Inside Frequency Control

Can you hear that?! ...Listen closely. Can you hear it now??

...Those are Christmas bells jingling in the distance because the holiday season is here once again!!!

While the expansion of the private sector into space is still in its infancy, there is little doubt that it will prove to be one of the most significant economic developments of this century, and RF engineers are one group of industry specialists that are making it happen. Indeed, it's almost impossible to overstate the impact that engineers specializing in radio frequency tech have had and will continue to have, not only with operating and maintaining commercial space activity but shaping it as well. Let’s explore all the different ways that RF engineers are making the “Space 2.0” era possible.

Unmanned vehicles have changed our world over the past 15 years, and continue to do so one battlefield, one site inspection, and one independent film at a time. Science fiction writers, engineers and military thinkers alike had envisioned robotic and autonomous warfighting machines for years, and in the early 21^st century, they became a viable and widely used option in warfare. But as they continue to advance and become less expensive, what does future hold for unmanned vehicles?

Many people think that in order to become a leader in business, you have to have some kind of business-focused educational background. But the truth is that leaders of many companies which are household names share one thing in common: they were all educated in or began their careers in some form of engineering discipline.

These are exciting times to be an RF engineer. With the advent of 5G, the Internet of Things, and the increasing expansion of the private sector into space, we are about to witness some extraordinary developments in radio frequency tech in the next decade.

There are a lot of engineers coming out of school who want to get in on the action. So, what are the traits that help an RF engineer succeed? What distinguishes those who advance in their careers and land the most desirable positions from those who don’t? Let’s explore this in detail and break down 3 of the most important qualities that make a successful RF engineer.

Quality improvement is a concept that has become widely understood and embraced across all industries in the past few decades. Methodologies like Kaizen and Six Sigma have helped improve manufacturing efficiency, reduce errors, and bring superior products to market.

Space. One of the biggest mysteries of mankind. Are we alone? Will humans ever sustain themelves on mars or other planets? What else is is out there waiting to be explored outside of our solar system? These questions and more lead many young people to pursue a career in engineering. While human space exploration involves the minds of many different types of engineers, RF engineers are among the most important. 

More people are online than ever before. At the turn of the century, there were only around 500 million internet users in the whole world. As of 2015, 3.2 billion people had access to the internet according to an estimate by the International Telecommunications Union. Here's a graph to put that into persective. Almost increasing exponentially! 

In spite of all this incredible progress, more work needs to be done. Today around 4 billion people still lack access to the web, according to a report by the World Economic Forum. Even in developed countries like the United States, there are still some 55 million people that don’t have access to broadband internet.

Do You Have The (Right) Skills?

If you were to ask the typical layperson what the most important quality of a successful engineer is, they would probably consider technical expertise to be the most vital. But the truth is that in RF engineering - as in all other branches of engineering - there are many other qualities that are necessary for success which are less quantifiable than technical skills. Electrical engineers who want to advance in their careers must also develop leadership skills in order to differentiate themselves from the competition and increase their value in the marketplace.