January 2009

Warp Speed Wireless by Dr. Jonathan Wells.

I’m a great believer in using the higher frequency bands for transmitting high data rates over short and medium range distances.  The lower frequencies certainly have the advantage of good propagation characteristics, making them ideal for access applications.  However they are severely hampered by narrow channel sizes, which mean that complex (and hence costly) systems are needed for high data rate connections.  Witness next gen LTE, 802.11n WiFi and 802.16m WiMAX equipment that require multiple transmit / receive channels, 4x4 MIMO antennas and beamforming to achieve 100 Mbps data rates.  Hardly commercially user-friendly configurations!  Simple, single-carrier microwave radios have been exceeding such data rates for years, using efficient, cost effective architectures.  New systems operating at the higher frequency mm-wave bands, where orders of magnitude larger channels are available, will enable a hundred-times the data rate provided at lower frequencies in economical and practical radio configurations.

MM-Wave Drivers:  

For Gbps+ transmission, the mm-wave bands come into there own.  The two main applications that will drive the future success of high data rate mm-wave transmissions are:

• Next gen cellular backhaul – With the wireless-centric European market recently approving a 70/80 GHz harmonized specification permitting 10 GHz of spectrum and multiple 250 MHz channels, plus future extensions to open the 60 GHz band in the works, European carriers, regulators and the major OEMs will start considering the mm-wave bands for strategic backhaul opportunities.

• WPAN HD video delivery – The ability to transmit vast quantities of data in the mm-wave bands makes them ideally suited to in-house / across room / short distance transmission of uncompressed HD TV or secure surveillance images.

Warp Speed Wireless:

I’ve written before about the capabilities and potential of commercial wireless products operating in the mm-wave bands.  Current 70/80 GHz systems are delivering true 1.25 Gbps FDD transmissions over several miles, with the capability to go higher.  WirelessHD and IEEE 802.15.3c promise to deliver data rates to 4 Gbps over 10 meter distances using the 7 GHz of unlicensed frequencies at 60 GHz.  Despite this, research labs are building prototypes that are pushing these performance capabilities higher.  For example, antenna arrays for in-room Wireless HD that can push throughput up to 20 Gbps have been demonstrated, and longer range point-to-point wireless backhaul systems operating at 12 to 24 Gbps are in the works.

And then one day, probably not too far away, we’ll need a home wireless link with a capacity exceeding 100 Gbps to wirelessly connect the successor of Blu-ray to our immersive ultra-hi-def home cinema!

MM-Wave Special Interest Group: 

If you’re a LinkedIn user, you should check out the MM-Wave Special Interest Group for members interested in the emerging mm-wave and higher microwave technologies, markets and applications.  Recent discussions have centered on mm-wave body imaging, mm-wave commercial markets and technical drivers for adoption.  You can apply for free membership here.

For More Information …

To better understand the wireless backhaul landscape and wider wireless technology implications, call or email us, or click here for more details.

Dr. Jonathan Wells

President

AJIS LLC

GigaBeam — the world-class proven commercial leader in multi-gigabit wireless communication solutions for the “entire last mile" — will manufacture, lease, install, and service high-speed point-to-point wireless communication access systems that are faster to deploy than fibre, more reliable than Free Space Optics (FSO), higher speed than microwave, and superior performance than any competing technology.

www.gigabeam.com