LG Uplus has succeeded in demonstrating next-generation network technology that can enhance customer-perceived quality by expanding frequency coverage. It is expected to become a core technology in the 6G era.
On the 24th, LG Uplus held a study on next-generation antenna technology and introduced Reconfigurable Intelligent Surface (RIS) technology. LG Uplus developed frequency coverage expansion technology, which is key to implementing 6G mobile communication services, in collaboration with Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH), and succeeded in demonstration in a commercial environment.
LG Uplus, Professor Hong Wonbin's research team at Pohang University of Science and Technology, and Keysight Technologies employees conducting RIS testing. [Photo by LG Uplus]
The 'Reconfigurable Intelligent Surface (RIS)' developed by LG Uplus and Professor Wonbin Hong's research team at POSTECH is a technology that expands frequency coverage in the terahertz band, a candidate frequency band for 6G. Since last year, LG Uplus and Professor Hong's team have started research on 6G RIS technology as an industry-academic cooperation project. They developed technology that reflects, transmits, and absorbs frequencies, and confirmed that it operates without power consumption in the terahertz band above 100 GHz, which is similar to actual usage environments.
For specialized services such as holograms and XR (Extended Reality) in the 6G era, the terahertz (THz) band, which offers wide available bandwidth and ultra-high-speed, large-capacity data transmission, is attracting attention as a candidate frequency. However, despite these advantages, terahertz frequencies have very short wavelengths. Signal loss occurs in environments with obstacles within the radio wave reach or when signals enter indoors from outdoor base stations, resulting in degraded communication quality.
LG Uplus, Professor Wonbin Hong's team, and measurement equipment manufacturer Keysight Technologies developed a novel radio wave surface that can artificially reflect, absorb, and transmit terahertz band radio waves in specific directions. In nature, radio waves exhibit characteristics such as reflection, diffraction, refraction, and interference when encountering media. This technology artificially adjusts these characteristics, marking a world first. It can be used to minimize terahertz band radio wave loss and extend radio wave reach.
The newly developed three types of radio wave surfaces respectively reflect, transmit, and absorb frequencies. The reflective type forms a new path for radio waves in a different direction, delivering radio waves to areas generally unreachable and expanding radio wave reach. The transmissive type reduces reflection loss occurring when passing through glass, supporting radio wave reach. The absorptive type converts electromagnetic wave energy into heat energy to eliminate it, preventing radio waves from reaching secure facilities. Introducing this technology leads to cost reduction when building 6G wireless communication infrastructure utilizing the terahertz band. It can also be applied to existing 5G communication bands and various 6G candidate frequencies to improve service quality.
Professor Wonbin Hong of POSTECH said, “The newly developed 6G RIS technology is significant as it is the world’s first to control the wireless communication radio wave environment, enabling efficient communication system configuration,” and added, “We will continue to secure technological superiority through various research and development.”
Lee Sangheon, Head of Network Advanced Development at LG Uplus, said, “Through this industry-academic cooperation research with POSTECH, we have secured core technology for expanding 6G coverage,” and added, “We will continue to strive to enable customers to experience improved service quality through the development of core network technologies preparing for the future.”
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