Distinguished Lecturer
Ms. Karen Burnham
Distinguished Lecturer
Ms. Karen Burnham
Term 2022-2023
Karen Burnham is a Principal Scientist at Electro Magnetic Applications in Denver, CO. She is an iNARTE certified EMC engineer with experience in both the aerospace/defense and automotive industries. At NASA JSC, she worked on the Orion spacecraft and pyrotechnic systems. She was able to work on the Dream Chaser spacecraft and the F-35 fighter jet. She spent several years working at Ford Motor Company on traditional vehicles like the Ford Edge and Lincoln Continental as well as on their line of electric hybrid vehicles such as the Ford Explorer and Lincoln Aviator. Ms. Burnham is a member of the IEEE EMC Society Board of Governors and Officers at Large where she serves as Assistant Vice President of Standards. She holds a BS degree in Physics from Northern Arizona University and an MS degree in Electrical Engineering from University of Houston.
Talk 1: Lightning Protection of Aircraft: Simulation and Test
This talk covers lightning basics as well as specific techniques to both protect aircraft from these strikes and prove to certifying agencies that the protection is adequate. This will cover both historical approaches and cutting-edge combinations of simulation and testing.
Talk 2: Software Defined Radio (SDR) – EMC Applications
SDR hardware can now be purchased easily for under $30 USD and SDR software packages are available free for any platform you like. Low cost SDRs can be a useful troubleshooting tool for the practicing EMC engineer. In this talk, Ms. Burnham will demonstrate some of the handy capabilities of a low cost SDR system, from determining relative signal strengths to characterizing noise or interfering signals.
Talk 3: Noise Sources in Electric Vehicles
With electric vehicles becoming more common, the electromagnetic noise they generate is an issue that more designers must face. Ms. Burnham brings lessons learned from several years of troubleshooting electric vehicles, both hybrid and plug in, to discuss some of the most important EV noise factors.
Talk 4: Unintentional Antennas
One of the biggest causes of EMC test failures is radiating structures in a unit, whether from the PCB or cabling, that are acting in ways designers never intended. This talk covers basics of antenna theory and how to identify potential radiating “antennas” in your product.
Talk 1: Lightning Protection of Aircraft: Simulation and Test
This talk covers lightning basics as well as specific techniques to both protect aircraft from these strikes and prove to certifying agencies that the protection is adequate. This will cover both historical approaches and cutting-edge combinations of simulation and testing.
Talk 2: Software Defined Radio (SDR) – EMC Applications
SDR hardware can now be purchased easily for under $30 USD and SDR software packages are available free for any platform you like. Low cost SDRs can be a useful troubleshooting tool for the practicing EMC engineer. In this talk, Ms. Burnham will demonstrate some of the handy capabilities of a low cost SDR system, from determining relative signal strengths to characterizing noise or interfering signals.
Talk 3: Noise Sources in Electric Vehicles
With electric vehicles becoming more common, the electromagnetic noise they generate is an issue that more designers must face. Ms. Burnham brings lessons learned from several years of troubleshooting electric vehicles, both hybrid and plug in, to discuss some of the most important EV noise factors.
Talk 4: Unintentional Antennas
One of the biggest causes of EMC test failures is radiating structures in a unit, whether from the PCB or cabling, that are acting in ways designers never intended. This talk covers basics of antenna theory and how to identify potential radiating “antennas” in your product.