William A. Imbriale received a B.S. degree in engineering physics from Rutgers University in 1964; an M.S. degree in electrical engineering from the University of California, Los Angeles, in 1966; and a Ph.D. degree from the University of Illinois in 1969.
Dr. Imbriale is a senior research scientist in the Communications Ground System Section at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), in Pasadena, California. Since starting at JPL in 1980, he has led many advanced technology developments for large ground-station antennas, lightweight spacecraft antennas, and millimeter-wave spacecraft instruments. He is currently developing technologies to enable the use of Ka-band frequencies on NASA's Deep Space Network 70-meter antennas, by overcoming the substantial gain loss due to gravity-induced distortions as a function of elevation angle. Previously, Dr. Imbriale served as the assistant manager for microwaves in the Ground Antennas and Facilities Engineering Section, where he was responsible for all technical activities associated with radio frequency (RF) design and development of large ground-based antennas of the DSN. In 1991, he accepted a six-month temporary assignment as a foreign research fellow at the Institute of Space and Astronautical Science in Japan, where he worked on mesh deployable spacecraft antennas and beam-waveguide ground antennas.
During the 1980s, Dr. Imbriale managed the Radio Frequency and Microwave Subsystem Section, which was responsible for the research, development, and implementation of RF and microwave subsystems used in the DSN. He was manager during the critical period of equipment delivery for DSN support to NASA's Voyager mission, which required upgrades to virtually all telecommunications subsystems.
Prior to joining JPL, Dr. Imbriale was employed at TRW, in the Defense and Space Systems Group, where he was the subproject manager for antennas in the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite Systems (TDRSS) program.
Dr. Imbriale is a fellow of the IEEE; a member of the International Union of Radio Science Commission B; and a member of the Sigma Xi, Tau Beta Pi, and Eta Kappa Nu honor societies. He has received numerous NASA honor awards, including the Exceptional Service Medal. From 1993 through 1995, he was a distinguished lecturer for the Antennas and Propagation Society, speaking on beam-waveguide antennas and the evolution of the Deep Space Network antennas. He has published extensively and has won three best paper awards. He was a member of the Administration Committee of the IEEE Antennas and Propagation Society and general chairman of the 1995 International IEEE Antennas and Propagation International Symposium, held in Newport Beach, California. He has lectured and taught engineering courses at several learning institutions, including the University of California, Los Angeles and the University of Southern California. He is also a consultant to industry on all aspects of antenna analysis and design.
