Exclusive Interview with our Authors Soumava Mukherjee, Prasun Chongder, and Animesh Biswas

In this interview, we talk to Soumava, Prasun, and Animesh authors of the book ARTECH HOUSE USA : Substrate Integrated Waveguides. We discuss the motivation behind writing the book, the target audience, the most useful aspects of the book, the challenges of writing the book, and advice for other engineers who are considering writing a book.

Soumava Mukherjee received the B.Tech degree in Electronics and Communication Engineering from the West Bengal University of Technology, in 2009, M.E. degree in Electronics and Telecommunication Engineering from Bengal Engineering and Science University, Shibpur (BESUS), in 2011, with specialization in Microwave and Communication Engineering, and the Ph.D. degree from the Department of Electrical Engineering, IIT Kanpur (IITK), in 2016. Since 2023, he is serving as Associate Professor in the Electrical Engineering Department, IIT Jodhpur, Jodhpur, India where he was serving as Assistant Professor from 2016 to 2023. His current research interests include substrate integrated coaxial line antennas and circuits, substrate integrated waveguide (SIW) antennas and multifrequency and broadband antennas. Dr. Mukherjee was a recipient of the European Microwave Student Grant in EuMC 2013 and EuMC 2014. He also received the International Travel Grant from the Department of Science and Technology (DST), Government of India. He is also a recipient of the Young Scientist Award AP-RASC-2019 (URSI Asia-Pacific Radio Science Conference) instituted by the International Union of Radio Science.

Prasun Chongder received the M.Tech. degree in Radio Frequency Design Technology (RFDT) from CARE Center of IIT Delhi, in 2009, and the PhD degree in RF & Microwave specialization from electrical engineering department of IIT Kanpur, in 2017. During his PhD, he involved in designing the advanced microwave transceiver system using Substrate Integrated Waveguide (SIW) technology for RADAR communication system. Since 2018, he has been with the Department of Electronics & Communication Engineering, NIT Rourkela, where he is currently an Assistant Professor. His current research interests include substrate integrated circuits (SICs) for microwave and millimeter-waves applications, multiband filter design, and reconfigurability and advanced multiband reconfigurable filtering antenna design for RADAR communication system.

Animesh Biswas received the B.E degree from Bengal Engineering College, Shibpur in Electronics and Telecommunication in the year 1980 and M Tech. degree in Microwave and Radar engineering from the IIT Kharagpur, India, in 1982. He received PhD degree in electrical engineering from the IIT Delhi, New Delhi, India, in 1989. From 1989 to 1990, he was a Post-Doctoral Fellow at Oregon State University, USA where he was involved in characterizing multi-conductor lines in layered medium. Since 1992, He is serving as faculty with the Department of Electrical Engineering, IIT Kanpur, Kanpur, India and is presently holding a post of Professor. He has served as a technical consultant for M/S COMDEV Europe and was involved in the development of multimode DR filters and diplexers. He also served as RFIC designer for M/s. Ashvattha Semiconductors, USA for a year and contributed significantly to the area of on-chip LNA and Power Amplifier development. His current research includes modeling of microwaves circuits, RF integrated circuits (RFICs), and numerical methods for solving electromagnetic problems. He has authored or co-authored over 220 papers in various peer-reviewed international journals and conference proceedings. Prof. Biswas is a Fellow, West Bengal Academy of Science and Technology, the Institution of Electronics and Telecommunication Engineers, India and Senior Member of IEEE, USA. Recently, he received prestigious Ram Lal Wardha award from IETE, India for outstanding original contributions for last ten years in RF and Microwaves. He also served as Director of National Institute of Technology, Rourkela from 2016 to 2021.

1.Could you summarize the main content of your book? What are the key topics addressed? 

The book “Substrate Integrated Waveguide” is written as a complete guide book for engineers and technology enthusiastic working with SIW technology. The book starts with the technological gap to meet the requirement of the current evolution of communication standards from 5G & beyond towards 6G which is then extended to basic theory behind the implementation of SIW technology. Starting from critical design rules to realize SIW line and cavity to its extensive use in implementing components for RF front end systems has been extensively covered. The book provides detailed analytical background for designing SIW based antennas, SIW filters, SIW based oscillators, mixers etc. Several design example along with relevant applications has been incorporated for clear understanding of the reader.

2.What is the primary purpose of your book? How do you envision it helping readers in their work or studies?

The primary purpose of the book is to impart knowledge about working principle of Substrate integrated waveguide-based circuits and systems. The book will help communication engineer to realize next generation RF front end system.

3.What sets your book apart from other works in the same field? Are there any innovative concepts, methodologies, or insights that make it stand out?

This book gives a comprehensive overview of all aspects of passive and active circuits based on SIW technology. Although there are plenty of documents and research papers available about individual circuits and systems design examples, a holistic approach to address the implementation strategy for SIW based circuits were missing. This book will help students and engineers to understand many design strategies to implement high performance low-profile front-end system for next generation communication network.

4.Who is the intended readership for your book? Are there specific industries, professionals, or fields of study that would benefit most from this content?

The primary focus of the book are engineers and technology enthusiastic who are involved in the business related to communication engineering domain. However, the book will also be helpful to undergraduate and graduate students, faculties and researchers to gain knowledge about SIW based systems and their potential applications.

5.What are the most important lessons or insights you want readers to take away from this book?

The next generation communication network demands the use of new spectrums and we need novel planar technology to address the challenges associated with it. Studying new planar technology e.g. SIW will give you insight about future technology trends and its possible impact on the market.

6.Does your book include any original research, case studies, or data? If so, could you highlight some of the most significant findings?

The book is based on the research work and hands on experience of the authors along with few design examples from selected reputed international research groups. Overall, it gives a holistic picture about the development of SIW technology over the decade.

7.Does your book address any new or emerging trends in the field? How does it prepare readers for future developments?

In this book, we have meticulously studied the emergence and placement of the SIW technology in the context of 5G and 6G standards development. As new and new standards are evolving, the impact of novel planar technologies e.g. SIW is becoming more and more prominent. We are hopeful that readers will have a better idea about the state of the art of SIW technology and its potential application in B5G and 6G communication network.

8.What personal experiences, if any, have shaped your perspective or approach to the topics discussed in your book?

The book contains the research work carried out by the authors and the associated hands on experience over the last decade. Whenever we presented our research work in any reputed forum e.g. IEEE conferences, many people have shown interest and gave many positive feedback which we tried to incorporate in this book. In fact, it is the peer and colleagues who has shown interest and constant motivation to think about writing a book on SIW. Hopefully, the book will help the reader to get an holistic picture of SIW technology and will help them to innovate many more designs using this technology.    

Learn more about the book on our websites:

ARTECH HOUSE USA : Substrate Integrated Waveguides

ARTECH HOUSE U.K.: Substrate Integrated Waveguides

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