Xuekang Liu (Member, IEEE) received the M.S. degree (Hons.) in Electromagnetic Field and Microwave Technology from Xidian University (Xi’an, China, 2020), and the Ph.D. degree in Engineering from the University of Kent (Canterbury, U.K., 2024) under the supervision of Prof. Steven Gao and Dr. Benito Sanz-Izquierdo. His research interests include multiband arrays, transmitarrays, metasurfaces, filtering antennas, sub-THz antennas, RF systems, and MIMO antennas.

Dr. Liu was a recipient of the Best Student Paper Award at the 17th International Workshop on Antenna Technology (iWAT 2022), Dublin, and the Outstanding Academic Achievement for his M.S. program. He received the Young Scientist Award from the International Union of Radio Science (URSI) Member Committee, Germany, in 2022.

He actively contributes as a reviewer for more than ten prestigious international journals, including IEEE Transactions on Instrumentation and Measurement, IEEE Transactions on Antennas and Propagation, IEEE Antennas and Wireless Propagation Letters, Nature Scientific Reports, and IET Microwaves, Antennas & Propagation. Additionally, he serves as an International Program Committee Member for the European Conference on Antennas and Propagation (2025), the International Conference on AI in Healthcare (2024), and the United Conference on Millimetre Waves and Terahertz Technologies (2024).

Professional Experience

Postdoctoral Researcher (Full-time) -Imperial College London, UK (Jun 2025-Present)

• Design and Prototyping of Reconfigurable Intelligent Surfaces and Metasurfaces.

Postdoctoral Researcher (Full-time) -Lancaster University, UK (Jun 2024-May 2025)

• Successfully designed 2-bit and 3-bit quad-beam transmitarrays utilizing a combination of CNC machining, PCB technology, and 3D printing. Achieved a sidelobe level reduction to below -20 dB.
• A sub-THz (W-band) communication system is developed.
• Successfully developed a range of single-beam and multi-beam dielectric lens antennas, compatible with 3D printing and CNC machining technologies.
• Contribute to experimental setup for antenna/array measurements (W-band).

Research Fellow (Part-time) -University of Hertfordshire, UK (Apr 2024-Jun 2024)

• Fabricate and measure antennas and conduct literature review on RIS (Reconfigurable Intelligent Surfaces).
• Oversee project documentation, supporting grant application processes, and writing reports and articles.

Signal Processing Engineer- Huaqing Ruida Technology Co.Ltd, China (Full-time: Feb 2017-Aug 2017, Part-time: Sept 2017-Nov 2018)

• Participated in constructing the target simulator system, responsible for RF link simulation (using Keysight SystemVue) and validation (on-site testing).

Education

PhD in Electronic Engineering - University of Kent, Canterbury, UK (Jan 2021-Jun 2024)

• Supervisors: Prof. Steven Gao, Google Scholar, FIEEE, FRAeS, FIET, Editor-in-Chief of IEEE AWPL, and Dr. Benito Sanz-Izquierdo, Google Scholar.

MEng in Electromagnetic Field and Microwave Technology- Xidian University, Xi’an, China (Sept 2017-Jul 2020)

• Supervisor: Prof. Wei Hu, Google Scholar

BEng in Electronic Information Engineering- Xidian University, Xi’an, China (Sept 2012-Jul 2016)