5G is widely considered a mobile technology that won’t be available until perhaps 2020 or 2021, and even then, not widely.
Cisco predicts that by 2021, a 5G connection will generate 4.7 times more traffic than the average 4G connection.
5G will be a quantum leap from today’s LTE-Advanced networks.
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Tomi Engdahl says:
Quantenna’s 8×8 MIMO smarts leverage millimeter wave bands for 5G Fixed Wireless Access
https://www.cablinginstall.com/articles/pt/2018/11/quantenna-s-8×8-mimo-smarts-leverage-millimeter-wave-bands-for-5g-fixed-wireless-access.html?cmpid=enl_cim_cim_data_center_newsletter_2018-11-19&pwhid=6b9badc08db25d04d04ee00b499089ffc280910702f8ef99951bdbdad3175f54dcae8b7ad9fa2c1f5697ffa19d05535df56b8dc1e6f75b7b6f6f8c7461ce0b24&eid=289644432&bid=2303764
Quantenna Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ : QTNA) and Starry are reportedly joining forces to deliver pioneering gigabit Wi-Fi solutions in millimeter wave bands, leveraging Quantenna’s advanced 8×8 MIMO capabilities and Starry’s smart antenna RF technology.
The integration of Quantenna 802.11ac and 802.11ax (Wi-Fi 6) chipsets in Starry’s base station technology, Starry Beam, provides end users with ultrafast speeds, increased bandwidth capacity, reliable connections and extended range. As noted at Light Reading, Starry first launched its pre-standard 5G, point-to-multipoint fixed wireless technology in 2016 in Boston; with Quantenna, Starry will continue to expand its network footprint to cities across the country, including Los Angeles, Washington, DC and New York City.
The Quantenna QSR10GU and QSR10GU-AX solutions support up to 10Gbps speed, 8×8 MIMO and advanced multi-user MIMO, delivering the maximum capacity within the minimum utilized spectrum, resulting in superior performance in dense environments.
Starry Leverages Quantenna’s 8×8 MIMO Smarts for 5G Fixed Wireless Access
https://www.lightreading.com/mobile/5g/starry-leverages-quantennas-8×8-mimo-smarts-for-5g-fixed-wireless-access/d/d-id/747483
Tomi Engdahl says:
http://www.etn.fi/index.php/13-news/8758-uusi-yritys-mullistaa-mekaanisen-kytkimen
Reinventing the electronic switch
https://www.menlomicro.com/
Menlo Micro was born in the research labs of General Electric, and is backed by GE Ventures, along with strategic investments from Corning, Microsemi and Paladin Capital Group.
Menlo Micro is bringing this unique solution, a micro-mechanical relay that can handle thousands of volts and tens of amps of current, to emerging Power IoT applications and is also developing RF/microwave solutions to address the demands of next-generation 5G communications networks.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Tiny waves, big challenges: Getting 5G mmWave mobility right
https://www.edn.com/electronics-blogs/5g-waves/4461277/Tiny-waves–big-challenges–Getting-5G-mmWave-mobility-right?utm_source=Aspencore&utm_medium=EDN&utm_campaign=social
5G promises 10× faster data rates and a 100× increase in network capacity, a feat only made possible by harnessing the wider bandwidths available above 20 GHz. Vast swaths of bandwidth from 24 GHz to 300 GHz, loosely referred to as millimeter-wave (mmWave), are the latest target for bandwidth-hungry applications. 5G NR Release-15 specifies frequency range 2 (FR2) for mmWave operations from 24.25 – 52.60 GHz, with three 3,000 MHz wide bands at 26.5 GHz, 24.25 GHz, and 37 GHz initially scoped for commercial usage, subject to local regulatory control.
First movers have demonstrated commercially viable fixed 5G mmWave solutions, and 802.11ad (originally known as WiGig) served as a proving ground for light mobile communications between 57 and 66 GHz.
And while innovation will push the limits of what is possible, mmWaves cannot defeat the laws of physics: smaller waves are more susceptible to atmospheric and environmental interference. That’s why really small waves present really big challenges.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Reducing Costs and Commutes with a 5G-Based Software-Defined ITS
https://innovate.ieee.org/innovation-spotlight/ITS-5G-SDN-intelligent-transportation-system/#utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=innovation&utm_content=5G%20SDN%20ITS?LT=CMH_WB_2018_LM_XIS_Paid_Social
Smoother traffic flows and safer roads could be around the corner with Intelligent Transportation Systems, or ITS, a technology that uses the Internet of Things (IoT) to gather and provide data on traffic speeds, car distances and potential hazards to drivers. While this technology has existed for some time, current deployments are costly and time consuming. To address these constraints, researchers have proposed a 5G-based software-defined network architecture that could reduce the expenses and time associated with ITS deployment.
