According to the researchers this development will pave the way for the manufacture of smart surfaces and the introduction of low latency, 5G cellular services by being able to control and deliver strong and consistent wireless signals in open spaces.
Wireless signals are inherently unstable in large environments, which results in limited signal strength and means that objects within wireless zones can negatively affect signal range and interfere with device connectivity.
As well as impacting the operation of existing applications, this instability is also slowing the implementation of high-speed, 5G services and the design of 6G architecture.
The development of smart surfaces can help solve this problem by amplifying wireless signals within a targeted environment.
Also known as reconfigurable intelligent surfaces (RISs), smart surfaces are arrays of programmable electronic material. They can attach to most surfaces and beam wireless signals to specific areas: this enables different wireless zones and services to be set up within only a few wireless communication environments.
Vincenzo Sciancalepore, principal research scientist at NEC, the parent company of NEC Laboratories Europe, said: "Smart surfaces are incredibly versatile and ideally suited for creating public and private networks in large open spaces like train stations, shopping areas and 5G-connected factories. This opens up new business opportunities for service providers to implement low latency, 5G services that are contextually relevant and location specific. Once realized, the simplicity of these devices will accelerate the planning of 6G architecture."
According to NEC, their smart surfaces improve on current RIS technology by being fully passive with no active radio frequency components, which reduces their overall power consumption and the amount of electronics that need to be printed. This means lower production costs and a smaller carbon footprint, the company said.
Xavier Costa, head of NEC Laboratories Europe's 6G Research Group said, "Smart surfaces can be designed to stick on anything to direct and amplify wireless signals in open spaces, but until now their cost to manufacture has prevented serious consideration for use. With that issue resolved we now have a realistic roadmap for rapid commercialization, which represents a real eureka milestone for wireless communications."