December 2012
VIEW FROM THE TOP

David Vondran
Marketing Manager, OML, Inc.

Q: The importance of sustaining and developing technology has reached a point where states and cities are more actively building relationships with universities and recruiting high-tech companies. However, there continues to be a shortage of engineering graduates, especially those focusing on RF and microwave technology. What would your company do (or is doing) to help promote careers?

A: OML is a pioneer of measurement tools for the 50 GHz to 0.5 THz millimeter wave (mm-wave) spectrum. This is important to know because, as this spectrum implies, we are a niche business developing technology for emerging markets. For that reason, our “over-the-horizon” viewpoint reflects the entrepreneurial culture of our customer base. This simply means that our company and our customers are both in a common quest to satisfy unique new applications with innovative technology.

A main ingredient in our success is collaboration across diverse academic, industrial, corporate and geographical boundaries. This collaborative process inspires the development of expertise while also creating a foundation that promotes further creativity, exploration and discovery. This unbridled collaborative spirit produces innovative solutions that fuels growth; in turn attracting new engineers to participate in the emerging ecosystem. In development of our ecosystem, we also participate with mentoring, referrals, recommendations and recruitment activities.

This is the recipe that OML follows in our ecosystem to attract and cultivate the future generation of microwave engineers.

Q:For those of you serving the military market, what do you expect 2013 will bring in terms of opportunities in this sector?

A: OML expects continued research in the mm-wave spectrum to support the goals for a technologically-advanced military. In general, the emerging technology will enable secure communications, imaging, material sciences, biomedical and a variety of homeland defense applications. Frequency extension products from OML support these activities by overcoming the inherent microwave limitations in commercial vector network analyzers, signal generators and spectrum analyzers. Using these mm-wave tools, engineers can easily characterize performance in their applications using available instruments, accessories and techniques.

Q:If your company serves the commercial markets, are you encouraged by any particular emerging application or technology?

A: The consumption of wireless data will continue to drive innovation in short-range wireless mobile devices and ultra-high capacity point-to-point radio infrastructure. In particular, the mobile 57-64 GHz spectrum is nearing commercialization for extreme data rate applications (e.g., WiGig and IEEE 802.11ad). Also, the infrastructure deployment of E-band solutions (i.e., 70-80-90 GHz) is gaining momentum. The shorter wavelengths and available broad bandwidth in the mm-wave spectrum can support profitable solutions if some key atmospheric absorption and cost obstacles are overcome.

This mm-wave wireless trend impacts all facets of component and system development so it represents an exciting future where wireless downloads of video will occur in minutes (instead of hours). OML products focus on the characterization of these key transmit and receive devices that will enable the cost effective use of mm-wave spectrum. In addition to device characterization solutions, OML also manufactures converters that operate with microwave vector signal generators and signal analyzers to simulate these emerging broadband signals.

Q: Last year, we asked what impact the global economic crisis was having on the markets you serve and on how you run your business. What is your current perspective?

A: Most countries recognize that technological innovation fuels both business growth and national goals. In pursuit of these innovation benefits, we anticipate continued and significant global investment in research of “over-the-horizon” solutions that exploit the mm-wave spectrum. Consistent with this outlook, OML is actively responding to the needs of our early adopter customers with investments that evolve our enabling mm-wave technology while exploring some new disruptive technologies. Based on this activity, we are cautiously optimistic on the initiatives, discoveries and businesses that lie ahead.

Q: What countries or regions do you believe will provide the greatest growth potential for the wireless industry in 2013?

A: We are in the midst of an information era where knowledge is wealth and a key enabling technology is wireless access to the Internet. Based on historical trends, future mm-wave growth will likely occur where businesses can offer reliable and affordable high-speed wireless access to customers. Given the current E-band infrastructure deployment and the mobile commercialization of multi-gigabit applications (i.e., WiGig), we believe a ripe environment for growth exists for the wireless industry starting in 2013.

The greatest growth potential will happen in regions with early adopter customers ready to embrace this technology, which includes Japan, Europe, Eastern Asia and the United States of America (and the rest of the world will most certainly follow). Beyond 2013, we also anticipate this cycle to repeat itself for the emerging mm-wave innovation that will inevitably follow in subsequent waves! ♦