Staff Profile
Career Summary
Biography
Sarah Johnson received the B.E. and Ph.D. degrees in Electrical Engineering from the University of Newcastle in 1999 and 2004 respectively. She then held a postdoctoral position with the Wireless Signal Processing Program, National ICT Australia before returning to the University of Newcastle where she is now an Australian Research Council Future Fellow. Her research concentrates on the fields of coding and information theory.
A/Prof Johnson has served on the Technical Program committee for the Australian Communications Theory Workshop (2005,2006,2007), IEEE VTC (Spring 2006), IEEE Globecom (2009), IEEE PIMRC (2012), IEEE ISTC (2012,2014), and IEEE ITW (2014) and on the organising committee for the IEEE International Conference on Telecommunications ICT (2015).
A/Prof Johnson has authored a book, Iterative Error Correction Codes, published by Cambridge University Press and published over 50 technical papers. Her research has been supported by five Australian Research Council (ARC) DP grants, an ARC Future Fellowship, an ARC Linkage Project and industry-sponsored projects.
Qualifications
- PhD (Electrical Engineering), University of Newcastle
- Bachelor of Engineering (Electrical), University of Newcastle
Research
Research keywords
- Error Correction Coding
- Iterative error correction
- Low-density parity-check codes
- Network information theory
- Repeat-accumulate codes
- Telecommunications
Research expertise
I perform research in the fields of digital communications and information theory. The field of
digital communications is concerned with the reliable transmission and storage of digital data while
information theory investigates the fundamental theoretical limits of this task. This includes:
The design, analysis and application of iterative error correction codes. These codes enable the
communication of a digital message without error (or with as few errors as possible) despite an
imperfect communications medium. Such codes are used in a large range of applications including
mobile phones, digital television, wireless local area networks, deep space communications, longhaul
optical communications and hard disk storage.
The design of communication strategies for next generation digital networks, focusing in particular
on cooperation in multi-terminal relay networks.
Languages
- English
Fields of Research
| Code | Description | Percentage |
|---|---|---|
| 080401 | Coding And Information Theory | 35 |
| 100599 | Communications Technologies Not Elsewhere Classified | 35 |
| 090699 | Electrical And Electronic Engineering Not Elsewhere Classified | 30 |
Memberships
Body relevant to professional practice.
- Member - Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE)
Committee/Associations (relevant to research).
- Member - International Technical Program Committee IEEE VTC
- Member - International Technical Program Committee IEEE PIMRC
- Member - International Technical Program Committee IEEE International Symposium on Turbo Codes
- Member - International Technical Program Committee IEEE International Symposium on Turbo Codes
- Member - International Technical Program Committee IEEE Information Theory Workshop (ITW)
- Member - Organising Committee IEEE International Conference on Communications
Appointments
| Future Fellow Australian Research Council (Australia) | 01/03/2012 |
| Australian Postdoc Fellowship (APD) Australian Research Council (Australia) | 01/06/2004 - 01/06/2007 |
| Senior Research Fellow University of Newcastle (Australia) | 01/06/2007 - 01/03/2012 |
Awards
Research Award.
| 2007 | Pro Vice-Chancellor’s Award for Research Excellence University of Newcastle (Australia) Pro Vice-Chancellor’s Award for Research Excellence |
|---|
Administrative
Administrative expertise
Technical program committee member for national and international conferences.
Teaching
Teaching keywords
- Computer Engineering
- Telecommunications Engineering
Teaching expertise
Undergraduate teaching in computer and telecommunications engineering including Introduction to Computer Engineering, Introduction to Telecommunications and Advanced Telecommunicaitons
Ssupervision of honors students and postgraduate students.
Grants and Funding
Summary
| Number of grants | 13 |
|---|---|
| Total funding | $2,757,182 |
For project grants received where the lead institution is other than the University of Newcastle, details are shown in italics.
Click on a grant title below to expand the full details for that specific grant.
