Abstract

As fifth generation (5G) research is maturing towards a global standard, the research community has started to focus on the development of beyond-5G solutions and the 2030 era, i.e. 6G. In the future, our society will be increasingly digitised, hyper-connected and globally data driven. Many widely anticipated future services will be critically dependent on instant, virtually unlimited wireless connectivity. Mobile communication technologies are expected to progress far beyond anything seen so far in wireless-enabled applications, making everyday lives smoother and safer while dramatically improving the efficiency of businesses.

6G is not only about moving data around — it will become a framework of services, including communication services where all user-specific computation and intelligence may move to the edge cloud. The white paper presents key drivers, research requirements, challenges and essential research questions related to 6G. The focus is on societal and business drivers; use cases and new device forms; spectrum and key performance indicator targets; radio hardware progress and challenges; physical layer; networking; and new service enablers. Societal megatrends, United Nations’ sustainability goals, lowering carbon dioxide emissions, emerging new technical enablers as well as ever increasing productivity demands are introduced as critical drivers towards 2030 solutions.

This white paper is the first in a series of 6G Research Visions based on the views that 70 invited experts shared during a special workshop at the first 6G Wireless Summit in Finnish Lapland in March 2019.