Abstract

Today's wireless services and systems have come a long way since the rollout of the conventional voice-centric cellular systems. While 4G indicated that the evolution of cellular systems was directed more towards broadband connectivity than voice communications, 5G promised a paradigm shift with promising applications such as massive machine-type connectivity and ultra-reliable low-latency communication for variety of use cases including Industry 4.0 and Internet of things (IoT). This trend of increasing heterogeneity in terms of use cases and applications is bound to continue with the next-generation networks with even more stringent requirments related to cost, power efficiency, spectrum efficiency, extreme reliability, low latency, robustness against diverse channel conditions, cooperative networking capability and coexistence, dynamic and flexible utilization of wireless spectrum. Given that wireless connectivity is becoming an imperative part of our existence, not just from the communication but also sensing perspective, it is important for the enabling technologies to keep up with the ever increasing requirements. Consequently, 6G envisions a network empowered with intelligent, aware, and flexible technologies that can scale with the various use cases, applications, and deployment scenarios. The emergence of software-defined networks allows the automatic configuration of devices and their parameters, systems, and services according to the user’s context. Some of the more-popular technologies in this regard include integrated sensing and communication, non-terrestrial networks, non-orthogonal techniques for increased efficiency, higher frequency bands (mmWave and THz), smart radio environments etc. A fundamental part of any wireless communication standard is the PHY/MAC design. In this regard, the current OFDM technology has enjoyed unprecedented success with it being the only waveform being used for multiple generations of cellular systems (albeit with the introduction of multiple numerologies). However, given its limitations in terms of satisfying the new requirements, it is high time to look at potential alternatives for 6G PHY. Accordingly, in this tutorial, we will identify the waveform design criteria for the upcoming 6G standards. The potential directions and research opportunities to address the challenges and requirements of the 6G vision will be discussed. Some of the discussions can be listed as below:

Presenter

Hüseyin Arslan

Istanbul Medipol University, Istanbul, Türkiye

Full details

Tutorial 2: Communications and Networking in LEO Mega-Constellations

Abstract

The emerging low Earth orbit (LEO) mega-constellation networks, planned to be composed of thousands of satellites, have the potential to connect all through their global footprint and bridge the long-existing digital divide. This talk will focus on the communications and networking aspects of these mega-constellations and their integration with the terrestrial networks. The associated communication and networking problems will be investigated along with potential remedies such as the use of distributed massive MIMO and high altitude platform station (HAPS) systems. The talk will conclude with an overview of the open issues and future research directions.

Presenters

Gunes Karabulut Kurt

Polytechnique Montréal, Montréal, Canada

Full details

Olfa Ben Yahia

Polytechnique Montréal, Montréal, Canada

Full details