The Workshop on the Future of Antennas was the second of three workshops conducted by the National Research Council’s Committee for Science and Technology Challenges to U.S. National Security Interests. The statement of task can be found in Box 1-1. The workshop objectives were to:
• Review trends in advanced antenna research and design.
• Review trends in commercial and military use of advanced antennas that enable improved communication, data transfer, soldier health monitoring, and other overt and covert methods of standoff data collection.
The first day’s sessions, consisting of five presentations and discussions on antennas and wireless communications and control, were open to committee members, staff, guests, and members of the public. The second day was a data-gathering session addressing vulnerabilities, indicators, and observables; presentations and discussions during this session included classified material and were not open to the public. Appendix A contains biographies of the committee members. The workshop agenda and a list of participants are given in Appendix B. Appendix C gives the biographies of the presenters.
This report has been prepared by the workshop rapporteur as a factual summary of what occurred at the workshop. The committee’s role was limited to planning and convening the workshop. The views contained in the report are those of individual workshop participants and do not necessarily represent the views of all workshop participants, the committee, or the National Research Council. The workshop was not intended to provide a comprehensive review of the state of antenna technology.
This report is organized by topic in the order of presentation and discussion at the workshop. For Day 1 the topics were Future of Antennas, Commercial State of the Art of Wireless Communications and Control, Military State of the Art of Wireless Communications and Control, and Future Trends in Antenna Design and Wireless Communications and Control. For Day 2 the topics were Vulnerabilities of Ubiquitous Antennas, and Indicators and Observables, followed by a wrap-up discussion.
BOX 1-1
Statement of Task
An ad hoc committee will plan and conduct three workshops on the science and technology (S&T) fields noted below that have potential impact on U.S. national security.
• Big Data—The workshop will review emerging capabilities in large computational data to include speed, data fusion, use, and commodification of data used in decision making. The workshop will also review the subsequent increase in vulnerabilities over the capabilities gained and the significance to national security.
• Future of Antennas—The workshop will review trends in advanced antenna research and design. The workshop will also review trends in commercial and military use of advanced antennas that enable improved communication, data transfer, soldier health monitoring, and other overt and covert methods of standoff data collection.
• Future Battlespace Situational Awareness—The workshop will review the technologies that enable battlespace situational awareness 10-20 years into the future for both red and blue forces. The workshop will emphasize the capabilities within air, land, sea, space, and cyberspace.
The committee will design the workshops to address U.S. and foreign research, why S&T applications of technologies in development are important in the context of military capabilities, and what critical scientific breakthroughs are needed to achieve advances in the fields of interest—focusing detailed attention on specific developments in the foregoing fields that might have national security implications for the United States. The workshops will each also consider methodology to track the relevant technology landscape for the future.
Each of the three workshops will feature invited presentations and panelists and include discussions on a selected topic including themes relating to defense warning and surprise. The committee will plan the agenda for the workshops, select and invite speakers and discussants, and moderate the discussions. Each event will result in a workshop summary that will be subject to appropriate institutional review prior to release.
