The communications technology of the fifth generation 5G, although not yet widely implemented, has already become a meme and fear of supporters of conspiracies and conspiracy theories. It was even accused of involvement in the 2020 outbreak, and in Transcarpathia locals even opposed the installation of a mobile tower in their area, believing it caused cancer.

While 5G networks are being put into operation in some countries, especially China, it is planned to start a local pilot application in Ukraine in 2024. Meanwhile, the world is already preparing for sixth-generation networks.

Read the article on how 6G networks will work and what will revolutionize them 24 Channels.

What are they planning in China?

Meanwhile, China is developing next-generation communications. In early April, Shanghai Communications Authority announced 5G Advanced and 6G research and development plans. The document published by the agency includes 12 action plans focusing on expanding 5G application scenarios and testing 6G in various sectors.

High-speed mobile communications / Photo: Frederik Lipfert / Unsplash

In 2023, 92,000 5G base stations were installed in Shanghai. They enable unmanned vehicles to operate, most recently they assist in medicine, and they provide communication in industry.

Meanwhile, 6G deployment will require new infrastructure for much higher frequency bands, and devices will need 6G antennas.

6G using light

Even light can become infrastructure for the sixth generation. This is stated in a study by scientists from some American universities.

This is a method of “bending” light beams through the air to provide incredibly high-speed wireless communications and eliminate the need for line of sight between transmitter and receiver.

In a study published March 30 in the journal Nature’s Communications Engineering, researchers described how they developed a transmitter that can dynamically tune waves to support future 6G signals.

This is expected 6G will be thousands of times faster than 5G.

• A common problem for both generations is the need for direct visibility between transmitter and receiver.
• In experiments, scientists found that signals could be effectively “warped” around buildings and other obstacles.

It is the world’s first curved data channel and is an important milestone in realizing 6G’s vision of high data transfer speed and high reliability.
– said Edward Knightley, co-author of the study and professor of electrical engineering and computer engineering at Rice University in the USA.

Photons tend to travel in straight lines unless space and time are distorted by large gravitational forces such as black holes. But researchers have found that self-accelerating light beams, first demonstrated in a 2007 study, create special configurations of electromagnetic waves that can bend or bend to one side as they travel through space.

This is how scientists learned to create a beam of light that adapts to any object in its path and remains unchanged even if its path is blocked by an object. While the photons are still traveling in a straight line, the terahertz electromagnetic wave signal actually wraps around the object.

How is 6G getting closer to reality?

A new study by American scientists brings 6G networks closer to practical implementation.

We want more data per second. However, this requires more bandwidth and this bandwidth is not available when using traditional frequency bands.
– says Daniel Mittleman, a professor at the Brown School of Engineering, one of the study’s authors.

The scientists’ discovery eliminates an important problem; No need for direct line of sight between transmitter and receiver. So in the future, cities will not be covered by many 6G antennas. The rays will be able to travel around buildings and terrain.

But more research is needed to realize these possibilities because the technology is still in its infancy and so far only introduces distortion at a distance of about 10 meters from transmitter to receiver. This isn’t suitable for citywide 6G, but could be practical for next-generation Wi-Fi networks.

“One of the basic questions everyone asks us is how much and how much waves can bend,” Mittleman summarizes. To create the high-speed mobile networks of the future, scientists need to work harder.