Modern Characterization of Electromagnetic Systems and its Associated Metrology
and scalable for practical adoption by industry. Among his many contributions together with his students and coworkers, it may be mentioned the development of the generalized pencil‐of‐function (GPOF) method, also known as matrix pencil method, for signal estimation with complex exponentials. Based on Dr. Sarkar group’s work on the original pencil‐of‐function method, the technique is used in electromagnetic analyses of layered structures, antenna analysis, and radar signal processing. He is also coauthor of the general purpose electromagnetic solver HOBBIES (Higher Order Basis Based Integral Equation Solver). The list of Professor Sarkar’s original and substantive contributions to the field of computational electromagnetics and antenna theory is quite long. Just to name a few, these include methods of evaluating the Sommerfeld integrals, the already mentioned matrix pencil method for approximating a function by a sum of complex exponentials, the conjugate gradient method and fast Fourier transform method for the efficient numerical solution of integral equations having convolutional kernels, the introduction of higher order basis functions in the numerical solution of integral equations using the method of moments, the solution of time domain problems using the associated Laguerre functions as basis functions, the application of the Cauchy method to the generation of accurate broadband information from narrowband data, broadband antenna design and analysis, and near‐field to far‐field transformation, and many more. Dr. Sarkar’s work has modernized many systems that include wireless signal propagation, has made possible the design of antennas considering the effects of the platforms where they are deployed for the current and next generations of airborne surveillance system, and has developed adaptive methodologies that made performance of adaptive systems possible in real time. His advanced computational techniques have been implemented for parallel processing on super computers for fast and efficient solution of extremely large electromagnetic field problems. He has also developed antenna systems and processing for ultrawideband applications. He applied photoconductive switching techniques for generation of kilovolts amplitude electrical pulses of subnanosecond duration with applications in many fields including low probability intercept radar systems. It is remarkable that Dr. Sarkar has been able to keep innovating for such a sustained period of time throughout his career. Professor Sarkar has authored or coauthored more than 380 journal articles, innumerable contributions for conferences and symposia, 16 books and 32 book chapters, with 24 549 citations and h‐index of 74 (Google Scholar). In the past, he was listed among the ISI Highly Cited Researchers and in Guide 2 Research, Top H‐index for Antennas and Propagation. He was the principal investigator of numerous research projects and contracts (some of them of multimillion USD), including setting up a parallel supercomputer center at NAVAIR (Naval Air Systems Command), USA. He worked also for foreign governmental organizations and institutions.
His research received a number of awards and recognitions: the Best Solution Award at the Rome Air Development Center (RADC) Spectral Estimation Workshop, May 1971, the Best Paper Award, IEEE Transactions on Electromagnetic Compatibility, October 1979, the College of Engineering Research Award, Syracuse University, 1996, the Best Paper Award, National Radar Conference, 1997, the Chancellor’s Citation for Excellence in Research, Syracuse University, 1998. In 1992, he was elevated to IEEE Fellow, “for contributions to iterative solutions of numerical models in electromagnetic theory.” As mentioned before, he received three Honorary Doctorate degrees from three European Universities. He also received the medal of the Friend of the City of Clermont‐Ferrand, Clermont‐Ferrand, France, in 2000. He was the 2020 recipient of the IEEE Electromagnetics Award, the highest technical recognition by IEEE in the field of electromagnetics, “for contributions to the efficient and accurate solution of computational electromagnetic problems in frequency and time domain, and for research in adaptive antennas.”
Dr. Sarkar had a strong background in mathematics and physics, which gave him the ability to address any topic in the field with an original, unique, but always scientifically sound point of view. He had the ability to make complex problems, easy, and to draw practical conclusions. He admired, recognized, and respected the pioneers in our field but also the many individuals whose contributions made the body of electromagnetics. As mentioned before, recently, he was selected as the 2020 IEEE Electromagnetics Award recipient, a recognition that made him happy and humble.
Dr. Sarkar had a passion to learn. One of his mottos coming from Sri Ramakrishna was “As long as I live, so long do I learn.” He exemplified it all along his life. He was constantly reading. And he was passionate about teaching others, starting with his students, both during his lessons and his weekly research meetings, which he conducted in a strong way asking hard work and dedication from his students, but at the same time offering insight on possible new approaches. He has advised students and postdocs from all over the world, who in many cases are now professors themselves in their countries of origin. He established collaborations with many of them and whenever possible he will visit them and their families.
Dr. Sarkar imposing scientific and physical stature, loud voice (no microphone needed!), were proverbial in the Applied Electromagnetics and Antennas and Propagation scientific community. Many of his students and colleagues have experienced also his generosity and kindness, which complemented his personality. He took a personal interest on daily‐life aspects of his students, postdocs, and invited scholars and engineers, always going the extra mile for them.
It should be mentioned here that writing books, which compiled Dr. Sarkar’s team research results on a given topic, is also a consequence of his generosity. He tried to facilitate the learning process of researchers by offering them the opportunity of finding all the necessary information in just one place, together in many cases with the relevant software. He was never scared of the tiring and time‐consuming effort that writing a book or a book contribution implies. He will also negotiate with the editor the lowest possible price of the book.
Dr. Sarkar impact goes far beyond his scientific achievements and his work as teacher and research advisor. He was passionate about serving the scientific community. He devoted a huge amount of his time to The Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), and the IEEE Technical Societies relevant to him, mainly the Antennas and Propagation Society (AP‐S). Besides serving as reviewer for many journals, he was associate editor of several of them. He was also AP‐S Administrative Committee (AdCom) member, AP‐S President, AP‐S distinguished lecturer, chair of AP‐S Membership and Geographic Activities (MGA) committee, chair of the AP‐S Special Interest Group on Humanitarian Technologies (SIGHT), AP‐S AdCom Honorary member, and other positions. He also served as member of the IEEE Technical Activities Board (TAB), and some of its committees, member of IEEE Fellow Committee and other IEEE committees. More recently, he was elected as IEEE Vice President for Publications Services and Products, and Chair of IEEE Publications Services and Products Board (PSPB). Many of these positions were elected positions, testament to his credibility and the immense respect in which the IEEE, AP‐S, and scientific community held him. His tenacious character served IEEE well. Once he was convinced a change was needed, he would “fight” until the end in order to achieve the intended goals. Dr. Sarkar was the driving force behind the creation of several new AP‐S publications and other journals in cooperation between AP‐S and other IEEE Technical Societies. He also had a key influence in expanding the international reach of AP‐S and its activities, through tireless visits and meetings around the globe, organizing events, and generating substantial growth of the AP‐S membership and the AP‐S local chapters over the past few years. Professor Sarkar also had a major role in strengthening and supporting two international conferences sponsored by the AP‐S. He also held numerous leadership and editorial positions in other organizations, e.g. he was on the board of directors of the Applied Computational Electromagnetics Society (ACES) and was later the vice president of ACES. As mentioned before, Professor Sarkar was elected as 2020 IEEE Vice President for Publications Services and Products, IEEE Director, and IEEE Board of Directors member. He was full of energy and enthusiasm to continue to contribute to the improvement of IEEE and its service to Humanity and he started as soon as the election results were communicated in November 2019. Sadly, from April 2020, he was unable to continue his work because of his health condition.
Dr. Sarkar’s kindness and genuine soft‐heartedness – often expressed in the most outspoken and emphatic ways – will never be forgotten. His technical accomplishments are numerous and are what he is most well known for in