5G is the fifth generation technology standard for broadband cellular networks, which began to be deployed in 2019. It's also the current successor to 4G and enables a new network designed to connect virtually everyone and everything, including machines, smart appliances and devices.
The networks in their respective service areas are known as cells, and all 5G wireless devices in a cell are connected to the internet and telephone networks by radio waves through antennas in those cells. The main advantage of 5G networks is a greater bandwidth over 4G, providing higher download speeds at 10 Gbps or much greater and faster response times. Due to that increased bandwidth, it is expected that the networks will be used as general internet service providers for laptops and desktop computers, competing with existing ISPs and providing new IoT (Internet of Things) and machine-to-machine applications.
To better understand 5G and its capabilities, let's take a look at what the previous generations have offered. 1G was introduced in the 1980s and provided analog voice capabilities. 2G debuted in the 1990s and introduced digital voice and CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access) used by various radio communication technologies. 3G brought about mobile data for browsing the internet and the ability to upload and download files. 4G, which is predominantly used today, provides mobile broadband at higher bandwidths and IP telephony, mobile gaming, HD TV, video conferencing, and more.
So what does 5G bring to the table? The standard provides a unified, more capable air interface and has been designed with extended capacities to enable next-generation user experiences, granting new deployment models and delivering new services.
5G technology offers higher data speeds with reduced latency over 4G and provides coverage areas with data speeds up to 100 times faster and almost instantaneous response time. For example, it can take almost six minutes to download an entire movie with 4G, but with 5G, that same movie can be downloaded in as little as 15 seconds. To put that into perspective, current 4G speeds have a download rate of about 12 to 36 Mbps, while 5G services can support speeds of up to 300 Mbps or greater.
That increased speed is partly achieved by using additional higher-frequency radio waves and the low- and medium-band frequencies used in previous and existing networks. However, these have drawbacks as higher-frequency radio waves have a shorter range, requiring smaller geographic cells. For broad service, 5G networks operate on up to three frequency bands, low, medium, and high. A 5G network is composed of up to three different types of cells, each requiring specific antenna designs as well as providing a different tradeoff of download speed to distance and service area. 5G cellphones and wireless devices connect to the network through the highest-speed antenna within range at their location.
Over the last two years, many carriers began rolling out 5G by building on existing 4G or LTE networks, which produced lots of connectivity but not at the speeds most associated with 5G. The major telecom carriers have gradually introduced standalone versions of their networks, meaning they don't piggyback on existing infrastructure. For example, T-Mobile's offering covers 1.3 million square miles or 34% of the U.S. When T-Mobile acquired Sprint, it also picked up a substantial amount of wireless spectrum, which is now part of T-Mobile's network. Dish Network also acquired some of Sprint's wireless assets as a condition of the merger, and the satellite company is now developing its own cellular service.
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Frequencies, Microwaves, Millimeter Waves, Oh My
As mentioned earlier, 5G uses a combination of low, mid and high range spectrum to support different use cases and applications. Some require high bandwidth and constant connectivity, such as those enabled by millimeter wave (mmWave) frequencies (24 to 40 GHz), which offer incredible speeds and capacity at the cost of reduced range and poor propagation qualities. Low-band 5G uses a similar frequency range to 4G cellphones, 600 to 850 MHz, giving download speeds a little higher than 30 to 250 Mbps. Those low-band towers provide a range and coverage area similar to 4G towers, about 10-miles. Mid-band 5G uses microwave signals that range from 2.5 to 3.7 GHz, providing speeds of 100 to 900 Mbps with each cell tower providing coverage in a several-mile radius. This level of service is the most widely deployed and in use around the world.
High-band 5G uses frequencies between 25 to 39 GHz, which is near the bottom of the millimeter-wave band. Download speeds at this level are in the gigabit per second range and are often comparable to cable internet speeds. Those that utilize mmWave also have a more limited range, requiring many small cells. Because of their higher cost, most telecoms deploy these cells only in dense urban environments and areas where large crowds gather, such as sports stadiums and convention centers. They can also be blocked by materials in walls or windows.
Some telecoms have been upgrading masts with new equipment compatible with the 5G spectrum and have been working to ensure that the technology supports as many functions and standards as possible while remaining compact and lightweight. There are two main reasons for piggybacking on existing tower infrastructure. First, the equipment is lighter, making it easier it is to install and reduce labor costs. Second, some cell towers support multiple networks (2G, 3G, and 4G), and there is a physical limit to how much hardware they can support. Of course, new 5G towers are being put in place as well, but at significantly higher costs, as they require a high-speed backend, such as fiberoptics, to handle the increased bandwidth and throughput.
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Extending 5G Coverage for City and Urban Environments
While 5G can provide incredible speeds, getting it into the hands of consumers is a bit tricky, especially in urban and rural areas. One way is through microwave technology, which can use a point-to-point connection with multi-gigabit speeds. Microwave anyhaul is designed to transport data to the core network where fiber is nonexistent. Towers are equipped with an air-interface to send radio signals (up to 170 GHz) and enable transmission over long distances at ultra-high speeds. It also supports network slicing architecture that enables the multiplexing of virtualized and independent logical networks on the same physical network infrastructure.
Another solution is to use new Integrated Access Backhaul (IAB) technology to deliver 5G without the need for fiber installations and utilize a dedicated portion of available mmWave bandwidth to connect to a core network. IAB allows for multi-hop backhauling using the same frequencies employed for user equipment (UE) access or a distinct, dedicated frequency. The technology uses a multi-hop approach to network deployment and allows deployment of mmWave base stations with or without fiber backhaul transport. It works using a fraction of the deployed base stations to act as donor nodes, which use a fiber/wired connection. The others without a wired connection are called IAB nodes. Both types of base stations generate an equivalent cellular coverage area and appear identical to user equipment in the field.
CommScope and Nokia teamed up last year to provide another solution to bring 5G to rural areas via an interleaved passive-active antenna (IPAA) radio platform. The technology simplifies the 5G rollout by leveraging existing sites without the need for additional infrastructure. The platform uses a pair of modules, with a passive unit that supports multiple bands in the 700 MHz and 2.7 GHz frequency range and an active module that provides TDD beamforming functionality for 5G n78 (3.4 to 3.8 GHz). Both modules can be customized to support different frequency combinations to suit any particular area.
More than just mobile devices
5G is designed for more applications than just being a fast platform for cell phones. Robots, automobiles, health devices, and even retail can utilize the standard. 5G can link street lights to smart cities using sensors to monitor light conditions, allow EMTs and emergency responders to do more at accident scenes, and let farmers track their crops and livestock efficiently. Robots in manufacturing can use the low latency and increased throughput to keep tabs on maintenance cycles, while those in hospitals can relay patient information and medical requirements to doctors.
5G can also provide benefits to applications such as gaming and video livestreaming, provide multiple viewing angles for sporting events, and allow VR (Virtual Reality) or AR (Augmented Reality) goggles and glasses to stream content from the cloud. Cars and autonomous vehicles can use 5G to communicate with nearly everything for traffic updates, accidents, and more. Imagine sensors that could detect and warn of oncoming natural disasters, production plants that automatically adjust manufacturing based on supply and demand, and teaching materials with immersive content. There's no apparent limit to what can be done using 5G.
That being said, 5G is still rolling out since deployment operations began in 2019, with a majority in densely populated cities. While it's difficult to predict when everyone will have access to 5G, there is significant momentum in continued launches, and we can expect more countries to establish networks in late 2021 and beyond.