A Holistic Investigation of Terahertz-enabled Wireless Networks

The exponential growth in global mobile data traffic has led to the evolution of wireless technologies. While 5G networks are still being deployed, it is speculated that the 5G systems will reach its performance limits within ten years of its launch. To maintain sustainability and scalability, industry and academia are investigating the next generation of wireless networks, referred to as 6G wireless networks, which can achieve a 1000x fold performance increase compared to the current 5G networks. One key enabler of the 6G network at the spectrum level is Terahertz (THz) communication in the frequency range between 0.1 to 1 THz. THz communication can support an extremely high data rate of up to 1 Tbps due to its abundant spectrum resource and enable ultra-dense network deployment due to its high directivity, weak interference, and short transmission range. This project aims to develop a tractable analytic framework to evaluate the performance of THz enabled wireless networks, such as achievable rates, coverage, and outage probability. The analytical framework should include detailed propagation characteristics of the THz band, achieve accurate results, and be easily adapted to various THz wireless network applications.Performance evaluation of the THz wireless network is still an open problem due to its complex propagation characteristics. We aim to tackle this bottleneck by using a truncated orthogonal series expansion of the interference distribution. Based on this approach, the system designer can dynamically control the tractability and accuracy of the evaluation by choosing the number of terms. Finally, as a research implication, we will evaluate the performance of THz-based localization algorithms by using the developed analytical framework. PI will validate the adopted theoretical channel model to actual channel measurements using measurement facilities available at CityU (City University of Hong Kong), which will support the validity of the proposed framework for the THz network. This project is anticipated to establish theoretical foundations for the 6G wireless network, provide performance benchmark, and enable the optimized design of communication technologies for the 6G system. This project will significantly contribute to increasing Hong Kong’s global competitiveness in the wireless communication industry.