2025 IEEE Wireless, Antenna & Microwave Symposium
WAMS 2025
June 5-8, 2025
Organized by
Indian Institute of Information Technology, Design and Manufacturing
Kancheepuram, Chennai
Kancheepuram, Chennai
2025 IEEE Wireless, Antenna & Microwave Symposium
WAMS 2025
June 5-8, 2025
Organized by
Indian Institute of Information Technology, Design and Manufacturing
Kancheepuram, Chennai
Kancheepuram, Chennai
Keynote Speakers
Home | Speakers | WIE/YP/StartUp
Special Talk By Wie-Career Excellence Award Winner
Invited Talks for WIE
YP Speakers
Dr. Arvind kumar
Assistant Professor,VNIT
Dr. Jogesh Dash
Assistant Professor, NIT Rourkela
Dr. Rakesh Choudhary
Assistant professor, IIITM Gwalior
Dr. Amit Kumar Singh
Assistant professor, IIT Patna
WAMS - Startup Session
About WIE Speakers and Their Talk
Dr. Rajalakshmi Menon
Director General, (Aero), DRDO
Title:
Its a Special Talk.
Short Bio:
Dr. K. Rajalakshmi Menon, the Director General (Aero) of DRDO, is a pioneering scientist with expertise in airborne surveillance systems, C4ISR, and system engineering of complex aerospace platforms. She played a pivotal role in the design, integration, and flight testing of India’s indigenous AEW&C system, which was inducted into the Indian Air Force in 2017, making India the fifth nation to achieve this capability. With a background in Computer Science, Engineering, and a PhD in Target Recognition from IISc Bangalore, she has led numerous advancements in airborne radar, EW sensors, and imaging radar technologies. As Associate Director of CABS, she spearheaded key ISR initiatives, including air-to-ground surveillance systems for various aerial platforms such as UAVs, satellites, and fighters. Her leadership and technical contributions have significantly strengthened India’s self-reliance in advanced aerospace and defense technologies.
Dr. Meenakshi Rawat
Associate Professor, IIT Roorkee
Title:
Innovative soft-solutions for Sustainable 5G/6G Communication Transmitters
Abstract:
This talk emphasizes the necessity for efficient transmitter design to minimize the energy and CO₂ footprint of wireless networks, given that power amplifiers (PAs) and feeder networks account for approximately 65% of base station power consumption. The challenges of high peak-to-average power ratio (PAPR) and wide bandwidths in 5G and 6G make PA efficiency and linearity critical concerns. The session investigates the limitations of both digital and analog predistortion techniques, while also introducing a hybrid linearization approach that offers cost and footprint reductions, particularly beneficial for carrier-aggregated 5G, mmWave, and terahertz systems. Additionally, the talk evaluates these methods in the context of MIMO and beamforming technologies and presents an innovative C-band to mmWave upconversion technique that circumvents additional local oscillator costs.
Short Bio:
Dr. Meenakshi Rawat is an Associate Professor in the Department of Electronics and Communication Engineering at IIT Roorkee. She earned her Ph.D. in Electrical and Computer Engineering from the University of Calgary, Canada, followed by postdoctoral research at both the University of Calgary and The Ohio State University. Her research spans sustainable software-defined radios and spectrum-efficient communication systems, with over 120 publications and multiple Indian patents. She is a recipient of the prestigious Visvesvaraya Young Faculty Research Fellowship (2018–2023), the Institute Research Fellowship, and the Women Science Communicator Award (2024). Dr. Rawat actively contributes to IEEE conferences, industry training programs, and is the co-founder of “Linearized Amplifier Technologies and Services Pvt. Ltd.” She currently serves as Associate Dean (Academic Affairs – IT & Admissions) at IIT Roorkee.
Dr. Latha Christie
Scientist G/Associate Director, DRDO
Title:
Beyond Bullets: The Strategic Rise of Non-Kinetic Weapons in Future Warfare
Abstract:
As warfare shifts from physical confrontation to information-centric conflict, the weapons shaping tomorrow’s battles are increasingly silent, precise, and non-lethal. Beyond Bullets explores the strategic ascent of non-kinetic weapons—cyber tools, electromagnetic disruption systems, and Directed Energy Weapons (DEWs)—that neutralize enemy capabilities without physical destruction.
