This PhD position, hosted at imec in Leuven, Belgium, is a collaboration between imec and KU Leuven under the supervision of Prof. Sofie Pollin (KU Leuven) and Prof. Claude Desset (IMEC). The research is situated within the WaveCoRE research centre in KU Leuven’s Department of Electrical Engineering, focusing on wireless communication fundamentals and systems. The project aims to address the growing energy consumption of wireless communication networks, especially as new frequency bands and advanced technologies are introduced for 6G and beyond. The main goal is to improve the energy efficiency of future wireless transceivers by developing predictive power consumption models and simulation environments. This will enable the exploration and optimization of various transceiver architectures and configurations before physical implementation, supporting both design and run-time control mechanisms for maximum energy efficiency. The research will build on IMEC’s decade-long expertise in power modeling and optimization, integrating models for digital processing, analog front-end, and power amplifiers. Key challenges include adapting models for new frequency bands (such as FR3, 7–24 GHz), improving the accuracy of exploratory power models, linking digital power estimates to hardware design, and investigating trade-offs in advanced algorithms and architectures. The project also considers the broader sustainability and life cycle analysis of transceiver hardware, including the energy impact of machine learning solutions. As a PhD student, you will join a multidisciplinary team of experts in wireless communication, signal processing, digital and analog design, and machine learning, with access to imec’s world-class facilities. You will have opportunities to publish in top journals and conferences, build an international network, and participate in collaborations. The position offers a four-year PhD scholarship (subject to positive evaluations), competitive salary, and funding for international activities. Applicants should have a master’s degree in electrical engineering, telecommunication engineering, or a related field, with strong academic performance and English proficiency. Experience in wireless communications, signal processing, and digital or analog design is required, along with interpersonal skills for working in an international team. KU Leuven and imec provide an inclusive and diverse research environment. Applications must be submitted via the imec website, referencing code 2026-152. For more information, contact Prof. Sofie Pollin or Prof. Claude Desset by email.

This PhD position at KU Leuven, in collaboration with imec, offers an exciting opportunity to advance the field of wireless communications through research on distributed movable antennas. Hosted primarily at imec in Leuven, Belgium, and supervised by Prof. Sofie Pollin (KU Leuven) and Prof. Claude Desset (IMEC), the project is embedded within the WaveCoRE research centre in the Department of Electrical Engineering (ESAT) at KU Leuven. The Networked Systems group, led by Prof. Pollin, specializes in cutting-edge topics such as Cell-Free Massive MIMO, Non-Terrestrial Networks (NTN), IoT, joint communication and sensing, machine learning-based signal processing, and SWIPT. The research will focus on pushing the boundaries of MIMO communications by exploring near-field, mobile, and massive communication scenarios. You will investigate the limitations of far-field MIMO channels and leverage near-field communication to unlock higher throughput and channel diversity. The project involves modeling propagation, system dimensioning, and designing optimized transmit/receive algorithms to exploit channel richness. Unlike traditional antenna arrays, you will explore sparse arrays and movable antennas, addressing challenges in channel estimation and link adaptation while capitalizing on new degrees of freedom for improved link performance. Applications of distributed MIMO will be studied in contexts such as robotics, drones, and vehicles, where mobility presents both challenges and opportunities. You will develop heuristics for real-time device communication and investigate trade-offs between performance, power consumption, and robustness, considering technologies like MEMS for movable antennas. The research requires creativity and the ability to navigate complex trade-offs involving massive antenna arrays, computational feasibility, theoretical limits, and hardware constraints. As part of the imec team, you will collaborate with experts in digital, analog, and mm-wave design, wireless systems, signal processing, channel modeling, and machine learning. You will develop a sophisticated simulation environment in Matlab or Python, incorporating custom near-field mobile channel models and hardware non-idealities. The position offers a multidisciplinary environment, access to world-class facilities, and opportunities to publish in top journals and conferences. Eligibility requires a master's degree in electrical engineering, telecommunication engineering, or a related field, with exceptional grades and English proficiency. Experience in wireless communications, signal processing, channel modeling, and MIMO is advantageous. Proficiency in Matlab or Python and strong interpersonal skills are essential. The scholarship covers up to four years, subject to positive evaluations, and includes a competitive salary, research funding, and opportunities for international collaboration. KU Leuven is committed to diversity, inclusion, and equal opportunity. Applications must be submitted via the imec website, referencing code 2026-031. For further information, contact Prof. Sofie Pollin or Prof. Claude Desset via email.

This PhD position, hosted at imec in Leuven, Belgium, is a collaboration between imec and KU Leuven under the supervision of Prof. Sofie Pollin (KU Leuven) and Prof. Claude Desset (IMEC). The research is situated within the WaveCoRE research centre in KU Leuven's Department of Electrical Engineering (ESAT), focusing on wireless communication fundamentals and systems. The Networked Systems group, led by Prof. Pollin, covers advanced topics such as Cell-Free Massive MIMO, Non-Terrestrial Networks (NTN), IoT, joint communication and sensing, machine learning-based signal processing, and SWIPT. The project addresses the urgent need for greener wireless systems as communication networks expand and new frequency bands (e.g., FR3 for 6G) are adopted. The increasing power consumption of networks raises environmental, economic, and battery lifetime concerns. The research aims to improve the energy efficiency of future wireless transceivers by developing predictive power consumption models, enabling exploration of various architectures and configurations before physical implementation. This supports the development of run-time control mechanisms to maximize energy efficiency in operation. Key research challenges include: investigating energy-efficient solutions for new transceiver architectures and technologies, improving the accuracy of exploratory power models, connecting digital power estimates to hardware design, leveraging imec's advanced semiconductor research for deep-scaled CMOS models, and analyzing power-consumption trade-offs in advanced algorithms and architectures (e.g., digital predistortion for power amplifiers). The project also explores system-level power optimization, radar-like applications, distributed implementations, and the integration of AI for modeling power consumption trends and assessing the energy penalty of machine learning solutions. The broader perspective includes sustainability and life cycle analysis, considering not only run-time power consumption but the total environmental impact. As a PhD student, you will join a multidisciplinary community at imec, collaborating with experts in wireless communication, signal processing, digital, analog, and mm-wave design, and machine learning. You will have opportunities to publish in top journals and conferences, participate in international collaborations, and access world-class facilities. Applicants should hold a master's degree in electrical engineering, telecommunication engineering, or a related field, with exceptional grades and proficiency in English. Expertise in wireless communications, signal processing, and digital or analog design is required, along with strong interpersonal skills and the ability to work in an international team. The position offers a PhD scholarship for up to four years (subject to positive evaluations), competitive salary, and an inclusive research environment. KU Leuven is committed to diversity, equal opportunity, and a respectful academic atmosphere. Applications must be submitted via the imec website, referencing code 2026-152. For more information, contact Prof. Sofie Pollin ([email protected]) or Prof. Claude Desset ([email protected]). The application deadline is December 11, 2025.