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.uusiteknologia.fi/2018/11/28/kohti-5gtakin-nopeampaa-mobiilisiirtoa/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Commercializing 5G: How to use standards and testing for success
https://www.edn.com/5G/4461250/Commercializing-5G–How-to-use-standards-and-testing-for-success?utm_source=newsletter&utm_campaign=link&utm_medium=EDNConsumerElectronics-20181128
Tomi Engdahl says:
Test and Measurement Is a Major Hurdle for 5G
https://spectrum.ieee.org/tech-talk/telecom/wireless/test-equipment-a-major-hurdle-for-5g
Tomi Engdahl says:
http://www.etn.fi/index.php/13-news/8797-yhdella-antennilla-5g-dataa-neljalle
Fujitsun Laboratorioes-yksikkö ilmoittaa kehittäneensä ensimmäisen antennipaneelin, jolla voidaan samanaikaisesti palvella neljää 5G-käyttäjää 28 gigahertsin taajuudella. Antennipaneeli mahdollistaa yhteensä yli 10 gigabitin datakaistan.
Fujitsun antennissa on 128 antennielementtiä, joiden sätielemän signaalin vaihetta voidaan tarkasti kontrolloida. Lisäksi signaalein väliset häiriöt on pystytty suodattamaan.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Chip Attenuator Steps 31.5 dB to 55 GHz
https://www.mwrf.com/semiconductors/chip-attenuator-steps-315-db-55-ghz?Issue=MWRF-001_20181203_MWRF-001_631&sfvc4enews=42&cl=article_1_b&utm_rid=CPG05000002750211&utm_campaign=21830&utm_medium=email&elq2=1f4b5f6af69245b28eb4985b9ef95b9c
This tiny flip-chip digital attenuator can control an attenuation range as wide as 31.5 dB in either 0.5- or 1.0-dB steps far into the mmWave frequency range.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Realizing 5G Sub-6-GHz Massive MIMO Using GaN
https://www.mwrf.com/semiconductors/realizing-5g-sub-6-ghz-massive-mimo-using-gan?Issue=MWRF-001_20181203_MWRF-001_631&sfvc4enews=42&cl=article_1_b&utm_rid=CPG05000002750211&utm_campaign=21830&utm_medium=email&elq2=1f4b5f6af69245b28eb4985b9ef95b9c
Gallium-nitride technology figures to play a significant role in sub-6-GHz 5G applications to help achieve goals like higher data rates.
Tomi Engdahl says:
New Resonator Technology Targets Next-Generation Filters
https://www.electronicdesign.com/analog/new-resonator-technology-targets-next-generation-filters?NL=ED-003&Issue=ED-003_20181214_ED-003_341&sfvc4enews=42&cl=article_2_b&utm_rid=CPG05000002750211&utm_campaign=22170&utm_medium=email&elq2=b23ee6afaabc4d4dba594bb20810b254
This company’s resonator technology could very well become a key factor in enabling filters for 5G applications.
The smartphones that permeate today’s world wouldn’t be possible without the RF filters found inside of them. And with 5G rapidly approaching, the need for high-frequency filter solutions is only going to intensify. One company that’s making a significant impact within the mobile-communications filter space is Resonant. The firm recently unveiled its new technology, which it believes holds great promise for future RF filters for 5G mobile devices.
“We’re a licensing company,” says Mike Eddy, vice president of marketing at Resonant. “We don’t make the filters, multiplexers, etc. We create the designs for our customers and then we license those designs on a per-unit royalty basis. Also, we announced the addition of filter IP library products to our offerings. Library products are designed and developed by Resonant against one of its foundry partner’s processes, tested against the latest industry and phone board requirements, and then made available to license.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
Direct-RF DACs for high-speed communications
https://www.edn.com/design/analog/4461390/Direct-RF-DACs-for-high-speed-communications?utm_source=Aspencore&utm_medium=EDN&utm_campaign=social
Modern wireless radio transmitter designs encompass real IF (intermediate frequency) transmitters, complex IF transmitters, and zero-IF transmitters. At present, these transmitters continue to shuffle data through analog paths. There are limitations in the analog domain which impact the performance, capacity, and cost of the system, however.
