Higher data rates require higher frequencies and gigabit speeds need increasingly higher frequency spectrum in which to operate and researchers at the University of Bristol have been investigating short-range wireless communication in the millimeter-wave band (58-63 GHz). The results of the efforts of these researchers were presented at the April 6-9 IEEE WCNC 2014 conference in Turkey.
The first paper described enhanced technologies and algorithms that could increase the data capacity and densification of short range wireless networks. It indicated that polarimetric filtering could enable a higher density of active data links. Each millimeter band link is capable of supporting user rates of up to 7 Gbps. Bristol's researchers showed four simultaneous links could be active in a single room, offering data capacities 100x better than current Wi-Fi technologies.
The second paper offered "beam-forming" as a way to provide multi-gigabit connections between 4G and 5G cellular base stations and the core network. The researchers proposed an efficient adaptive beam-forming algorithm to extend the range and data rate while also reducing interference. The paper noted that compressive sensing was used to significantly reduce the amount of control data needed to adapt the network to temporal and spatial changes in the channel.
"Both research papers represent an important contribution in the quest to address the ever increasing user demand for higher data rates and capacities," said Andrew Nix, a Bristol University professor. "We are fast running out of radio spectrum in the lower frequency bands where cellular and Wi-Fi currently operate. As a result we need to exploit high frequencies in future products."
Additional information, video and a diagram are available in the University of Bristol release New research on gigabit wireless communications.
