses in electromagnetics at LTH I realized that I wanted to learn more, so I looked for a research-adjacent master’s thesis project at the department. This gave me an idea of what it might be like to work as a PhD student, and I decided to apply for a position that was opening up.

Do you believe some results from your research will be applied in practice eventually? And if so, how / how?

The computational software I developed during my time as a PhD student is open source, meaning that it is freely available online for anyone to use. I hope that this will make it useful to others, either directly as a tool or as a basis for other software. Most of my research has also been conducted in collaboration with industry, and there has been interest in my software from their part.

What are your plans?

I will stay at EIT until the summer to, among other things, make my computational software more accessible. After that we’ll see where I might end up.