In the nineteenth century, scientists, mathematician, engineers and innovators started
investigating electromagnetism. The theory that underpins wireless communications was
formed by Maxwell. Early demonstrations took place by Hertz, Tesla and others. Marconi
demonstrated the first wireless transmission. Since then, the range of applications has
expanded at an immense rate, together with the underpinning technology. The rate of
development has been incredible and today the level of technical and commercial maturity
is very high. This success would not have been possible without understanding radio-
wave propagation. This knowledge enables us to design successful systems and networks,
together with waveforms, antennal and transceiver architectures. The radio channel is the
cornerstone to the operation of any wireless system.
