This paper [1] introduces factor graphs and describes the sum-product algorithm, which is a generic message-passing algorithm operating on factor graphs. The algorithm computes various marginal functions associated with the global function.  

This algorithm is very powerful, in fact, a surprisingly wide variety of algorithms developed in the artificial intelligence, signal processing, and digital communications communities can be seen as specific instances of the sum-product algorithm, operating in an appropriately chosen factor graph. Some examples are the forward/backward algorithm, the Viterbi algorithm, Pearl’s belief propagation algorithm, the iterative turbo decoding algorithm, the Kalman filter, and even certain FFT algorithms.

The task of the student is to learn and understand factor graphs and the sum-product algorithm. The student can then relate and analyze other known algorithm under the framework of the sum-product algorithm.

[1] https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=910572

Information Theory

During the internship the student investigates spiking neural networks to perform equalization and demapping at the receiver side of an intensity-modulation / direct-detection communication system.

The goal of this internship is to classify raw radio signal data to the respective application layer traffic type using machine learning.

https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=7905847