The ARFTG/NIST Short Course on Microwave Measurements will take place on January 18 (full day) and January 19 (half day), 2026, in Hollywood, California, as an integral part of the ARFTG-106 Microwave Measurement Symposium. Jointly organized by ARFTG and NIST, this one-and-a-half-day course delivers a concentrated, practice-oriented overview of modern microwave and millimeter-wave measurement science.

The program brings together leading experts from NIST, industry, and academia to cover the full measurement chain, from fundamentals of uncertainty and traceability to advanced on-wafer, nonlinear, cryogenic, and load-pull measurements. Attendees will leave with a clearer understanding of how measurement accuracy is established, quantified, and defended across frequencies, technologies, and applications.

Key topics include:

• Measurement uncertainty analysis and traceability of S-parameters and RF power
• Modern VNA calibration techniques and verification workflows
• Design of on-wafer multiline TRL calibration kits
• Wafer-level calibration challenges at mm-wave frequencies
• Cryogenic on-wafer measurements
• Nonlinear measurements, NVNA methods, and power-amplifier operation modes
• Load-pull measurements and modulation-quality metrics

This short course is ideal for engineers, researchers, and advanced users who want to deepen their measurement fundamentals, improve confidence in their data, and connect theory with real-world lab practice. If you work in device characterization, metrology, or instrumentation, this is a compact way to get high-impact guidance directly from the community leaders shaping today’s best practices.

The full program is now available, including talk titles, timing, and instructors.

We warmly invite you to join the ARFTG and NIST community for this focused short course and to engage directly with the experts shaping today’s microwave measurement practice.

Angela C. Stelson
ARFTG/NIST Short Course Organizer
ARFTG ExCom