for IEEE spectrum Readers who follow telecom news in 2024 will notice an expansion in reach and scope. Animation readers can read more: Implementing low-power Wi-Fi across kilometers, including talk of early-stage cell phone “towers” now in low-Earth orbit, China expanding SpaceX Starlink deploying satellite broadband constellation to regions of the world dominated, expanding bandwidth and coverage Provides a 6G signal that wraps around obstacles.
To be fair, “signals that extend reach and scope” is a fair description of communication more generally. After all, what is the electromagnetic spectrum but signal propagation? But compared to telecom news 10 or 20 years ago, when wireless remained in its wireless silo, broadband remained in the realm of broadband, and satellite communications remained something else entirely, each previously fixed category has invaded each other’s territory. Hybridization seems to be becoming increasingly common in today’s world.
So while 6G currently remains a blip in the eyes of the big telcos’ R&D departments, the emerging internet megaconstellation is still being rolled out, and phone calls are still largely routed through terrestrial cell towers, here’s the story. spectrum Telecom readers’ eyes were the most trustworthy compared to last year.
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China has a Starlink competitor, a megaconstellation called Qianfan (“a thousand sails”) that plans to deploy 14,000 low-Earth orbit satellites by the end of the decade. It’s very ambitious, especially compared to 54 (then 18). spectrumAn article on the topic is currently on track. In the tech startup world, this kind of hopeful hope can lead to derision among investors. On the other hand, China is not about scrappy, unproven startups. Some initial indicators spectrum Readers will be interested to follow as A Thousand Sails begins to unfold by 2025. Let’s take a look at China’s pace of satellite manufacturing and launch, how China’s National Space Administration deals with the emerging space debris problem globally, and what tensions between international cooperation and competition Qianfan will continue to create. .
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Between the microwave and infrared regions of the electromagnetic spectrum are waves that oscillate between 0.1 trillion and 10 trillion cycles per second. These terahertz (THz) waves behave somewhat differently than the gigahertz and megahertz spectrum with which most wireless and Wi-Fi users are familiar. Case in point: Some regions of the THz spectrum can collectively follow a curved trajectory, allowing signals to follow the contours of physical barriers and extend the reach of THz networks beyond a straight line of sight.
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The San Diego-based telecom chip giant has launched a chip called FastConnect 7900 that represents a groundbreaking change in the field for 2024. As artificial intelligence permeates all fields of technology and many others, FastConnect expands Wi-Fi signals. AI-enhanced spectrum to help ensure the chip is suited to the needs of each application. Therefore, streaming video over a Wi-Fi connection uses a different power profile than making a voice or video call.
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Telecommunications providers in the EU have become increasingly wary in recent years about security concerns raised by analysts and others related to 5G equipment manufactured by Chinese telecom giants Huawei and ZTE. So while the EU directive speaks with a unified voice on phasing out Huawei and ZTE equipment from regional 5G networks, actual implementation remains sporadic and uneven.
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A new standard for low-power Wi-Fi has been setting long-distance records. Notably, Australian startup Morse Micro is expanding the reach of its Wi-Fi HaLow network to more than 3km. Due to its relatively low bandwidth (1 megabit per second peak speed), this system appears to be best suited for the Internet of Things (IoT) market. spectrum‘s story also points out that beyond Wi-Fi brands, other competitors in the space are facing fierce competition.
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Meanwhile, securing signals using quantum keys – a decades-long race in what is called quantum key distribution – has led to a variety of approaches, with China, India, the EU and the US pursuing their own approaches to virtually unhackable communications networks. It was inspiring. . Despite the emergence of finalists this year, entirely QKD, another encryption standard called post-quantum cryptography, has analysts speculating who will emerge victorious as the new field of pure quantum communications matures.
IEEE spectrum
Last March, the Federal Communications Commission denied SpaceX’s request to orbit some of its Starlink satellites in very low Earth orbit (VLEO) to reduce Starlink’s latency. The problem is that the satellite would also have orbited below the International Space Station. As a result, spacecraft launching to the ISS may have to avoid Starlink traffic getting lost along the way. How the FCC responds to future SpaceX requests like this will certainly be a topic to watch in 2025.
J Tower
Japanese company JTower has made headlines for its innovative deployment of 5G antennas integrated into the windows of some existing office buildings in Tokyo. A company spokesperson said that as 5G signals proliferate and the need for coverage expands, the method of shrinking 5G infrastructure to an urban backdrop is yet another visible way to expand network reach and reach without any noticeable expansion of cell phone tower antennas. He pointed out that it could be a way to go unnoticed.
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Similar to item 5 above, a Chinese research team has extended the range of Wi-Fi to long-range wireless networks. Similar to item 5, IoT appears to be an application best suited for relatively low-power and low-bandwidth implementations.
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Almost a year ago, spectrum It documents the changing trends in wireless infrastructure, including larger antennas and new beamforming technologies that enable satellite-based phone towers in low Earth orbit. Nothing in the city, suburbs or even many rural areas can match the reach and low cost of an old-fashioned metal tower on a hilltop. But remote and underserved areas without any cell service could ultimately benefit from a new orbital approach to routing calls and data through the airspace.
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