MSc Data Communication Networks

Programme outline and modules

This programme aims to provide the students, who will already have a technical background, with a thorough grounding in the principles underlying the inside of modern computer and data networks.

It is designed to provide students with the requisite specialist knowledge and skills to develop and manage current systems and to adapt with the changing face of data network technology. To ensure its continuing relevance the programme is monitored by a steering committee which includes representatives from major employers.

Taught modules and examinations/assessments are completed during the six months October to March. After successful completion students may then progress to the six month individual research project during April to October. We endeavour to place students with industrial sponsors for the duration of their projects, with all other projects being undertaken at the University.

• Telecommunications Perspectives
• Information Theory and Coding and Traffic Theory
• Internetworking
• Software Engineering
• Introductory Programming
• Distributed Network Applications
• Mobile Data Networks
• Realtime Communication Networks
• Project Preparation
• MSc Project

Jump to:

Entry requirements

• A good first or second class Honours Degree from a UK academic organisation in a relevant engineering field, science or closely related discipline.
• Qualifications from outside the UK or a combination of qualifications and/or experience will also be considered. The course administration office can provide advice on whether these qualifications are the equivalent of the level of Honours Degree required.
  
  We will consider that completion of 2 years (full time equivalent) of relevant postgraduate work experience will enhance a first degree by one step (five years experience by two steps, etc). Employment is considered relevant either to the first degree or to the proposed course of postgraduate study. For example, a graduate in computer studies who has been employed as a computer programmer will have relevant employment experience. (Employment undertaken before the commencement of undergraduate study will not normally count for the purposes
  of enhancement.)
  
  International students whose native language is not English will also need to demonstrate English Language ability:
  
• A TOEFL score of at least 100 (internet-based) with a minimum score of 23 in Speaking, 22 in Reading and 21 in Writing and Listening.
  
• An IELTS score of 6.5 overall with no less than 6.0 in each band.

Learning, teaching & assessment

The taught section of the programme is assessed by formal examinations, coursework and case studies. The project is assessed through a dissertation, an oral presentation (viva) and an assessment by the project supervisor. Further details are available on the individual module specifications.

Professional accreditation

The MSc in Data Communication Networks is fully accredited by The Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET).

Career opportunities

This programme will be of interest to students interested in developing their technical careers in areas related to the design and development of data communications networks or to those wishing to enter research in this field.

 

Personal development

Our programmes provide a means where graduates from non-telecommunications technical degrees can move into this high demand area. The programme is an “Advanced Vocational Course” postgraduate degree in Telecommunications Technology; its theory, practice and applications.

Some of the subjects make full recourse to a range of mathematical topics that should be familiar to the honours graduate of an accredited Undergraduate Degree in Electronic Engineering. Any student who may not possess this familiarity, will be expected to achieve it by private study.

Facilities & equipment

In addition to the usual wide range of facilities expected in a University we have the following local facilities available for to our Masters programmes.

Telecommunications Computing Laboratory:
This has 32 specialist GNU/Linux workstations (Debian distribution) specifically for use by undergraduate and postgraduate programmes. It is the main computing teaching laboratory used in the programmes and supports flexible dynamic networking as may be required for some projects.

Telecommunications laboratory:
The laboratory also supports practical classes in Optoelectronics and investigations intoWireless LAN networks and digital transmission systems.

Photonics Research laboratories:
The word “photonics” describes the engineering and science underlying the manipulation of photons of light rather in the way that the word “electronics” applies to electrons. It embraces the modern application of optical techniques to communications, signal processing, sensors, and data storage. The broad aims of the Aston Institute of Photonic Technologies are to research new phenomena and devices, and their applications in future fibre optic systems.

The Aston Institute of Photonic Technologies has a well-established international track record of innovation in grating devices for applications in telecommunications, signal processing, optical sensing, and many other grating applications including many first demonstrations. The main areas of research are: ultrafast non-linear phenomena in fibres and fibre devices; high-speed communication concentrating on solitons and soliton transmission, processing, generation and control; all-optical switching and processing; ultrafast all-optical networks; fibre gratings fabrication, design and fundamental studies; fibre grating devices and their application in
communication and sensors; and microwave photonics.

The extensive facilities of the group are available for use on Masters projects.

Adaptive Communications Research Laboratories:
This research group focuses on a range of networking architectures from mobile systems to ad-hoc sensor networks. Techniques involve the design of advanced digital systems for application-specific embedded systems and advanced algorithms for improving network efficiency. The group uses state of the art dynamic field programmable gate array hardware to examine physical implementations of these principles.

The future impact of pervasive computing is an area of very active research. We are interested in the applications of dynamic hardware in this area to improve system performance. We are also looking at the applications of advanced coding techniques in the area of mobile third generation networks. The group has links with both the Aston Institute of Photonic Technologies and the Neural Computing Research Group. A range of theoretical, experimental and CAD design techniques are used to investigate novel architectures and protocols.

Research interests: Ad-hoc networks, Sensor networks, Mobile networks, Adaptive algorithms, Applications of FPGAs, Dynamic hardware in Internet routers, Concurrent systems design, Coding theory, Cellular architectures for flexible processing, and Architectures for handling high-speed serial data.

The facilities are available for use on Masters projects.

Course director

Dr John Williams
John Williams received his BSc in Physics and PhD on the development, characterisation and optimisation of various new modelocked laser sources from Imperial College of Science and Technology, London.

He has been working in the Aston Institute of Photonic Technologies, Aston University since 1992 and has been a Reader there since 2000. He has authored and co-authored over 100 journal and conference papers in photonics related fields.

Dr Williams is a member of the Institute of Physics (MInstP), the Optical Society of America and the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (MIEEE) and the Institution of Engineering and Technology (MIET).

John's current research interests include the design and fabrication of in-fibre Bragg Gratings and their application as sensors, for the control of short pulses and for the processing and control of sub-carrier multiplexed microwave signals.

Teaching staff

Prof. Keith Blow
I studied at Cambridge University and then joined the Theory of Condensed Matter Group of the Cavendish Laboratory and received a Ph.D. for studies on Deep Impurities in Semiconductors.

I joined the optics division of BT Labs in 1981 and worked on the theory of non-linear optical propagation effects in fibres, principally solitons . This work developed into optical switching and the first demonstration of soliton switching in non-linear optical loop mirrors. In 1990 I set up a group working on quantum optical properties and non-linear spatial optics as well as continuing work on all-optical processing which is currently concerned with ways of using and manipulating the information that can be sent over the enormous bandwidth of optical fibres.

In 1999 I moved here to the Aston Institute of Photonic Technologies to continue working on optical networks and optical computation. My areas of research interest are: optical communication systems and networks; optical solitons; all-optical signal processing and switching.

Dr. Marc Eberhard
I'm working in the Aston Institute of Photonic Technologies on simulations of optical communication systems. The main focus is on long haul optical transmission systems with particular interest in polarisation mode dispersion (PMD) in single and coarse or dense wavelength division multiplexing (CWDM or DWDM) transmission mode; stability of solitons under PMD.

Prof. Sergei Turitsyn
My experience and research interests are: Nonlinear science; Fibre optic communications; Fibre lasers.

Mrs. Elena G. Turitsyna 

My areas of researcg interest are: Numerical modelling of fibre Bragg gratings for telecom applications; design of advanced FBG for WDM systems; numerical modelling of signal transmission in optical fiber systems; modelling of advanced signal formats and optical data processing.