Harnessing Terahertz Signals to Bridge Digital and Neurological Divides

This seminar will explore the potential for signals in the terahertz band to bridge divides digitally by increasing worldwide Internet access as well as neurologically by interacting with neurons.

Ranging from 0.1 to 10 THz, the terahertz band has recently attracted much attention due to its broad available bandwidths that can help enable data rates on the order of terabits-per-second. These kinds of speeds are on par with wired, fiber optical systems and have the potential to bridge the digital divide. Although many innovative solutions have been presented for terahertz communications throughout the protocol stack, these solutions do little to mitigate the fundamental challenge of designing and fabricating hardware able to process the amount of bandwidth that makes these frequencies so attractive. This seminar will point to the need for a more collaborative approach to jointly design the physical layer with hardware.

In addition to their potential for communications, terahertz signals also have recently been shown to interact with certain proteins in the human body. Proteins regulate the human nervous system, and many medical treatments interact with specific proteins to initiate or inhibit certain chain reactions. The second half of the seminar will discuss terahertz signals’ potential for therapeutic treatments.

Bio: Duschia Bodet received her B.S. in Electrical Engineering and M.S. in Communications, Control, and Signal Processing in 2021 from Northeastern University. Continuing at Northeastern for her Ph.D. as part of the Institute for the Wireless Internet of Things, Duschia has explored physical layer solutions for terahertz communications. Aside from peer-reviewed scientific papers and dataset publications, Duschia has also contributed to the standard IEEE 802.15.3d for terahertz communications. She is the recipient of the 2024 Marconi Society Paul Baran Young Scholar Award, a 2023 GLOBECOM Best Paper Award, and several other awards from IEEE and Northeastern University.