RF Globalnet Discussion Forum Hosts
Active & Passive Circuits Forum
George Vendelin
George Vendelin received his BSEE, MSEE, and EngEE degrees from Stanford University. In a professional career spanning more than 40 years, he has held microwave engineering and management positions with companies including Texas Instruments, Signetics, Fairchild Semiconductor, Varian Associates, Dexcel, Eaton Electronic, and Avantek. He is currently president of his own firm, Vendelin Engineering, Inc. (Saratoga, CA), which provides consulting services in microwave CAD applications for numerous companies.
In addition, Vendelin is an adjunct lecturer at Stanford University, Santa Clara University, San Jose State University, and the University of California Extension. From February 2004 to May 2005, he served as a visiting professor at the University of Aveiro, Portugal. He is currently a visiting professor at National Taiwan University, a post he will hold until August 2006.
Vendelin has published two books: Design of Amplifiers and Oscillators by the S-Parameter Method (1982) and Microwave Circuit Design Using Linear and Nonlinear Techniques (1990). He is presently finishing his third book (all for Wiley), which is the second edition of Microwave Circuit Design Using Linear and Nonlinear Techniques. He is also the owner of four patents and has published many papers and given technical lectures around the world.
Vendelin was elected IEEE Fellow in January 1999 for his pioneering work on millimeter-wave microwave monolithic integrated circuits (in 1968, he published a paper describing the first millimeter-wave MMIC). He became a Life IEEE Fellow in January 2004.
Antenna Forum
Lawrence Williams
Lawrence Williams, Ph.D., is director of business development at Ansoft Corporation, responsible for building strategic relationships with leading Ansoft customers and business partners. His responsibilities include the strategic direction of HFSS, the industry-leading full-wave electromagnetic simulator for microwave, wireless, and high-speed electronic component design. Dr. Williams is an expert in the application of electromagnetic field simulation to the design of antennas, microwave components, and high-speed electronics. He has over 19 years experience in the fields of electromagnetics and communications engineering and has published numerous technical papers on the subject.
Dr. Williams held various senior engineering positions in the Engineering Division of Hughes Aircraft Company, Radar Systems Group, where he was responsible for hardware design and development of advanced active phased array radar antennas, array element and aperture design, associated microwave subsystems, and antenna metrology.
He received his master's, engineers, and Ph.D. degrees from UCLA in 1989, 1993, and 1995, respectively.
Retirement Planning for Engineers
Mike Golio
Mike Golio is the son of a coal miner. He grew up in a small town in Southern Illinois where he worked in the mines, on road crews, clearing brush, and a in wide variety of other manual labor positions. By winning a scholarship and working part time while in school, he earned his BSEE degree in 1975. After working as a microwave design engineer for two years, he was able to return to school and completed his MSEE and his Ph.D. studies in 1980 and 1983, respectively. Including his college education, university teaching, and employment in industry, Dr. Golio worked in the electrical engineering field for over 31 years. During his career, his job titles included member of the technical staff, research assistant, assistant professor, senior engineer, manager, and director. In his work, he has designed and built electronics hardware, developed theoretical and empirical models for microwave transistors, managed large engineering organizations, and directed corporate research and development strategies. He has also published over 150 technical papers and served as editor for six books. Dr. Golio serves as a reviewer for several professional journals, IEEE conferences, and book publishers. He has been actively involved in professional activities and has held a variety of volunteer positions in both IEEE Microwave Theory and Techniques Society and IEEE Electron Device Society. He has won several awards for his service and contributions to these professional organizations.
Dr. Golio has also published articles in archaeology volumes about his investigations of prehistoric cultures of the Southwest. He has co-written two children's books with his wife, JJ. (JJ also holds a degree and worked in electrical engineering.) In 1995, Dr. Golio became seriously interested in planning for early retirement. In 2003, at the age of 49, Golio and his wife achieved their goal of financial independence and retired. They remain very active -- volunteering at community functions, working for their county election board, and serving as liaison to the city for their neighborhood. Retirement has also provided them the opportunity to travel, visit family, and pursue their interests outside of electrical engineering. He and JJ enjoy the outdoors, and they hike over 40 miles per week together. He still enjoys spending time on technical efforts, participating in professional activities. He will be the editor of IEEE Microwave Magazine starting in 2006.
Short-Range Wireless Forum
Alan Bensky
Alan Bensky, MScEE, is an electronics engineering consultant with over 25 years of experience in analog and digital design, management, and marketing. Specializing in wireless circuits and systems, Bensky has carried out projects for varied military and consumer applications. He is the author of Short-range Wireless Communication, Second Edition, published by Elsevier, 2004, and has written several articles in international and local publications. He has taught courses and gives lectures on radio engineering topics. Bensky is a senior member of IEEE.
Software & Modeling Forum
John Barr
John Barr, Agilent Technologies, has been in the component test and measurement business for over 30 years. He started as a front-end designer for HP network analyzers, then wrote data analysis firmware for the HP8510 and project managed the millimeter-wave and pulse measurement programs for the HP8510. In the 1990s, he lead the development of the HP RFIC production test system (HP84000). Most recently, he has been involved with the application of Agilent EEsof EDA tools in RFIC and wireless IC design.
Barr has published 12 papers on component measurement techniques, received five patents, and participated in over ten conference workshops. He has participated as a reviewer for T-MTT, L-MWC, T-I&M, and served on the International Microwave Symposium TPC for ten years. He has participated in the last four NEMI roadmaps.
Barr is a Fellow of the IEEE. He was 2002 IEEE MTT-S president and is the general chair for the 2006 IEEE MTT-S International Microwave Symposium. He is presently serves on the IEEE Technical Activities Board and the IEEE Publication Services & Products Board. He is also a long time member and past president of ARFTG.
Career Development Forum
Windy Bradfield
Windy Bradfield, CSAM, is a consultant with Management Recruiters of Boulder, a recruiting services provider for the RF/microwave and wireless markets. She has been with the company since January 1985 and is a member of the "Three Million Dollar Club" (career billings). She works all areas in the RF industry. Windy has been repeatedly recognized for her accomplishments in technical recruiting. She has attained Pacesetter status and been in the top 10 for the South West Region numerous times. She earned the distinction of Certified Senior Account Manager (CSAM) in 1988.
For seven years prior to entering recruiting, Windy headed up her own consulting firm, which specialized in problem solving for troubled small businesses. Before that she spent six years teaching adults at a technical trade school.
In her spare time, Windy can be found on the golf course. She has had both a hole-in-one and an eagle.
Career Development Forum
Rich Bradfield
Rich Bradfield is a wireless marketing and sales veteran with experience in RF, wireless data, cellular data, wireless voice, and paging. He began recruiting in 1993 and is currently a consultant with Management Recruiters of Boulder, a recruiting services provider for the RF/microwave and wireless markets. Rich works all areas in the RF industry with engineers, executives, and salespeople.
Earlier in his career, Rich built and sold a chain of retail wireless stores. He also has experience working in a corporate environment, holding positions in finance and systems development at American Airlines and NeXT Computer. He was a commissioned officer in the United States Marine Corps and earned an MBA from the University of Texas at Austin and a Bachelor of Science degree from the Metropolitan State College of Denver.
An avid cyclist, Rich rides and races both road and mountain bikes. He and his wife, Jennifer, rode bicycles around the world on their honeymoon.