DIRECTOR’S MESSAGE

The Interdisciplinary Research Center for Communication Systems and Sensing is taking a leadership role in advancing the frontiers of RF wireless and optical communications, signal processing, antennas, radio wave propagation, electromagnetics, and sensing technologies -particularly in how these elements integrate to create smart and adaptive communication systems.

As part of our strategic expansion, we are placing increased emphasis on emerging domains such as Digital Twin technologies and Open Radio Access Networks (Open RAN). These focus areas are vital to enabling next-generation intelligent networks that are agile, virtualized, and highly interoperable.

Our mission is to foster innovation by conducting cutting-edge research and delivering solutions that address both current challenges and future demands. We aim to translate academic excellence into impactful outcomes for industry and government sectors. Through collaborations with internal and external partners, the center is addressing key interdisciplinary research initiatives aligned with national and global technological priorities.

The center is positioned to drive innovation in areas such as channel modeling, drone detection, spectrum management, antenna and metasurface design, communication aspects of medical devices, and integrated sensing and communications (ISAC) with applications in oil and gas, localization and positioning, and environmental monitoring.

Leveraging the power of Artificial Intelligence, we are also working to create a regional epicenter for wireless communication and sensing innovations, with Digital Twins enabling real-time system modeling and Open RAN architectures fostering more secure, flexible, and cost-effective wireless ecosystems.

Our overarching mission is to advance knowledge in communication systems and sensing and facilitate its transformation into practical, commercial innovations that serve society.

We warmly invite you - as a researcher, partner, collaborator, or student—to join us in shaping the future of communication and sensing through an inclusive and forward-looking research environment.

We look forward to welcoming you to the Institute.

Director’s BIO

• The Director of the IRC-CSS, KFUPM Professor Daniel Benevides da Costa, is a Distinguished University Professor in the Electrical Engineering Department.
• Prof. Daniel B. da Costa was born in Fortaleza, Ceará, Brazil. He earned his B.Sc. degree in Telecommunications Engineering from the prestigious Military Institute of Engineering (IME), Rio de Janeiro, in 2003. He pursued his M.Sc. and Ph.D. degrees in Electrical Engineering (Telecommunications) at the University of Campinas (UNICAMP), São Paulo, completing them in 2006 and 2008, respectively. His doctoral work received national recognition, winning the Best Ph.D. Thesis in Electrical Engineering in the 2009 CAPES Thesis Contest - an award granted by the Brazilian Ministry of Education. Following his Ph.D., Prof. da Costa served as a Postdoctoral Research Fellow at INRS-EMT, University of Quebec, Montreal, Canada, from 2008 to 2009. He then joined the Federal University of Ceará in 2010, where he contributed significantly to research and teaching until 2022. His international academic journey includes several high-profile visiting appointments. In early 2019, during a sabbatical leave, he served as Visiting Professor at Lappeenranta University of Technology (LUT) in Finland, supported by the prestigious Nokia Visiting Professor Grant, which he was awarded in both 2018 and 2021. He also held visiting positions at King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) in Saudi Arabia (May - August 2019) and Istanbul Medipol University, Turkey (September - November 2019). From 2021 to 2022, he was a Full Professor at the National Yunlin University of Science and Technology (YunTech)in Taiwan. He later served as a Principal Researcher at the Digital Science Research Center, part of the Technology Innovation Institute (TII) in Abu Dhabi, UAE, from March 2022 to January 2024. Currently, Prof. da Costa holds the position of Distinguished University Professor in the Department of Electrical Engineering at King Fahd University of Petroleum & Minerals (KFUPM), Saudi Arabia, where he continues to lead and inspire groundbreaking research in telecommunications and related fields.
• Over the past decade, Prof. Daniel B. da Costa has played a leading role in shaping the academic and professional landscape of telecommunications through his deep involvement with prestigious editorial boards, technical committees, and research organizations. He currently serves as Editor-in-Chief of the IEEE Communications Letters, one of the most respected journals in the field, and as Specialty Chief Editor of the Wireless Communications Section of Frontiers in Communications and Networks. His editorial leadership has helped guide high-impact research to the global community. He has also contributed significantly to the organization of major international conferences across the globe. From 2017 to 2022, he served as Latin American Chapters Coordinator of the IEEE Vehicular Technology Society (VTS), fostering regional engagement and collaboration. In addition, he has served as a Scientific Consultant to the Brazilian National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq) and held the prestigious CNPq Productivity Research Fellowship, advancing through Levels 2, 1D, and 1C. Between 2012 and 2017, Prof. da Costa was a member of the Advisory Board for the Ceará State Council of Scientific and Technological Development (FUNCAP), focusing on the telecommunications area. He also held leadership roles within the IEEE Technical Committee on Cognitive Networks (TCCN), including Vice-Chair for the Americas and Director of the TCCN Newsletter during 2019–2020. He was the inaugural Chair of the IEEE TCCN Special Interest Group (SIG) on Energy Harvesting Cognitive Radio Networks. He was the Vice-Chair of the Propagation Committee of the IEEE VTS (2023-2025), as well as Vice-Chair of the REFLECTIONS SIG on Reconfigurable Intelligent Surfaces for Signal Processing and Communications within the IEEE SPCC Technical Committee. Since 2022, he has also been a member of the NSERC Electrical and Computer Engineering Evaluation Group, contributing to Canada's national research funding evaluations. 
• Prof. da Costa is the recipient of seven Best Paper Awards at international conferences. His editorial excellence has been consistently recognized through several awards. Since 2021, Prof. da Costa has been listed in the World’s Top 2% Scientists by Stanford University, both for specific years and entire career impact. Since 2022, he has also ranked among the Top 1% of Scientists globally in Electronics and Electrical Engineering, according to Research.com. In 2025, he was honored with the Best Research Award by the Department of Electrical Engineering at KFUPM, in recognition of his exceptional contributions to impactful research. That same year, he received the prestigious Open RAN & 6G Challenge Award from Saudi Arabia’s Research, Development, and Innovation Authority (RDIA) for his pioneering efforts in advancing Open RAN and 6G technologies. Prof. da Costa is also a Distinguished Speaker of the IEEE Vehicular Technology Society, a Senior Member of IEEE, and an active member of both the IEEE Communications Society and the IEEE Vehicular Technology Society.