The 1st edition of the Deloitte Merit Award in Telecommunications brought together, on 12 March, three final-year students in the Master’s Programme in Electrical and Computer Engineering (MEEC) at Instituto Superior Técnico, Universidade de Lisboa, to present their dissertations. The session took place in the former exhibition hall of the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering (DEEC) at Alameda campus.
Each finalist gave a pitch presenting their work, competing for a prize of €2,500. The jury consisted of Pedro Sanguinho and Hugo Pinto from Deloitte, and Técnico professors Mário Silveirinha, José Sanguinho, and Rui Castro, the coordinator of the Master’s programme.
On the theme of “Space-based high-speed quantum communication”, Duarte Barreto gave a presentation focused on the development of a new quantum communication protocol, known as QKPC. The work included the creation of a simulator for satellite-to-Earth scenarios and outdoor testing, demonstrating the feasibility of secure communications in high-brightness conditions, thereby overcoming the limitations of traditional protocols. Nuno Baptista dedicated his research to the use of cork as a sustainable material for radomes, a structural, weatherproof enclosure that protects communications antennas. The results demonstrate its viability in high-frequency antennas, with reduced losses, pointing towards more sustainable solutions in mobile networks.
Tomás Maia’s work, “Design of Optical Networks Based on the Super C + Super L Solution Using Machine Learning Techniques”, focused on increasing the capacity of optical networks to support services such as 5G and cloud computing. To this end, he developed a simulator that, using artificial intelligence techniques, can quickly and precisely estimate the capacity of these networks.
“It was an interesting opportunity to foster links between academia and practical application in industry”, said Hugo Pinto from Deloitte, congratulating the students on reaching this important milestone. Rui Castro, a professor and coordinator of the Master’s programme, highlighted the quality of the projects presented, stating, “there were three very interesting projects, and the jury will face a difficult decision”. He also thanked the company for its support of the initiative.
The winning project will be announced at the end of the academic year, during the Técnico Merit Awards Ceremony, where donations will also be made to support teaching conditions. This award is part of the partnership between Técnico and Deloitte, a member of the Técnico Partner Network, which currently offers four Merit Awards that aim to recognise the excellence of Técnico students and professors in various fields of engineering.
