Microwaves in the 1990's

Over the past 30 years microwave technology has matured and grown with ever increasing civil and military systems applications and the industry is now enjoying for the first time an important status with the investment community. The 1980's will witness massive research and development funding in the microwave technology required to be deployed in major new operational systems of the late 1980's and 1990's, including large communication satellites, direct broadcast satellites, Navstar global positioning systems, phased-array and airborne multimode radars, electronic warfare and remote sensing systems. By the 1990's sophisticated computer-aided design and computer-aided manufacturing techniques will be employed by the microwave industry and operational frequencies to 200 GHz will be commonplace. Thereby, microwaves will move from its current batch production techniques to the mass production techniques now commonplace in the semiconductor industry and, in turn, this will require optimum use of the scarce skilled manpower resource.