Reconfigurable Intelligent Surfaces : Potentials, Applications, and Challenges for 6G Wireless Networks

• Reconfigurable intelligent surfaces (RISs), with the potential to realize smart radio environments, have emerged as an energy-efficient and a cost-effective technology to support the services and demands foreseen for coming decades. By leveraging a large number of low-cost passive reflecting elements, RISs introduce a phase-shift in the impinging signal to create a favorable propagation channel between the transmitter and the receiver. In this article, we provide a tutorial overview of RISs for sixth-generation (6G) wireless networks. Specifically, we present a comprehensive discussion on performance gains that can be achieved by integrating RISs with emerging communication technologies. We address the practical implementation of RIS-assisted networks and expose the crucial challenges, including the RIS reconfiguration, deployment and size optimization, and channel estimation. Furthermore, we explore the integration of RIS and non-orthogonal multiple access (NOMA) under imperfect channel state information (CSI). Our numerical results illustrate the importance of better channel estimation in RIS-assisted networks and indicate the various factors that impact the size of RIS. Finally, we present promising future research directions for realizing RIS-assisted networks in 6G communication. IEEE

Ämnesord

TEKNIK OCH TEKNOLOGIER  -- Elektroteknik och elektronik -- Kommunikationssystem (hsv//swe)

ENGINEERING AND TECHNOLOGY  -- Electrical Engineering, Electronic Engineering, Information Engineering -- Communication Systems (hsv//eng)

Nyckelord

6G mobile communication

Costs

Energy efficiency

Hardware

Interference cancellation

NOMA

Receivers

Channel state information

Cost effectiveness

Interlocking signals

Signal receivers

Wireless networks

Communication technologies

Cost-effective technology

Future research directions

Imperfect channel state information

Impinging signals

Numerical results

Propagation channels

Reflecting elements

Channel estimation

Publikations- och innehållstyp

ref (ämneskategori)

art (ämneskategori)