Research Focus

The Communications and Networks group is actively engaged in cutting edge research in various areas related to information and communication technologies. The group has ongoing research projects related to 4G and 5G cellular networks, the Internet of Things and cyber physical systems, protocols and technologies for wireless and wired networks, energy-efficient communication systems, cognitive radio, sensor networks, information and coding theory, underwater networks, and quantum information and quantum computing. Among notable contributions of the group include a large body of work on communications with energy harvesting. A number of members of the group are also associated with the NUS-Singtel corporate research laboratory with particular emphasis of cyber-security for the Internet of Things and industrial control systems. The group currently has 15 faculty members, more than 50 graduate students and research staff, and over 15 million dollars in research funding.

Communications

Research on communications systems by our group encompasses modulation and coding techniques for wireless systems, communication techniques for devices powered by energy harvesting, underwater communications, and quantum communications. The fundamental areas of this research direction include statistical signal processing, information theory, and communication theory. Ongoing research projects in the area include communications for next generation cellular networks, military communications, MIMO antenna systems, and cognitive radio.

Networking

The research in the area of computer networks encompasses all layers of the protocol stack and specific areas such as sensor network, Internet of Things, and vehicular networks. The current work on networking protocols focuses on scalable and energy-efficient medium access control for IoT devices and management strategies for software defined networks. Members of the research group also operate an experimental vehicular wireless mesh network. We are also developing information processing techniques for sensor networks that use edge and fog computing techniques.

Cyber Security

The research in the area of cyber security primarily focuses on security for the Internet of Things, network security, and quantum cryptography. Using techniques based on statistical analysis and machine learning, the group is developing techniques for intrusion detection, mitigating denial-of-service attacks, and securing network infrastructure. We also work closely with the integrated circuits group to develop low-power security solutions for IoT devices. A significant part of the work in this area is done in conjunction with the NUS-Singtel corporate research laboratory on cyber-security.