Professor Yi Wang BSc, MSc, PhD, Senior Member of IEEE (2012), Fellow of HEA (2012)

• PG Cert in Higher Education, 2012
• PhD in Electronic Engineering, University of Birmingham, 2005
• MSc in Condensed Matter Physics, University of Science and Technology Beijing, China, 2001
• BSc (1st class with distinction) in Applied Physics (Non-destructive testing), University of Science and Technology Beijing, China, 1998

Yi Wang received his BSc and MSc in Physics from the University of Science and Technology Beijing, China, in 1998 and 2001 respectively, and his PhD degree in Electronic and Electrical Engineering from University of Birmingham, UK, in 2005. His career began as a research fellow at University of Birmingham from 2004, working on high-frequency devices for communications and radars using advanced materials (e.g. superconductors, ferroelectric, SU-8), novel structures (e.g. left-handed metamaterials) and micro-fabrication techniques (MEMS and micromachining). In 2011, he became a Senior Lecturer and then Reader at the University of Greenwich. In 2018, he joined Birmingham as an Associate Professor.

Dr Wang has published over 210 research papers (130+ in referred journals) in high-frequency devices from microwave to terahertz frequencies. He has a breadth of knowledge and expertise in microwave circuit design, micro-fabrications, device measurements, and electronic materials. His research has benefited greatly from links with industries. He also collaborates widely with universities and institutions in the UK and aboard. Wang was appointed Visiting Professor of Shanghai Institute of Ceramics (microwave materials and devices), Chinese Academy of Science in 2017.

Dr Wang leads the Emerging Device Technology (EDT) group. The group currently has 4 research fellows, 9 PhD students, and 2 facility managers. It also regularly hosts academic visitors.

• Electronic Circuits, Devices and Electromagnetics (Year 2) (2018 - present)
• Communication Systems (Year 2) (2021 - present)
• Engineering Materials (Year 1) (2018 - 2021)
• Integrated Design Project (2018 - 2022)
• BEng/MEng/MSc project (2018 - present)

• Programmable / adaptable microwave devices using liquid metals and/or liquid dielectrics.
• 3D printed microwave filters and antennas
• Sub-THz passive components and front-ends for communications and sensing
• Mm-wave and sub-THz antennas
• Multi-functional multi-port microwave devices, their synthesis and co-design

Qualified and highly motivated students are welcome to apply for one of our Postgraduate doctoral research programmes.

Research interests

Microwave, millimetre-wave and terahertz circuits, systems for communications and sensing and their fabrication techniques.

Research grants

• 2023-25, EU MSCA, NeoWaveS – New Design and Manufacture Technologies for High-Performance Millimetre-Wave and Terahertz Waveguide Devices for Space and Terrestrial Communications (Host)
• 2023-24, EPSRC Strategic Equipment Grant, Green laser additive manufacturing platform (CI).
• 2023-25, The Royal Society, Ferroelectric-graphene heterostructure with periodic domains for terahertz sensing and communications (PI)
• 2022-25, Industry, Key Technologies of Millimetre Wave Antenna Integration (PI)
• 2023-24, European Space Agency, Filters and Multiplexers for mm-Wave Sounders and Imagers (PI)
• 2021-25, European Space Agency, High-power filters with novel temperature-compensation techniques and multi-domain topological co-design (PhD co-fund) (PI)
• 2021-24, EPSRC, Programmable Microwave Hardware Based on Liquid Wires (PI)
• 2020-23, Dept. for Communities & Local Government, Alternative Raw Materials with Low Impact 2 (ARLI-2), (CI)
• 2019-22, EU H2020-EMPIR 18SIB09, Millimetre-wave and THz power sensors for metrology
• 2019-23, EPSRC: Towards a 3D printed terahertz circuit technology (PI)
• 2020-22, Industry, Highly Integrated 5G millimetre-wave front-end antennas (PI)
• 2020-23, European Space Agency (GSTP), Next generation temperature compensated high power filters based on novel materials (PI)
• 2017-23, EPSRC Strategic Equipment, 10 MHz to 1.1 THz Vector Network Analyser (taking over as PI)
• 2017-18, NSFC research fund: Low loss terahertz waveguide structures (PI)
• 2015-17, EPSRC grant: Synthesis and new applications of multi-port filtering networks (PI)
• 2014-16, Industry, Synthesis of microwave multiplexers (PI)

