Semantic-aware joint communication and sensing in distributed non-terrestrial networks

KU Leuven; Belgique; Vor Ort; EUR 20.000 - 27.000; Vollzeit

Benefits dieser Stelle

KU Leuven affiliation

Zusammenfassung

KU Leuven invites applications for a First Stage Researcher (R1) PhD position in advanced non-terrestrial communication systems. The project focuses on semantic-aware distributed aerial networks with UAVs and WB sensors, addressing energy efficiency and semantic communications for real-time control.

You will join a multidisciplinary team in Belgium, work on theory and implementation, and benefit from a four-year PhD scholarship with evaluations.

Qualifikationen

• Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering or Telecommunication Engineering.
• Ranked within the top 10% of MSc and BSc and have exceptional grades.
• Strong communication skills and is fluent in English.
• Solid background in wireless communication and networking fundamentals.
• Strong interpersonal skills and the ability to work in an international team.
• Experience in AI-enabled signal processing and machine learning algorithms is a valuable addition.

Kenntnisse

Strong communication skills

Fluent in English

Interpersonal skills

Wireless communication

Machine learning basics

Team collaboration

Ausbildung

Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering or Telecommunication Engineering

Jobbeschreibung

Organisation/Company KU LEUVEN Research Field Engineering » Communication engineering Researcher Profile First Stage Researcher (R1) Application Deadline 31 Dec 2026 - 23:59 (UTC) Country Belgium Type of Contract Temporary Job Status Full-time Offer Starting Date 1 Feb 2027 Is the job funded through the EU Research Framework Programme? Not funded by a EU programme Reference Number BAP-2026-644 Is the Job related to staff position within a Research Infrastructure? No

Offer Description

As climate change intensifies, clear-air turbulence in aviation becomes more severe, and natural disasters occur more frequently. Even with the current typical 10-day weather forecast in the troposphere (less than 20 km), the exact spatiotemporal mechanisms through which the Earth’s low altitudes (ELA) (less than or equals 50 km) impact weather patterns remain insufficiently understood. In-situ sensing in ELA offers an opportunity to extend weather forecasts far beyond the current 10-day range, improve ozone observation, and enhance cosmic radiation monitoring. The rapid advancements in rotary-wing and fixed-wing unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) technology make them a promising solution to densify ELA monitoring. However, expanding the density of meteorological sensors in the ELA to bridge the spatiotemporal meteorological gaps presents major fundamental challenges. First, the vast volume and heterogeneity of data generated by airborne UAV and WB sensors strain efficient raw data transfer and require significant computational resources for centralized processing. Second, the existing centralized, terrestrial-based control infrastructure cannot scale with the increasing number of airborne sensors due to bandwidth and coverage constraints. These challenges are further exacerbated due to the limited energy budget and computational resources of the meteorological aerial sensor.
In its first phase, this PhD project aims to design an ultra-efficient, semantic-aware distributed aerial network tailored for aerial nodes’ control, featuring semantic communication to maximize energy/spectrum efficiency, sending control semantics (e.g., stay/change/continue path) instead of positional information. Semantic-ware PHY-MAC cross-layer design will be studied in the context of M2M communication (i.e., UAVs and WBs) for real-time control. In the second phase, seamless integration of sensing, computation, and communication functionalities for context-aware self-organized aerial networks will be investigated.

We are looking for highly motivated PhD researchers with an interest in non-terrstrial communication systems design. The applicant should

• have a master’s degree in Electrical Engineering or Telecommunication Engineering,
• beranked within the top 10% of their class in MSc and BSc, and have exceptional grades,
• have has strong communication skills and is fluentin English,
  
• have a solid background in wireless communication and networking fundamentals,
• have strong interpersonal skills and the ability to work in an international team.
  
• Experience in AI-enabled signal processing and machine learning algorithms is a valuable addition.
  

We offer:

• A PhD scholarship for up to four years (subject to positive intermediate evaluations). If the applicant is non-EER, up to 1 year of pre-doc will also be supported.
  
• An exciting research environment, working on the intersection between theory and implementation in a very multi-disciplinary research environment.

A PhD title from ahighly rankeduniversity (#1 in Europe in terms of scientificinnovation) after approximately 4 years of successful research.

• A thorough scientific education, the possibility of becoming a world-class researcher.
  
• A KU Leuven affiliation, one of the largest research universities in Europe.
  

You will be working on a state-of-the-art topic with state-of-the-art laboratories.

• The possibility to participate in international conferences, workshops and collaborations with top EU research teams.
  
• A PhD scholarship for up to four years (subject to positive intermediate evaluations). If the applicant is non-EER, up to 1 year of pre-doc will also be supported.
  
• An exciting research environment, working on the intersection between theory and implementation in a very multi-disciplinary research environment.

A PhD title from ahighly rankeduniversity (#1 in Europe in terms of scientificinnovation) after approximately 4 years of successful research.

• A thorough scientific education, the possibility of becoming a world-class researcher.
  
• A KU Leuven affiliation, one of the largest research universities in Europe.
  

You will be working on a state-of-the-art topic with state-of-the-art laboratories.

• The possibility to participate in international conferences, workshops and collaborations with top EU research teams.
  

Eligibility criteria

We are looking for highly motivated PhD researchers with an interest in non-terrstrial communication systems design. The applicant should

• have a master’s degree in Electrical Engineering or Telecommunication Engineering,
• beranked within the top 10% of their class in MSc and BSc, and have exceptional grades,
• have has strong communication skills and is fluentin English,
  
• have a solid background in wireless communication and networking fundamentals,
• have strong interpersonal skills and the ability to work in an international team.
  
• Experience in AI-enabled signal processing and machine learning algorithms is a valuable addition.