Professor Gabriele Gradoni
Academic and research departments
Institute for Communication Systems, School of Computer Science and Electronic Engineering.About
Biography
Gabriele Gradoni earned his Ph.D. in electromagnetics from Università Politecnica delle Marche, Ancona, Italy, in 2010. He was a Visiting Researcher with the Time, Quantum, and Electromagnetics Team at the National Physical Laboratory, Teddington, U.K., in 2008. From 2010 to 2013, he was a Research Associate at the Institute for Research in Electronics and Applied Physics, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, USA. From 2013 to 2016, he was a Research Fellow in the School of Mathematical Sciences at the University of Nottingham, U.K. He later became Professor of Applied Mathematics and Electromagnetic Engineering, with a joint appointment between the School of Mathematical Sciences and the Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering.
Since May 2023, he has been Professor and Chair of Wireless Communications at the 6G Innovation Centre, Institute for Communication Systems, University of Surrey, Guildford, U.K. At Surrey, he leads the Quantum Electromagnetics Theory and Practice research area. He was a Royal Society Industry Fellow from 2020 to 2024 with British Telecom, U.K. Since December 2022, he has also been a Visiting Fellow in the Department of Computer Science and Technology, University of Cambridge, U.K., and an Adjunct Professor in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, USA.
His research spans probabilistic and asymptotic methods for wave propagation in complex systems, metasurface modelling, wave chaos, and quantum computational electromagnetics, with applications in electromagnetic compatibility and modern wireless communication systems. Prof. Gradoni is a member of IEEE, URSI, the American Physical Society and the Italian Electromagnetics Society. He was elected a Fellow of the Cambridge Philosophical Society in 2025.
His work has been recognized with several international awards, including the URSI Commission B Young Scientist Award in 2010 and 2016, the Italian Electromagnetics Society Gaetano Latmiral Prize in 2015, and an Honourable Mention for the IEEE TEMC Richard B. Schulz Transactions Prize Paper Award in 2020. He has also received several best paper awards at international conferences, including the Best Electromagnetics Paper Award at the European Conference of Antennas and Propagation 2022.
ResearchResearch interests
My research interests span electromagnetic wave modelling, statistical electromagnetics, wave chaos, metasurfaces, wireless propagation, and emerging quantum-assisted communication technologies. I am particularly interested in developing mathematical and physics-based channel modelling frameworks for complex electromagnetic environments, including reconfigurable and nonlocal metasurfaces, stochastic propagation models, electromagnetic information theory, and applications to future wireless, satellite, and quantum technologies.
Research projects
Project title Funder / scheme Funding size Supplement for Optimised deployment of Reconfigurable Intelligent Surface networks EPSRC Telecom Federated Hub HASC, led by University of Oxford £70,000 Optimised deployment of Reconfigurable Intelligent Surface networks EPSRC Telecom Federated Hub HASC, led by University of Oxford £295,000 iCASE disordered metasurfaces for 6G mobile networks British Telecom £140,000 Resilient wireless communication link by smart transceivers UKSA sponsored grant, ESA ARTES programme, 5G Hub Harwell €248,025 Random Ising Hamiltonian Modelling and Optimization of RIS-Assisted Wireless Communications Huawei Mathematical and Algorithmic Sciences Lab £257,908.40 ECCS-EPSRC: Towards Quantum-assisted Reconfigurable Indoor Wireless Environments NSF-EPSRC Collaborative Research £753,920.77 total; share £395,926.77 Next Generation of Resilient Wireless Communications Digital Nottingham “City as Lab” programme, combined FoS + FoE £18,740 MIMO Channel Hardening by Compact Antenna Arrays Royal Society – Supplement Industry Fellowship £33,235.96 MIMO Channel Hardening by Compact Antenna Arrays Royal Society Industry Fellowship – Supplement Summer Studentship £2,000 Object Illusion in Complex Electromagnetic Wave Environments, OBLICUE EPSRC New Horizons £255,593.65 Reconfigurable Intelligent Sustainable Environments for 6G Wireless Networks, RISE-6G EU New Horizon RIA ICT52 €6,499,613.75 total; share €321,636.75
Project title Funder / scheme Funding size MIMO Channel Hardening by Compact Antenna Arrays Royal Society Industry Fellowship with BT and Cambridge £107,880.48 Support for Royal Society Industry Fellowship Inter-Faculty Research Development, University of Nottingham £20,000 MIMO communication in a wave chaotic environment and in the near field Nottingham–Lund collaboration fund £6,000 Propagating electromagnetic signals through complex built-up structures: Resilience of electronic components in the presence of EM noise and environmental uncertainty Office of Naval Research Global, Directed Energy Directorate, USA £221,725 A quantum graph approach for modelling complex cable networks with defects Modelling an Uncertain World Nottingham – Collaborative Kickstarter Funding £6,500 Advanced characterisation and classification of radiated emissions in densely integrated technologies EU COST Action IC1407 €399,000 Noisy Electromagnetic Fields: A Technological Platform for Chip-to-Chip Communication in the 21st Century EU Horizon 2020 – FET Open €3,419,638 total; share £758,195 Entropic approaches to mode-stirred billiards Royal Society International Exchange £6,000 Topological networks of small antennas for broadband mobile-mobile communications: performance and optimal configurations Telecom Italia €15,000
