Special Workshop In Honor of Ralf Koetter

FACETS of CODING THEORY:  from ALGORITHMS to NETWORKS

A special workshop and a special issue of the IEEE Transactions on Information Theory, is inviting contributions as a tribute to the scientific legacy of Ralf Koetter. Dr. Koetter was the former Head of of the Institute for Communications Engineering at the Technische Universität München (TUM), and a co-recipient of the 2008 IEEE Signal Processing Magazine Best Paper Award on "Turbo Equalization". After a heroic battle with cancer, Dr. Koetter passed away in Munich, Germany, on February 2, 2009. During the past 15 years, he has made seminal contributions in the field of coding theory and related areas of signal processing and communications.

Colleagues who have known Dr. Koetter personally will cherish the memory of a towering intellect, with a big heart and a gentle soul, and his work will remain a source of inspiration for years to come.

The scope of the special issue, to be published in early 2011, encompasses all aspects of coding theory (algebraic and probabilistic), network coding, turbo equalization, as well as other topics in networks and signal processing. Ralf Koetter worked in all these areas and forged numerous groundbreaking connections among them. Further exploring these exciting connections is one of the goals of this special issue. Another goal is to highlight the many new facets of coding theory that emerged during the past decade, largely owing to the contributions of Ralf Koetter.  Original research papers, as well as expository and survey papers, are sought, both invited and contributed.  The deadline for submission of manuscripts is April 15, 2010. Detailed information can be found from the call-for-papers.

A special Workshop titled "Facets of Coding Theory: from Algorithms to Networks" and dedicated to Ralf Koetter will take place at the Allerton House, Monticello, Illinois, from Sunday, September 26, until Tuesday, September 28, 2010, immediately prior to the Forty-Eighth Annual Allerton Conference. Authors of papers accepted for the special issue will be expected to present their work at this Workshop.

Questions regarding the special issue should be directed to Alexander Vardy at <avardy AT ucsd.edu>. Questions regarding the Workshop should be directed to Andrew Singer at <acsinger AT illinois.edu>.

Learn more about Dr. Koetter from the obituary by UIUC and eulogy by IEEE Information Theory Society.