This talk examines how these tools are integrated into multi-domain operations (MDO), enabling cross-domain effects that disrupt communications, blind surveillance systems, degrade command networks, and fracture decision cycles. When synchronized with cyber and AI-enabled systems, non-kinetic weapons offer unmatched precision, scalability, and strategic ambiguity.
Through real-world use cases and evolving doctrine, the session highlights how non-kinetic strategies are redefining deterrence and dominance—shaping conflict without crossing kinetic thresholds. In a world where perception, timing, and disruption carry more weight than firepower, these emerging tools are becoming the cornerstone of future military superiority.
Short Bio:
Dr. Latha Christie is a Senior Scientist from Bangalore, with the Government of India for the past 37 years. She graduated with honors in Electronics and Communication Engineering from Government College of Engineering, Tamil Nadu. She pursued her Masters and Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering at the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore.
She holds an International Executive Diploma in Project Management from I2P2M in collaboration with George Washington University School of Business, Washington DC, USA.She was awarded the Women Achiever Award by Federation of Karnataka Chambers of Commerce and Industry ( March 2022). She also received the International Inspirational Women Award by GISR foundation (April 2022). She was awarded the prestigious Prof. Satish Dhawan Award for Engineers, Instituted by the Government of Karnataka, for her outstanding achievements in engineering sciences by the Chief Minister (2014). Other awards include the AGNI team Award for Excellence in Self-Reliance and the best technical Paper award for papers submitted at various conferences. She has around 70 published papers in peer-reviewed Journals and Conferences, and has written four books.
Dr. Manisha Kahar
Senior R&D Product development Engineer, TE Connectivity
Title:
Radio Frequency and its Application in High-speed Designs & Signal Integrity
Abstract:
Signal integrity in a RF system is a quantification of the extent to which an electrical signal varies when it moves down the channel from a transmitter to a receiver. Signal integrity is an elementary need of all modern electronic systems. The term “integrity” as used in industry refers to adhering to a code, remaining unperturbed, and being complete and undivided. If there is an appreciable change in the signal waveform, the receiver is unable to correctly detect the signal, creating a signal integrity issue. That is why signal integrity engineering — analyzing and improving signal integrity issues — is an important part of designing printed circuit boards (PCBs), integrated circuits (ICs), and IC packages.As we are going to the higher RF range to increase signal speed and decrease the size of PCB packages, it is becoming much more challenging to handle signal integrity issues. Noise in signal
and distortion are getting more noticeable in high-speed digital signals. However, as the challenges are growing day by day, industries are adopting new strategies to deal with them. Thanks to simulation software we can simulate and analyze various aspects of signal propagation, including impedance matching, crosstalk, and timing, to identify and resolve potential issues before hardware is built. Waveform-distortion, skew, noise, delay, and amplitude-attenuation occur as the signal flows from the transmitter to the receiver because of resistance in the material, the EM field created
from the moving electrons, current induced from other EM fields, and the capacitance of the circuit. In PCB, the shape of the routing lines needed to create the circuit, their placement, layer thickness of various metals and dielectric in the stack-up, and how current is transmitted between layers drive these effects.
So, in a nutshell we can say signal integrity is crucial because it ensures the accurate and reliable transmission of electrical signals, which is vital for the functioning of electronic devices, especially in high-speed applications. Poor signal integrity can lead to erroneous data, slacked performance, and even failure in system. Hence, it is utmost important to maintain the quality of an electrical signal when it is travelling through a circuit.
