The electromagnetic spectrum (EMS) is crucial for aerospace and defense systems to acquire and use information but faces challenges from increasing commercial demand and policy changes. To address these, advancements in real-time edge processing, signal processing, AI/ML, high-throughput networking, and innovative sensors are essential. The Spectrum Dominance Focus Area fosters interdisciplinary research to ensure resilient EMS access, impacting spectrum management and policy development.
The electromagnetic spectrum (EMS) stands as a vital but finite resource crucial to our modern society's connectivity. Aerospace and defense systems rely heavily on the EMS to acquire, disseminate, and exploit information from a network of sensing modalities. Considering this, ensuring resilient access to the EMS becomes paramount for future defense operations. Yet, these systems face mounting challenges in navigating an increasingly congested spectrum landscape, exacerbated by shifting policy frameworks.
The commercial telecommunications sector, driven by soaring demand for data from a multitude of devices, continuously clamors for more spectrum. This surge in demand exacerbates spectral congestion, presenting formidable hurdles for aerospace and defense systems.
Addressing these challenges necessitates the advancement of a myriad of technologies. Aerospace and defense sensors already generate torrents of data, demanding rapid processing across timescales. Future systems-of-systems will rely on seamless data sharing and conversion into actionable intelligence for decision-makers and warfighters alike. Additionally, current RF systems fall short of meeting future networking and sensor requirements, underscoring the need for interdisciplinary research efforts.
To this end, the Spectrum Dominance Focus Area emerges as a central hub, fostering collaboration among faculty to develop the technologies essential for ensuring future spectral access and exploitation by aerospace and defense systems. Key technical areas include real-time edge processing of vast data streams, signal processing, artificial intelligence/machine learning (AI/ML) techniques for data interpretation, robust high-throughput networking, and innovative sensor and component development.
Advancements in spectrum access technology will reverberate throughout spectrum management, regulation, and competition spheres, necessitating policy research to inform future national and global regulatory frameworks.
The University of Oklahoma boasts a rich heritage in developing technologies supporting the Spectrum Dominance Focus Area and OADII will continue to stimulate cross-disciplinary research endeavors, positioning OU at the forefront of delivering vital EMS capabilities.
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Associate Director for Spectrum Dominance
