PhD position on ultra-reliable intra-aircraft wireless communication

At the Advanced Networking Lab and Center for Wireless Technology Eindhoven  of  the TU/e we have one open PhD positions in the context of the recently granted Advanced Electrical Wiring  project. This project, led by Fokker Elmo, is part of the large Dutch National Growth Fund project Aerospace in Transition. The project aims at developing advanced technologies for power distribution and intra-aircraft data communication.  One of the technologies for data distribution that the project will investigate is ultra- reliable wireless communication.

In the case of avionics, the most important advantages of wireless systems are weight reduction, resulting in less fuel consumption, enhanced flexibility, ease of layout, maintenance and modification. Despite their advantages, wireless technologies have been hardly adopted in aviation where most intra-aircraft connectivity relies on wired technologies. The use of wireless technologies is limited to in-flight online interconnectivity for the customers and to in-flight entertainment. The main reason for this is that current wireless technologies are not able to provide the reliability, security, and low-latency levels needed to effectively support the operation of the various aircraft functions.

The project will investigate different techniques to guarantee high levels of reliability in wireless networks inside aircrafts, comprising robustness for interference, failure and attacks, and with high levels of availability, flexibility, and dealing with stringent latency constraints. Besides making use of well-known diversity techniques at the physical layer such as channel coding and multiple antennas, the project will also investigate diversity techniques at the link and network layers. The intention is to investigate intelligence mechanisms embedded in the network that will be able to detect, localize, analyze and predict connectivity disruptions and attacks and consequently take the necessary countermeasures. The proposed techniques will be validated using simulation tools and experimental set ups.

This PhD candidate will work on the design and evaluation of end-to-end wireless avionics intra-communication (WAIC) networks including the control and data planes, considering various wireless architectures. Ultra-high reliability and strict latency constraints being the primary design objectives, the candidate is expected to explore techniques/methods paying attention to various 5G/6G features and time-sensitive networking (TSN) standards. All the developed reliability enhancement strategies, that can be applied to the future WAIC network, need to be implemented/demonstrated through a laboratory test setup for evaluation. Emphasis is given to provide reliability and security using standardized wireless technologies.

Requirements:

• Master of Science degree in Electrical Engineering, Telecommunications, Applied Physics or a related topic, with excellent grades (first class honors or equivalent).
• A solid background in wireless and mobile communications including deep understanding of wireless propagation and network architectures.
• Experienced in  using state of the art software and hardware(Open-air interface/srsRAN or similar tools, NS3, Software defined radios, etc.).
• Affinity with artificial intelligence techniques.
• Interest in combining theory and experiments and well-developed analytic skills.
• Have a creative and critical thinking attitude, an intrinsic motivation and an ability to cooperate with internal and external partners.

Salary Benefits:

A meaningful job in a dynamic and ambitious university, in an interdisciplinary setting and within an international network. You will work on a beautiful, green campus within walking distance of the central train station. In addition, we offer you:

• Full-time employment for four years, with an intermediate evaluation (go/no-go) after nine months. You will spend 10% of your employment on teaching tasks.
• Salary and benefits (such as a pension scheme, paid pregnancy and maternity leave, partially paid parental leave) in accordance with the Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Universities, scale P (min. €2,872 max. €3,670).
• A year-end bonus of 8.3% and annual vacation pay of 8%.
• High-quality training programs and other support to grow into a self-aware, autonomous scientific researcher. At TU/e we challenge you to take charge of your own learning process.
• An excellent technical infrastructure, on-campus children's day care and sports facilities.
• An allowance for commuting, working from home and internet costs.
• A Staff Immigration Team and a tax compensation scheme (the 30% facility) for international candidates.

38 hours per week

De Rondom 70