Research collaborations
- University of Nottingham, UK
- University of Cambridge, UK
- University of Oxford, UK
- King's College London, UK
- University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, USA
- University of Maryland, College Park, USA
- Università Politecnica delle Marche, Italy
- Universita' Partenopoe di Napoli, Italy
- Sapienza University of Rome, Italy
- Lund University, Sweden
- Tohoku University, Japan
- University of Adelaide, Australia
- Technical University of Munich, Germany
Indicators of esteem
Visiting Professor, University of Cambridge
Adjunct Professor, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, USA
Research interests
My research interests span electromagnetic wave modelling, statistical electromagnetics, wave chaos, metasurfaces, wireless propagation, and emerging quantum-assisted communication technologies. I am particularly interested in developing mathematical and physics-based channel modelling frameworks for complex electromagnetic environments, including reconfigurable and nonlocal metasurfaces, stochastic propagation models, electromagnetic information theory, and applications to future wireless, satellite, and quantum technologies.
Research projects
| Project title | Funder / scheme | Funding size |
|---|---|---|
| Supplement for Optimised deployment of Reconfigurable Intelligent Surface networks | EPSRC Telecom Federated Hub HASC, led by University of Oxford | £70,000 |
| Optimised deployment of Reconfigurable Intelligent Surface networks | EPSRC Telecom Federated Hub HASC, led by University of Oxford | £295,000 |
| iCASE disordered metasurfaces for 6G mobile networks | British Telecom | £140,000 |
| Resilient wireless communication link by smart transceivers | UKSA sponsored grant, ESA ARTES programme, 5G Hub Harwell | €248,025 |
| Random Ising Hamiltonian Modelling and Optimization of RIS-Assisted Wireless Communications | Huawei Mathematical and Algorithmic Sciences Lab | £257,908.40 |
| ECCS-EPSRC: Towards Quantum-assisted Reconfigurable Indoor Wireless Environments | NSF-EPSRC Collaborative Research | £753,920.77 total; share £395,926.77 |
| Next Generation of Resilient Wireless Communications | Digital Nottingham “City as Lab” programme, combined FoS + FoE | £18,740 |
| MIMO Channel Hardening by Compact Antenna Arrays | Royal Society – Supplement Industry Fellowship | £33,235.96 |
| MIMO Channel Hardening by Compact Antenna Arrays | Royal Society Industry Fellowship – Supplement Summer Studentship | £2,000 |
| Object Illusion in Complex Electromagnetic Wave Environments, OBLICUE | EPSRC New Horizons | £255,593.65 |
| Reconfigurable Intelligent Sustainable Environments for 6G Wireless Networks, RISE-6G | EU New Horizon RIA ICT52 | €6,499,613.75 total; share €321,636.75 |
| Project title | Funder / scheme | Funding size |
|---|---|---|
| MIMO Channel Hardening by Compact Antenna Arrays | Royal Society Industry Fellowship with BT and Cambridge | £107,880.48 |
| Support for Royal Society Industry Fellowship | Inter-Faculty Research Development, University of Nottingham | £20,000 |
| MIMO communication in a wave chaotic environment and in the near field | Nottingham–Lund collaboration fund | £6,000 |
| Propagating electromagnetic signals through complex built-up structures: Resilience of electronic components in the presence of EM noise and environmental uncertainty | Office of Naval Research Global, Directed Energy Directorate, USA | £221,725 |
| A quantum graph approach for modelling complex cable networks with defects | Modelling an Uncertain World Nottingham – Collaborative Kickstarter Funding | £6,500 |
| Advanced characterisation and classification of radiated emissions in densely integrated technologies | EU COST Action IC1407 | €399,000 |
| Noisy Electromagnetic Fields: A Technological Platform for Chip-to-Chip Communication in the 21st Century | EU Horizon 2020 – FET Open | €3,419,638 total; share £758,195 |
| Entropic approaches to mode-stirred billiards | Royal Society International Exchange | £6,000 |
| Topological networks of small antennas for broadband mobile-mobile communications: performance and optimal configurations | Telecom Italia | €15,000 |
Research collaborations
- University of Nottingham, UK
- University of Cambridge, UK
- University of Oxford, UK
- King's College London, UK
- University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, USA
- University of Maryland, College Park, USA
- Università Politecnica delle Marche, Italy
- Universita' Partenopoe di Napoli, Italy
- Sapienza University of Rome, Italy
- Lund University, Sweden
- Tohoku University, Japan
- University of Adelaide, Australia
- Technical University of Munich, Germany
Indicators of esteem
Visiting Professor, University of Cambridge
Adjunct Professor, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, USA
Supervision
Postgraduate research supervision
I supervise MSc and PhD projects on Quantum and Applied Electromagnetics with applications in propagation prediction and control with 6G mobile networks and satellite communications.