Research areas

Microwave circuit theory and device technology

5G/6G communications requires smaller, better and smarter (adaptable, reconfigurable, multi-role) microwave devices. Next-generation satellites demand lighter and flexible payloads. Hospitals and patients will benefit greatly from wireless sensors for remote health monitoring, non-invasive diagnostics and imaging. Dr Wang’s group is working on:

• Programmable / reconfigurable microwave devices using liquid metal (a review paper) and liquid dielectrics.
• 3D printed microwave filters and antenna systems for space, and their topological optimisation
• Synthesis and application of complex multi-port filtering networks (MPFNs)
• Functionally integrated microwave circuits: e.g. filter-amplifiers (a review paper), filter-antennas (a review paper), switch-filter
• Wearable sensors and radios

Mm-wave antenna systems

We have unique design capability of high-performance (80%+ efficiency) and low-profile (planar) metal-waveguide arrays, best suited for backhauls and Satcom. While we have developed our own expertise in AiP phase array, we are also working on new passive beamforming solutions.

• Metal-waveguide antenna arrays
• Phase arrays based on antenna-in-package (AiP)
• Passive beamforming

THz devices for communications and sensing

Terahertz (THz) wave is the spectrum between microwave and far-infrared light (300 GHz to 3 THz). THz wave technology holds great promise in emerging industrial and scientific applications such as security screening, remote sensing, non-destructive testing, and ultra broadband communications. Because of immature device technologies, this part of the spectrum hasn’t been extensively utilised. The vision of Dr Wang’s research is to develop new cost-effective manufacture route for high-performance components for THz comms systems, metrology instruments and sensors, enabled by advanced micro/nano fabrication techniques. Dr Wang’s group is working on:

• Micromachined passive circuits and antennas (DRIE, SU8, laser)
• Waveguide integration with MMIC and diodes
• Low loss THz waveguides and resonators
• Power sensors/detectors
• Frequency selective surfaces

Manufacture technologies for microwave and THz

EDT group is specialised in applying new manufacture technologies and has collaborated widely with manufacturing experts in:

• 3D printing (also with new or unusual materials)
• Photolithography (DRIE and SU8)
• Soft-lithography (microfluidics)
• Laser micro process
• High-precision CNC
• Antenna-in-package (AiP)

Cryogenic microwave devices

Birmingham has a long heritage of applied superconductor research (1990 - 2010) in microwave devices for communications and radio astronomy. Recently we have reactivated this research area, using our experience with low-temperature microwave devices to address the need of microwave technologies in quantum computing. We are interested in:

• Measurements using our cryogenic on-wafer probe station (with 2 RF and 4 DC probes)
• Low-temperature microwave circuits (transmission lines, filters, couplers, attenuators)
• Flexible transmission media

• 2021 European Microwave Conference, Technical Programme Committee (TPC) Chair (2019-22)
• Host of European Microwave Association Funded Internship (2022 - present)
• Member of EPSRC Peer Review College
• Regular reviewer for IEEE Transactions on MTT, AP, TST, VT, IE / Proceedings of the IEEE / IEEE MWCL / IEEE AWPL / IET Microwaves, Antennas & Propagation / Electronics Letters / Journal of Micromechanics & Microengineering / Physica C / Superconductor Science & Technology / Sensors
• Regularly serving on technical committees of international conferences: EUMC, EUCAP, IMFW,  LAPC, IEEE MTT-S IMWS-AMP, UCMMT, iWEM, ICMMT, CICMT, IWS, IMFW
• External PhD examinations: UCL, Manchester, Sheffield, Liverpool, Surrey, Kent, Lancaster, Royal Institute of Technology (KTH) Sweden
• Member of the China Institute Board, UoB