Ryan Lucas heads to Croatia for the world leading Metasurfaces for Antennas training hosted by European School of Antennas and Propagation (ESoA)

In May, I had the amazing opportunity to head to Dubrovnik for a week-long training course on Metasurfaces for Antennas, hosted by the European School of Antennas and Propagation (ESoA). Having only begun my work with antennas back in February, this course was perfect for cementing my current understanding, as well as guiding and propelling the direction of my future research.

The lecturers consisted of some big names in the field, including Professor Anthony Grbic and Professor Nader Engheta, to name a few. While some of the topics may have been a tad heavy for my current level of understanding, they were overall fundamental to my project. I’m glad I got this training now, as opposed to later in my PhD – as it gives me a better baseline for what can be done, and what is more science fiction. Although, with some of the topics being cloaking and holograms, it’s exciting to see what’s possible.

I more so hit my stride when we moved onto the topic of curved metasurfaces, as it tied nicely into the work done for my recent mini project, Design of a Body Centric Patch Antenna. Touching on the use of artificial magnetic conductors as replacements for the standard ‘Perfect Electric Conductor’ (PEC) ground, and introducing me to the concept of metasurface-backed patch antennas, was of particular interest. Although, the most enjoyable lecture was definitely the one on Ansys. As someone who is entirely self-taught in the software, this was both the topic I was most familiar with, while also being the one I learnt the most from.

Not only were the lectures great, but talking to the other students was just as beneficial, if not more so. Ranging from people in their 2nd-3rd year of their PhD, to those from industry, getting to know their experiences, their ideas. It was arguably exactly what I needed at this point of my PhD. Hearing what they’ve done, what they’d change. It was also reassuring to know I wasn’t the only one struggling to grasp some of the concepts of the course.

Of course, Dubrovnik itself was astonishing. Despite it forecasting rain for the week, we were lucky enough to have nothing but clear, blue skies! With a touch of sightseeing amongst the busy schedule, and a lovely course meal to round off the week (a delicious Croatian peka), it was an irreplaceable experience.

Now, to plan for my next one in 2027!