CAREER: Design, Analysis and Applications of mmWave Full-Duplex Wireless

无线数据流量预计将在未来十年呈指数级增长。这是因为无线连接设备的数量急剧增长，以及依赖无线通信的新兴应用，如无线连接车辆、空中无人机和虚拟或增强现实耳机。为了满足对无线容量的巨大需求，无线行业正在转向下一代技术，该技术将使用毫米波（mmWave）频率与移动客户端进行通信。然而，毫米波系统不能快速调整链路以适应用户的移动性。毫米波信号也容易受到阻碍，例如，人体本身就可以显著削弱无线信号。由于网络运营商需要部署大量毫米波基站以确保足够的覆盖范围，因此毫米波网络最终带来了额外的成本挑战。该项目的目标是设计全双工毫米波无线电，并开发新的通信算法和网络架构，以解决毫米波的移动性、阻塞和成本挑战。该项目的研究结果将被整合到一项教育计划中，该计划强调无线通信和网络在新兴的基于互联网的技术中的作用。该计划包括为本科生和研究生开设的新课程，以及为高中生和代表性不足的人群提供实习机会和教育讲习班。该项目将开发和原型化新的无线电、通信算法和网络架构，支持毫米波频段的全双工。第一项任务将开发新的波束形成架构，以实现毫米波全双工无线电。第二个推力将导致新的控制通道设计和反馈机制，以快速适应机动性的链接。第三个研究重点将带来新的网络部署架构和多连接解决方案，提高毫米波网络对阻塞的鲁棒性，并降低网络部署成本。这些研究重点将通过理论分析、标准化模型模拟和毫米波无线电可编程硬件实现来进行评估。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Wireless data traffic is expected to increase exponentially over the next decade. This is because of the dramatic growth in the number of wirelessly connected devices as well as emerging applications that rely on wireless communication such as wirelessly connected vehicles, aerial drones, and virtual or augmented reality headsets. In order to meet this massive demand in wireless capacity, the wireless industry is moving to next generation technology that will use millimeter-wave (mmWave) frequencies to communicate with mobile clients. However, mmWave systems cannot quickly adapt the links to user mobility. MmWave signals are also susceptible to blockages, e.g., the human body alone can significantly weaken the wireless signal. MmWave networks finally raise additional cost challenges as network operators need to deploy a high number of mmWave cells to ensure sufficient coverage. The objective of this project is to design full-duplex mmWave radios and develop new communication algorithms and network architectures to address mmWave’s mobility, blockages, and cost challenges. The findings from this project will be integrated into an education plan that emphasizes the role of wireless communication and networking in emerging Internet based technologies. This plan includes new courses for undergraduate and graduate students as well as internship opportunities and educational workshops for high school students and underrepresented populations.The project will result in developing and prototyping new radios, communication algorithms, and network architectures that enable and support full-duplex in mmWave bands. The first thrust will develop new beamforming architectures to enable mmWave full-duplex radios. The second thrust will result in new control channel designs and feedback mechanisms to quickly adapt the links to mobility. The third research thrust will result in new network deployment architectures and multi-connectivity solutions that increase robustness of mmWave networks to blockages and reduce the cost of network deployment. Each of these research thrusts will be evaluated through theoretical analysis, simulations with standardized models, and implementation on programmable hardware with mmWave radios.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.