Prospective PhD students and postdoctoral researchers
I regularly have opportunities for motivated PhD students and postdoctoral researchers to join my team. Candidates interested in electromagnetics, wave physics, wireless communications, physics-informed neural networks, quantum technologies, or related areas are warmly encouraged to get in touch.
Please contact me by email with a short description of your research interests, a CV, and, where relevant, details of possible funding schemes or fellowships.
Teaching
My teaching spans applied mathematics, electromagnetism, mobile communications and wave propagation. Since 2015, beginning with MATH3054 Discrete Mathematics and Graph Theory at the University of Nottingham, I have taught mathematical foundations and engineering-facing modules across Mathematical Sciences and Electrical and Electronic Engineering. At Nottingham, this included Numerical and Statistical Analysis for Engineers, MATH3008 Electromagnetism, and EEEE3087 Mobile Communications. At the University of Surrey, I teach the propagation component of EEEM006 – Antennas and Propagation, covering the fundamental principles of electromagnetic wave propagation and their application to wireless communication systems. I am also personal tutor in EEEM004 – MSc Dissertation. My teaching is research-led and informed by my work in mathematical modelling, electromagnetic propagation and future wireless systems.
See here for a full list of my teaching experience:
2025/26
EEEM006 – Antennas and Propagation — Propagation component
EEEM004 – MSc Dissertation — Personal tutor
2019/20 (University of Nottingham)
EEEE3087 – Mobile Communications
MATH3008 – Electromagnetism
2018/19 (University of Nottingham)
EEEE3087 – Mobile Communications
MATH3008 – Electromagnetism
2017/18 (University of Nottingham)
EEEE3087 – Mobile Communications
Numerical and Statistical Analysis for Engineers
2016/17 (University of Nottingham)
EEEE3087 – Mobile Communications
Numerical and Statistical Analysis for Engineers
2015/16 (University of Nottingham)
MATH3054 – Discrete Mathematics and Graph Theory
Sustainable development goals
My research interests are related to the following:
Publications
Highlights
My journal publications have attracted broad international visibility across electromagnetic theory, wave physics, wireless communications, metasurfaces, and quantum-assisted modelling. A particularly visible strand of my work concerns the Random Coupling Model and the statistical description of wave transport in chaotic cavities; the 2014 Wave Motion review on this topic is listed by Semantic Scholar as a highly influential contribution.
My recent journal work also addresses the physics of reconfigurable intelligent surfaces, smart radio environments, and electromagnetic-compliant wireless models, linking rigorous propagation theory with emerging 6G technologies. A growing part of my research develops quantum computational modelling for electromagnetic and wireless systems, including quantum optimisation of reconfigurable surfaces using QAOA, Ising and spin-glass Hamiltonian formulations, and physics-based computational frameworks for complex multipath environments. Recent work in this area has appeared in the IEEE Journal on Multiscale and Multiphysics Computational Techniques, where quantum computing, mathematical physics, modelling and simulation, computational mathematics, and reconfigurable intelligent surfaces are explicitly identified as core research themes.
Find a complete list of publications here: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=1bAzHVoAAAAJ&hl=en