Qualcomm is demonstrating low-band capability good points and infrastructure reuse within the upper-mid band
The story of 6G isn’t nearly new spectrum—it’s about making higher use of what we have already got. In an interview at Cell World Congress, Qualcomm VP of Engineering Tingfang Ji outlined how 6G will drive huge effectivity good points throughout all layers of the wi-fi system. From novel antenna architectures to AI-designed protocols, Qualcomm’s analysis exhibits a path to decrease deployment prices, smarter networks, and extra adaptable air interfaces.
Ji emphasised, “A brand new G isn’t just the brand new band…Truly, while you improve, you need to even [upgrade] present bands to see some efficiency profit.” For example, 1-2 GHz spectrum has precious propagation traits however is capability constrained. He mentioned that with a baseband improve, Qualcomm has seen a minimum of 2x will increase in protection.
6G targets a 50% to 70% acquire in FDD bands with out changing cell website RF tools. This may be completed utilizing plenty of methods, together with:
– Spectrum confinement and numerology alignment–greater bandwidth occupancy for 6G FDD bands and tighter coordination with TDD bands.
– Downlink MIMO–superior channel state suggestions design to realize excessive efficiency beamforming in 6G FDD.
– Uplink antenna/Tx energy administration–superior antenna/energy administration accounting for uplink/downlink imbalance, and MPE.
– Modulation, coding and MIMO mapping–developed 5G coding, modulation to 6G LDPC, constellation shaping, MIMO mapping design.
– Uplink waveform changes–DFT-S with MIMO to yield acquire over 5G NR single-layer DFT-S uplink.
– Reference sign and HARQ design–mix one of the best of LTE CRS and NR DMRS, HARQ design.
“6G, to this point, we’re labeling because the excessive effectivity G,” Ji mentioned. “It’s not simply power effectivity to save cash, but additionally spectral effectivity.”
Shifting from low-band to upper-mid-band spectrum—particularly the 7–8 GHz vary, which is seen as key to early 6G deployments—Ji mentioned Qualcomm’s work on Giga-MIMO. The thought right here is an evolution of huge MIMO for mid-band 5G, usually round 3.5 GHz, that may permit operators to deploy new spectrum and ship comparable protection whereas reusing present websites.
“That’s one drawback we’ve to resolve for the group, for the ecosystem,” Ji mentioned of infrastructure reuse. To beat propagation losses at greater frequencies, Giga-MIMO arrays scale as much as 4,096 parts—far past the 256-element arrays utilized in in the present day’s huge MIMO methods. In over the air testing, Qualcomm has in contrast huge MIMO at 3.5 GHz with Giga-MIMO at 13 GHz. The outcome confirmed a 2.3x downlink system throughput acquire and a couple of.4x uplink system throughput acquire with Giga-MIMO.
“You may reuse the identical website,” Ji mentioned. “There’s no have to densify and but, you may have good indoor protection at greater frequencies.” On the UE aspect, Ji mentioned Qualcomm plans to maneuver from two to 4 transmit antennas, incorporating coherent beamforming. “All these issues will assist when it comes to decreasing the capital funding of those new methods.”
The dialog then turned to wi-fi AI, which Ji described as a key enabler of 6G’s adaptability and intelligence. There are two methods of making use of AI to wi-fi methods, he mentioned. “One is simply to implement higher gadgets and [a] higher community utilizing AI know-how.” That’s taking place in the present day with Qualcomm’s Snapdragon-powered gadgets, in addition to on the community aspect with the introduction of AI into service administration and orchestration (SMO) and Open RAN methods.
The second manner, Ji mentioned, “is to truly use AI to design the air interface. The air interface is a specification that clearly defines what the bottom station is transmitting or what the UE is receiving, or the opposite manner round. So wi-fi AI is a brand new design method that claims, ‘Let’s not simply put down precisely how the code phrases are outlined.’ As a substitute, it must be data-driven. We’ll study from the information we gather and let AI to spell out how this protocol works.”
Working with Nokia Bell Labs, Qualcomm demonstrated the efficiency of wi-fi AI fashions in numerous bodily environments, measuring throughput good points of 15% to 95% in contrast with 3GPP-specific channel state info (CSI) suggestions. The collaboration confirmed the pliability of sequential studying, which might facilitate community decoder-first or system encoder-first coaching.
Qualcomm additionally labored with Rohde & Schwarz to validate machine learning-based CSI suggestions compression for 5G-Superior networks. The businesses achieved interoperability between ML fashions working on cellular kind issue reference gadgets. In accordance with the businesses, the validation work “allows environment friendly compression of the channel state primarily based on CSI reference sign…measurements, optimizing huge MIMO operations essential for 5G networks…the throughput efficiency improved by 51% in comparison with Sort 1 suggestions adopted by wideband precoding, as outlined in 3GPP Launch 15.”
This wi-fi AI method represents a basic shift in community design. Reasonably than the community dictating consumer expertise, the expertise itself shapes the community. “As a substitute of getting specified, particular habits primarily based on what the designers on the standardization stage assume [it] ought to do, you may let AI take precise consumer efficiency into consideration, make it extra performance-driven habits as a substitute of specification-driven habits. Leaving this flexibility within the protocol will permit each the community aspect and UE aspect to be extra environment friendly and get higher efficiency.”
Ji’s perspective makes clear that 6G shouldn’t be a rip-and-replace proposition—it’s about embedding intelligence at each layer to increase the worth of present investments, spectrum, and infrastructure. As wi-fi AI matures and Giga-MIMO scales, Qualcomm is betting on a model of 6G the place smarter means higher—not simply sooner.