Short Bio:
Dr. Manisha Kahar received the PhD degree from the Department of Electronics and Electrical Communication Engineering, IIT Kharagpur in 2021. During PhD, her domain of research was RF & Microwave engineering, with a focus on coupled resonant-antenna and filter designs. She started her industry career with Qualcomm India in 2021 as Senior RF Hardware Board Design Engineer. There she contributed to the design and testing of RF boards for 5G cellular applications. Further, to expand her expertise in RF wireless connectivity including Bluetooth and Wi-Fi technologies, she joined HCL Technologies and worked with Amazon. In 2024, she diversified her skills and joined TE Connectivity as Senior R&D/Product Development Engineer where she is currently providing support for developing new high-speed products and resolving signal integrity issues. She is proficient in tools like HFSS, ADS, CST, HyperLynx, and SIwave. She has hands-on experience and expertise in using various RF lab equipment, like Radio Communication Analyzer, LitePoint IQxel-MW 7G, CMW-500, Spectrum Analyzer, and Vector Network Analyzer. She served the IEEE AP-MTTs SBC at IIT Kharagpur as treasurer in 2016, Secretary in 2018, and Chair in 2017. She has been awarded with the ANNSSRK Prasad Best Female Student Paper in 2018 IEEE InCAP. She also won the best PhD thesis award in WAMS 2022. She has co-chaired a session on broadband antennas in 2019 IEEE APS/URSI held in Atlanta, USA. She has authored or co-authored multiple journal and conference papers. She has been a reviewer of IEEE Antennas and Wireless Propagation Letters, IEEE Transactions on Microwave Theory and Techniques, IETE Journal of Research, and IEEE Access.
About Startup Session Speakers and Their Talk
Dr. Hareesh Chandrasekar
CEO & Co-Founder – AGNIT Semiconductors
Title:
A Hitchhiker’s Guide to GaN Semiconductor Technology: From Atoms to Amplifiers
Abstract:
This talk will run through the essentials of an integrated approach to realizing high performance Gallium Nitride RF products. Starting with GaN wafers, to the process technology needed to convert these materials to electronic devices, to the packaging of these devices, we will cover the design of the best possible RF amplifier from such packaged GaN devices and in turn the design of the best possible GaN device for an RF amplifier use-case. This will be presented through the lens of one of Agnit’s RF amplifier product development efforts. This talk aims to cover in some detail what it takes to develop GaN semiconductor products from the ground-up and the importance of material science, process technology, semiconductor device physics and RF engineering required to realize real world products in this space.
Short Bio:
Dr. Hareesh Chandrasekar is the CEO & Co-founder of AGNIT Semiconductors Private Limited. AGNIT is a spin-off from the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore and is India’s first Gallium Nitride technology startup working on manufacturing Gallium Nitride semiconductor components. Hareesh received his PhD from the Centre for Nano Science and Engineering, Indian Institute of Science in 2016, for his work on Gallium Nitride materials & devices, where his doctoral thesis was awarded the Best Thesis Prize for Applied Research. This was followed by postdoctoral stints at the University of Bristol, UK and The Ohio State University, USA, all the while working on various aspects of Gallium Nitride technology. He has also worked for IBM India briefly as a chip designer in what feels like a past life. Hareesh is a Senior Member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (SM-IEEE), and a (very) junior member of the growing ESDM entrepreneurial community in India given AGNIT’s short 4-year-old existence thus far.
Mr. Vinit Bansal
CTO & Co-Founder, PierSight Space
Title:
From Space to Sea: How PierSight’s SAR Satellite Constellation is Transforming Maritime Security and Sustainability.
Abstract:
PierSight is pioneering a new era in maritime security and sustainability through its constellation of Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) and Automatic Identification System (AIS) satellites. Unlike traditional Earth observation solutions, PierSight’s technology delivers persistent, real-time monitoring of the world’s oceans, overcoming the limitations of cloud cover and darkness that hinder optical systems. The inaugural Varuna satellite, developed and launched in record time, demonstrates the ability to detect and track vessels and maritime activities 24/7, regardless of weather or lighting conditions. By integrating SAR’s high-resolution imaging with AIS data, PierSight’s system enhances situational awareness for coastguards, governments, fisheries, insurers, and environmental agencies-enabling rapid response to illegal fishing, smuggling, oil spills, and other threats to ocean health and security. With a scalable, application-specific constellation planned for global coverage by 2028, PierSight is setting a new standard for maritime intelligence, empowering stakeholders to protect marine resources and foster sustainable ocean economies.
Short Bio:
Vinit Bansal, is the CTO and Co-Founder of PierSight Space. He is a graduate in Electronics from BITS-Pilani and have spent 9 years at National Instruments building Test and Prototyping solutions for Space and Defense Industry. While working at National Instruments he worked closely with Indian Space Research Organisation and Ministry of Defence – India and contributed to multiple Space and Defence projects.
