[William Mong Distinguished Lecture 2025 - 2026] Professor Robert W. Heath Jr. (September 10, 2025)

[William Mong Distinguished Lecture 2025 - 2026] Unlocking MIMO in 6G: The Evolution of MIMO in Cellular Systems

Date: September 10, 2025 (Wednesday)
Time: 14:15 - 16:30
Venue: Rayson Huang Lecture Theatre, HKU
Keynote Speaker: Professor Robert W. Heath Jr., University of California San Diego

Abstract:
Wireless networks have fundamentally transformed our daily lives. Behind this revolution, Multiple-Input Multiple-Output (MIMO) communication standing out as one of the most influential innovations. By spatially multiplexing data streams across different antennas, MIMO enables high-rate access. In this talk, Professor Heath will introduce the fundamentals of MIMO communication and explore its applications within cellular systems. The lecture will begin with an overview of single-user and multi-user MIMO, highlighting their pivotal role in 4G networks. It will then discuss the adaptation of MIMO techniques to 5G millimeter-wave systems. Finally, the talk will explore a forward-looking concept: the tri-hybrid MIMO architecture, which integrates reconfigurable antennas into digital/analog hybrid MIMO framework to support very large-scale antenna arrays.

About the keynote speaker:
Professor Robert W. Heath Jr. is the Charles Lee Powell Chair in Wireless Communication in the Department of ECE at the University of California San Diego. He is the recipient or co-recipient of several awards including the 2019 IEEE Kiyo Tomiyasu Award, the 2020 North Carolina State University Innovator of the Year Award, the 2021 IEEE Vehicular Technology Society James Evans Avant Garde Award, and the 2025 IEEE/RSE James Clerk Maxwell Medal. He authored “Introduction to Wireless Digital Communication” (Prentice Hall in 2017) and “Digital Wireless Communication: Physical Layer Exploration Lab Using the NI USRP” (National Technology and Science Press in 2012). He co-authored “Millimeter Wave Wireless Communications” (Prentice Hall in 2014) and “Foundations of MIMO Communications” (Cambridge 2019). He is a licensed Amateur Radio Operator, a registered Professional Engineer in Texas, a Private Pilot, a Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors, a Fellow of the IEEE, and a Fellow of the AAAS. He is an elected member of the United States National Academy of Engineering, 2025 class.