Shaping the Field: The Role of Resonant Cavities in Microwave Systems

Maurizio Bozzi
Full Professor, University of Pavia, Italy

Abstract:

The rapid expansion of RF and microwave technologies—driven by the Internet of Things (IoT), emerging 5G and 6G mobile networks, and the increasing use of autonomous vehicles and drones—introduces new challenges and demands for modern microwave communication and sensing systems.

Within this context, the cavity resonator remains a fundamental building block in the design of numerous microwave components, including filters, sensors, and antennas. Although the underlying theory of resonant cavities is well established, their practical implementation still offers significant opportunities for miniaturization and performance enhancement. Additionally, a wide range of manufacturing approaches—such as substrate integrated waveguide (SIW) technology, 3D printing, and wearable fabrication techniques—enable designers to tailor cavity resonators to the constraints and requirements of diverse applications.

This talk will present a series of examples spanning components, antennas, and complete systems, from miniaturized SIW structures to 3D-printed prototypes and wearable devices. For each case, the design methodology, fabrication process, and experimental validation will be shown and discussed.

Speaker’s Bio:

Maurizio Bozzi received the Ph.D. degree in electronics and computer science from the University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy, in 2000. He held research positions with various universities worldwide, including the Technische Universitaet Darmstadt, Germany; the Universitat de Valencia, Spain; and the Ecole Polytechnique de Montreal, Canada. In 2002, he joined the Department of Electronics, University of Pavia, where he is currently a full professor of electromagnetic fields. He was also a Guest Professor at Tianjin University, China (2015-2017) and a Visiting Professor at Gdansk University of Technology, Poland (2017-2018). His main research interests concern computational electromagnetics, substrate integrated waveguide technology, and microwave passive components and sensors. He has authored or co-authored more than 200 journal papers and 380 conference papers. He co-edited the book Periodic Structures (Research Signpost, 2006) and co-authored the book Microstrip Lines and Slotlines (Artech House, 2013).

Prof. Bozzi was the 2024 President of the IEEE Microwave Theory and Technology Society (MTT-S) and he had several roles in the MTT-S Administrative Committee. He was also a member of the General Assembly of the European Microwave Association (EuMA) from 2014 to 2016. He was a Track Editor of the IEEE Transactions on Microwave Theory and Techniques, and an Associate Editor of the IEEE Microwave and Wireless Components Letters, the IET Microwaves, Antennas and Propagation, and the IET Electronics Letters. He was the General Chair of the IEEE MTT-S International Microwave Workshop Series-Advanced Materials and Processes (IMWS-AMP 2017), in Pavia, Italy, 2017, of the inaugural edition of the IEEE International Conference on Numerical Electromagnetic Modeling and Optimization (NEMO2014), in Pavia, Italy, 2014, and of the IEEE MTT-S International Microwave Workshop Series on Millimeter Wave Integration Technologies, in Sitges, Spain, 2011.