To meet the demands for higher bandwidth communications, IC manufacturers have developed direct-to-RF architectures that provide excellent spurious, low-noise performance with output update rates in the giga-samples-per-second (Gsps) range.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Manhole Covers Serve as Antennas Expanding Wireless Network Coverage
https://spectrum.ieee.org/tech-talk/telecom/wireless/manhole-covers-serve-as-antennas-expanding-network-coverage
The inconvenient truth of future 5G networks is that their increased high-speed bandwidth, and the use of the millimeter wave spectrum (the radio spectrum above 30 gigahertz) to achieve it, comes at a price: Those radio signals barely propagate around the corners of buildings.
To overcome this issue, the strategy has been a combination of small cells with massive multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) antennas to increase coverage. Small cell deployment will be so extensive that the Small Cell Forum predicts 5G small cell will overtake 4G small cells by 2024. The total installed base of 5G or multimode small cells will reach 13.1 million by 2025, constituting more than one-third of the total small cells in use.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Design and Optimization of FBAR Filters to Enable 5G
https://spectrum.ieee.org/telecom/wireless/design-and-optimization-of-fbar-filters-to-enable-5g
While 4G LTE and LTE-Advanced technologies are still being deployed worldwide, the next generation in wireless communication promises a paradigm shift in throughput, latency, and scalability. By 2025, the emerging wireless 5G market is expected to reach a total value of $250B1. 5G is projected to be 100 times faster than 4G LTE and 10 times faster than Google Fiber (a physical connection). To put this into perspective, a high-definition movie will take less than a second to download on 5G, compared to 10 minutes on 4G LTE. Data rates will be further improved by using massive multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) technology that originally were designed for use in IEEE 802.11n Wi-Fi networks.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Design and Optimization of FBAR Filters to Enable 5G
https://spectrum.ieee.org/telecom/wireless/design-and-optimization-of-fbar-filters-to-enable-5g
Tomi Engdahl says:
Grappling with Those Unwanted Signals
https://www.mwrf.com/systems/grappling-those-unwanted-signals?Issue=MWRF-001_20190122_MWRF-001_617&sfvc4enews=42&cl=article_1_b&utm_rid=CPG05000002750211&utm_campaign=22762&utm_medium=email&elq2=a0ca3bff5b05457badc1c956d0d352d4
Organizations such as the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) and the International Telecommunication Union (ITU), and even the Amateur Radio Relay League (ARRL), work hard to organize frequency-spectrum use into carefully organized and managed bands of frequencies for each application. This includes, for example, the 2.4- to 2.5-GHz band for Wi-Fi wireless local-area networks (WLANs) and their essential wireless access to the internet for many different electronic devices. Starting within the kilohertz range for AM radios through VHF/UHF broadcast television channels (Fig. 1), spectrum use is carefully monitored to prevent unwanted overlapping of signals that can interfere with the reception of designed signals.
The 2.4-GHz span is part of the unlicensed industrial, scientific, and medical (ISM) band of frequencies intended for widespread and easy-to-use wireless applications. One of those applications, though, is the microwave oven at 2.45 GHz
Wreaking Havoc on Wi-Fi
Although microwave ovens are designed to operate with relatively low levels of RF radiation, small amounts of leaking RF energy are enough to jam or interfere with the operation of nearby Wi-Fi equipment and prevent wireless access. Interference within the 2.4-GHz band may not be enough to prevent a Wi-Fi system from operating altogether, but may surface as slow internet access speeds and slow computer file transfers using the Wi-Fi system.
Interference results between fixed in-home wireless networks when a close-enough neighbor has set a wireless router to the same channel at the same frequency as the Wi-Fi system next door.
Interference occurs when attempts are made to use multiple signals within the same frequency channel at the same time without some form of synchronization.
In contrast to unlicensed ISM band frequencies, frequency bands licensed by the FCC, such as the cellular radio bands at 824 to 849 MHz and 869 to 894 MHz, are organized into what became 25-MHz channel blocks for different cellular carriers.
As more wireless applications crowd into the available frequency bands, signal congestion is forcing RF/microwave system designers to find ways to cope with unwanted signals.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Home> Community > Blogs > Living Analog Blog
Designing the Sunblazer space probe
https://www.edn.com/electronics-blogs/living-analog/4461587/Designing-the-Sunblazer-space-probe?utm_source=Aspencore&utm_medium=EDN&utm_campaign=social
Getting back to Sunblazer though, there was an antenna issue. The probe’s operating frequency was to have been 40 MHz. The receiving antenna was an array of half-wave dipoles arranged in a matrix over a large area of land somewhere in Texas. Each dipole fed a 75-ohm twin-lead, each with a variable delay line. Signal propagation time from each dipole to its receiver connection was made variable. By choosing the individual delay times properly, the array of dipoles became a steerable array. The main lobe’s direction of reception could be pointed differently by selecting the delay times for each feedline.