The FCC has voted to clear up terahertz frequencies (95 gigahertz to 3 terahertz) for engineers and begin experimenting with next-generation wireless technologies, 6G.
The FCC has unanimously voted to clear "terahertz" frequencies (95 gigahertz to 3 terahertz) for engineers who plan to begin experimenting with the next generation of wireless technologies, possibly 6G. According to the statement of the chairman of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Ajit Pai, published on the official website of the department, this decision will be an important milestone for the productive use of this spectrum.
“Today's decision is a big step towards the productive use of these frequencies. This will give professionals a powerful incentive to develop new technologies using these radio waves, as well as to protect existing applications,”Pai said in a statement.
Spectrum, previously considered useless, could offer ultra-fast internet service for data-intensive applications such as imaging software and ultra-high-resolution Earth observation satellite. Under the regulation, the FCC will grant developers a ten-year license to experiment with new products and services.
While the document released by the FCC does not specifically mention 6G, these frequencies could pave the way for a successor to 5G wireless technology (up to 86 GHz), which has yet to be widely adopted. Device manufacturers are rapidly advancing technology to bring 5G connectivity to their devices, promising blazing fast speeds and the next generation of IoT devices. At the end of last year, the world's largest telecommunications company AT&T turned on 5G in 12 US cities, and plans to expand its coverage to 21 cities this year. Certain US cities - Chicago and Minneapolis - will launch their own 5G service networks next month with the help of Verizon.
Such news correlates with a recent tweet from Donald Trump that cellular communications "5G and even 6G" will appear in the US "as soon as possible", even though there is no widespread use of 5G.
Transmitting data over millimeter waves in the case of 5G and even shorter wavelengths in 6G is an extremely difficult task. As waves get shorter, connections become less reliable and require shorter transmission distances and line-of-sight, which makes them less likely to penetrate walls and other obstacles.
Some experts are rather skeptical about the idea. According to FCC Commissioner Michael O'Rielly, there is great uncertainty about what technologies will be deployed, what spectrum will be ideal, or what channel size will be needed. At the same time, he said that he was ready to support this initiative in order to see its potential development - it is better than catching up in a hurry later.
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