Dr. Alex James
Dean External Linkages - Digital University Kerala , Director - IIITM - Kerala and Professor-in -charge - Maker's village Kerala.
Title:
AI Memristive hardware for EM applications
Abstract:
In this talk, the concept of the memristive crossbar architecture is introduced as a promising hardware platform for the efficient post-processing of electromagnetic (EM) signals. This novel approach leverages the inherent parallelism, high density, and low power characteristics of memristive crossbar arrays to perform computationally intensive tasks directly at the hardware level. Specifically, the crossbar structure enables real-time, in-memory computing capabilities, which are useful in intelligent detection and sensing applications where speed, power efficiency, and miniaturization are critical. By using memristive devices for analog matrix-vector multiplication, the system can execute key signal processing and pattern recognition functions such as feature extraction, classification, and anomaly detection directly on the sensed EM signals. This eliminates the need for power-hungry digital processors or complex data transfer between sensors and external processing units, thereby enabling more efficient and intelligent sensor nodes for applications ranging from wireless communications and radar systems to biomedical sensing and IoT devices.
Short Bio:
Dr. Alex P. James is a leading Indian scientist and professor specializing in AI hardware at the School of Electronic Systems and Automation, and currently serves as Dean at Digital University Kerala (IIITM-K). He is also the professor in charge of Maker Village, Kochi, and the Chief Investigator for both the Centre for Intelligent IoT Sensors and the India Innovation Centre for Graphene. Listed in the top 1% of scientists globally in Electrical and Electronics Engineering by Elsevier for three consecutive years, Dr. James is known for his work in memristive systems, neuromorphic VLSI, analogue electronics, and machine learning.He has held editorial roles in several leading journals and serves on multiple IEEE and BCS technical committees. He has led notable research initiatives, including the development of analog Generative Adversarial Networks (GAN) circuits and the AI semantic search engine Vilokana. He is a Senior Member of IEEE, Life Member of ACM, Fellow of BCS and IET, and serves on several IEEE technical committees. He is also an associate editor for top-tier journals including IEEE Transactions on Circuits and Systems I and IEEE Access, and was awarded IEEE TCAS-I’s Best Associate Editor for 2020–21.
Dr. Bhavya E.V
Technical Director - Metasrujan
Title:
Challenges in Indigenization of Microwave technologies: from source material to testing instruments
Abstract:
New innovation in defense technologies, advanced connectivity, and autonomous systems demands high-performance electromagnetic solutions. This presentation explores the new frontiers in the indigenization of microwave technologies, starting from procuring raw materials/substrates to advanced testing instruments and advanced software solutions. By combining multiphysics solutions with precision measurement and advanced material engineering, we can enable the indigenization of microwave technologies. This process comes with a set of challenges in design and development, which includes raw material sourcing, design software, manufacturing processes and testing instruments. As our country is moving towards Atmanirbhar Bharat, it becomes important to develop self-reliant capabilities across microwave technologies. Through this presentation, we explore the multifaceted obstacles encountered in indigenizing microwave technologies, with a focus on the critical role of material science, fabrication techniques, and testing infrastructure.
Short Bio:
Dr. Bhavya E.V. is a research professional in Microwave Engineering and Computational Electromagnetics, with over seven years of expertise in metamaterials, metasurfaces, antenna design, radar cross-section (RCS) estimation, and electromagnetic material characterization. She earned her Ph.D. from CSIR-National Aerospace Laboratories (NAL), Bangalore, under the Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research (AcSIR), with a focus on Metamaterial Broadband Absorbers for RCS Reduction. Dr. Bhavya is the Founder and Technical Director of METASRUJAN, a deep-tech startup where she leads cutting-edge projects aimed at solving real-world problems in electromagnetic material characterization and stealth material development. Her work blends simulation-driven design, advanced materials research, and algorithm development to deliver high-impact solutions for aerospace and defense applications. Her contributions include publications in top-tier journals, book chapters, and several conference papers. She visited University of Jena, Germany, as part of the DST-DAAD exchange program, and has received multiple honors including the INSPIRE Fellowship, Best Paper Award at IEEE ICORT 2023, and the Best Women Research Scholar Award at WAMS 2024.