2013 (2 grants)
New error correction strategies for continuous variable quantum key distribution$300,000
Funding Body: ARC (Australian Research Council)
| Project Team | ||
|---|---|---|
| Associate Professor Sarah Johnson, Dr Thomas Symul, Dr Andrew Lance | ||
| Scheme | Role | |
| Linkage Projects | Chief Investigator | |
| Total Amount | Funding Start | Funding Finish |
| $300,000 | 2013 | 2016 |
| GNo:G1201139 | ||
Improving error correction performance through spatial coupling$50,000
Funding Body: University of Newcastle
| Project Team | ||
|---|---|---|
| Associate Professor Sarah Johnson | ||
| Scheme | Role | |
| Near Miss Grant | Chief Investigator | |
| Total Amount | Funding Start | Funding Finish |
| $50,000 | 2013 | 2013 |
| GNo:G1300453 | ||
2012 (2 grants)
ARC Discovery Grant$320,000
Funding Body: ARC (Australian Research Council)
| Scheme | Role | |
|---|---|---|
| Discovery Project | Investigator | |
| Total Amount | Funding Start | Funding Finish |
| $320,000 | 2012 | 2014 |
| GNo:183634664 | ||
2011 Emerging Research Leaders Program$15,000
Funding Body: University of Newcastle
| Project Team | ||
|---|---|---|
| Associate Professor Sarah Johnson | ||
| Scheme | Role | |
| Emerging Research Leaders Program | Chief Investigator | |
| Total Amount | Funding Start | Funding Finish |
| $15,000 | 2012 | 2012 |
| GNo:G1201064 | ||
2011 (1 grants)
New high-performance iterative error correction codes$623,276
Funding Body: ARC (Australian Research Council)
| Project Team | ||
|---|---|---|
| Associate Professor Sarah Johnson | ||
| Scheme | Role | |
| Future Fellowships | Chief Investigator | |
| Total Amount | Funding Start | Funding Finish |
| $623,276 | 2011 | 2017 |
| GNo:G1100437 | ||
2010 (1 grants)
Optimising Cooperation in Multiterminal Wireless Networks$150,000
Funding Body: ARC (Australian Research Council)
| Project Team | ||
|---|---|---|
| Associate Professor Sarah Johnson | ||
| Scheme | Role | |
| Discovery Projects | Chief Investigator | |
| Total Amount | Funding Start | Funding Finish |
| $150,000 | 2010 | 2012 |
| GNo:G0189995 | ||
2008 (1 grants)
Iterative coding for next generation networks$335,000
Funding Body: ARC (Australian Research Council)
| Project Team | ||
|---|---|---|
| Associate Professor Sarah Johnson, Associate Professor Christopher Kellett | ||
| Scheme | Role | |
| Discovery Projects | Chief Investigator | |
| Total Amount | Funding Start | Funding Finish |
| $335,000 | 2008 | 2010 |
| GNo:G0187513 | ||
2007 (2 grants)
2007 Research Fellowship$514,312
Funding Body: University of Newcastle
| Project Team | ||
|---|---|---|
| Associate Professor Sarah Johnson | ||
| Scheme | Role | |
| Research Fellowship | Chief Investigator | |
| Total Amount | Funding Start | Funding Finish |
| $514,312 | 2007 | 2012 |
| GNo:G0187099 | ||
2007 Research Fellowship Project Grant$15,000
Funding Body: University of Newcastle
| Project Team | ||
|---|---|---|
| Associate Professor Sarah Johnson | ||
| Scheme | Role | |
| Fellowship Grant | Chief Investigator | |
| Total Amount | Funding Start | Funding Finish |
| $15,000 | 2007 | 2007 |
| GNo:G0188110 | ||
2006 (1 grants)
Construction methods and analysis tools for repeat-accumulate error correction codes$112,128
Funding Body: ARC (Australian Research Council)
| Project Team | ||
|---|---|---|
| Associate Professor Sarah Johnson | ||
| Scheme | Role | |
| Discovery Projects | Chief Investigator | |
| Total Amount | Funding Start | Funding Finish |
| $112,128 | 2006 | 2008 |
| GNo:G0185285 | ||
2005 (1 grants)
Australian Communications Research Network (ACoRN)$50,000
Funding Body: ARC (Australian Research Council)
| Project Team | ||
|---|---|---|
| Associate Professor Steven Weller, Professor Brett Ninness, Associate Professor Sarah Johnson | ||
| Scheme | Role | |
| Research Networks | Investigator | |
| Total Amount | Funding Start | Funding Finish |
| $50,000 | 2005 | 2009 |
| GNo:G0186088 | ||
2004 (2 grants)
Structured low-density parity-check codes for next-generation digital communications$257,466
Funding Body: ARC (Australian Research Council)
| Project Team | ||
|---|---|---|
| Associate Professor Steven Weller, Associate Professor Sarah Johnson | ||
| Scheme | Role | |
| Discovery Projects | Investigator | |
| Total Amount | Funding Start | Funding Finish |
| $257,466 | 2004 | 2006 |
| GNo:G0183017 | ||
Design and evaluation of repeat-accumulate error correction codes for digital communications$15,000
Funding Body: University of Newcastle
| Project Team | ||
|---|---|---|
| Associate Professor Sarah Johnson | ||
| Scheme | Role | |
| Early Career Researcher Grant | Chief Investigator | |
| Total Amount | Funding Start | Funding Finish |
| $15,000 | 2004 | 2004 |
| GNo:G0184996 | ||
Research Supervision
| Number of current supervisions | 3 |
|---|---|
| Total current UoN PhD EFTSL | 1.2 |
For supervisions undertaken at an institution other that the University of Newcastle, details are shown in italics, and the institution name is listed below the program name.
Current Supervision
| Commenced | Proposed Completion | Program | Supervisor Type | Research Title |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2013 | 2017 | PhD (Electrical Engineering) | Principal Supervisor | Improving Error Correction Performance Through Spatial Coupling |
| 2013 | 2017 | PhD (Electrical Engineering) | Co-Supervisor | Power-Bandwidth Tradeoff in Multi-User Channels |
| 2011 | 2015 | PhD (Human Physiology) | Co-Supervisor | Investigating the Role of Microglia in Regulating Complex Behaviour |
Past Supervision
| Year | Program | Supervisor Type | Research Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2006 | PHD Electrical Engineering Australian National University | Co-Supervisor | The Graphical Structure of Iterative Low-Density Parity-Check Decoding |
Associate Professor Sarah Johnson
| Work Phone | (02) 4921 6028 |
|---|---|
| Fax | (02) 4921 6993 |
| Sarah.Johnson@newcastle.edu.au | |
| Position | ARC Future Fellow School of Elect Engineering and Computer Science Faculty of Engineering and Built Environment |
| Focus Area | Electrical and Computer Engineering |
| Office | ES222, Engineering S, Callaghan University Drive Callaghan NSW 2308 Australia |
| URL: | www.newcastle.edu.au/profile/sarah-johnson |
News
$300,000 for secure communications research
University of Newcastle wins $300,000 to make digital communications secur...
