Scholar Profile –
Jack

What appeals to you about Electronics?

I have always viewed electronics as a hobby and was lucky enough to study it at GCSE and A Level. It was during my time at school that I learned about the components of analogue and digital electronics and their wide range of uses, many of which I realised when building projects. Since I started studying Electronic Engineering at the University of Southampton, I have taken particular interest in wireless communications, digital system design and mixed signal electronics.

Why did you want a scholarship with MAC?

The opportunity to apply for an internship with Multiple Access Communications Limited (MAC Ltd) came at a perfect time for me. I had just begun my 3^rd year communications project, and independent studying helped me see future potential in modern communications standards. MAC Ltd were offering a placement that would help me to further explore this field, and I am very glad I took the offer.

What type work have you been involved with during your placement?

My target for the placement was to learn more about field programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) and hardware description languages (HDL) and to gain experience using relevant software tools. During my placement I was able to meet all 3 goals!

I was tasked with creating an Advanced Encryption Standard – Galois/Counter Mode (AES-GCM) encryption and decryption system in Very High-Speed Integrated Circuit Hardware Description Language (VHDL): first by creating a MATLAB model, and then implementing that model in a “hardware sense”, prioritising logic speed and area. I also got to create block designs for the FPGA development board using Vivado to implement the encryption core on the FPGA. Having never used VHDL and Vivado before, I was surprised how quickly I got the hang of it, and I have my MAC Ltd mentors to thank for this.

What are your interests outside of work?

My interests outside of work include long hikes in the countryside, watching TV and the occasional chess game.