Wireless communication systems use the radio frequency (RF) spectrum as their propagation medium. The necessity of RF spectrum uses increases constantly due to the rapid growth of modern wireless communication systems. Several technologies, especially the deployment of the 5G network and the Internet of Things (IoT), cause high demand for resources from the wireless spectrum for many devices.Most of the available RF spectrum has already been assigned to existing wireless systems resulting that only an insignificant part of this spectrum can be given to new applications. 

Cognitive radio (CR) aims to reinforce the utilization of the underutilized RF spectrum. Since the frequency bands assigned to licensed or primary users (PU) are not utilized in some locations or time instants, the unlicensed or secondary users (SU) can use this spectrum. 

One of the principal operations of CR is spectrum sensing (SS), consisting of dynamic monitoring and utilizing underutilized spectrum without interfering with PUs.

We will present the importance of SS para CR and different SS techniques, including the most recent approaches based on Machine Learning.

Gordana Jovanovic Dolecek received a BSc and Ph.D. from the Faculty of Electrical Engineering, University of Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and an MSc degree from the University of Beograd, Serbia. In 1995 she joined Institute INAOE, Department for Electronics, Puebla, Mexico, where she works as a full professor. She was a visiting researcher with UCSB, Santa Barbara, USA,in 2001-2002 and 2006, with SDSUSan Diego, the USA,in 2008-2009, and with UCLA, Los Angeles,USA,in 2015-2016.

She is the author/co-author of more than 70 journals and 400conference papers. She is the author of the book: “Random Signals and Processes Primer with MATLAB,” Springer NY: 2013, and an editor of books:”Advances in Multirate Systems,” Springer, NY, 2017, and “Multirate Systems: Design and Applications,” IGP, Hershey, USA, 2001.

In 2012 she received Science and TechnologyPueblaStateAward for her research work in electronics. She is a Mexican Academy of Sciences and SNI of Mexico member and a Life Senior IEEE member.

She is a member of the IEEE CAS DSP committee, RCM of the IEEE ISCAS conference for DSP, and a TPC member for numerous international conferences.

She is the Associate Editor for IEEE Transactions on Circuits and Systems-I: Regular Papers, IEEE Transactions on Circuits and Systems-II: Express Brief, IEEE Circuits, and Systems Magazine, and IET Signal Processing.

She received the recognition as the best Associate Editor for the journal IEEE Transactions on Circuits and Systems-I: Regular Papers, in 2022 and 2020-2021. 

Her research interests include digital signal processing, digital communications, ML, applied mathematics in digital signal processing and communications, and innovative teaching of DSP and communications.