Speakers
Power-Efficient 6G Radio Unit Architectures
Open RAN systems offer the flexibility to split the physical layer processing between a radio unit and a remotely located distribution unit. The University of Sheffield has developed a dual band sub 6-GHz Open RAN radio unit architecture. It enables two different network operators to share the radio unit hardware via a neutral host, simultaneously supporting both a public and a private 5G band or two distinct mobile operators’ bands. This reduces the power consumption and cost of deployment by avoiding duplication of hardware for each frequency band. Direct sampling techniques are proposed to further reduce the receiver power consumption, demonstrated experimentally at 28 GHz. The EVM and BLER performance are validated at link level for sub-Nyquist sampling. A millimetre wave E-band receiver operating at 73 GHz is also designed and demonstrated experimentally using commercially available components. Future wideband communication links will be supported at sub-6 GHz, FR2, and E-band frequencies using these power-efficient radio unit architectures.
I received my BSc degree in Electrical and Electronic Engineering from the University of Birmingham and my MSc and PhD degrees in Electrical and Electronic Engineering from the University of Manchester.
I am the Chair Professor in Wireless Communication at the University of Sheffield and I am a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering (FREng).
In the field of wireless communications, I have made significant contributions to waveform and energy-efficiency design for radio access networks (RANs) and I have translated significant research into industry through standards, products, and practices.
My research is focused on wireless communications systems, specialising in radio systems engineering, physical layer signal processing, and energy-efficient (EE) wireless networking.
As Co-Founder and CTO of Supergold Communication Limited, I accomplished strategic breakthroughs in determining the IEEE802.11g Wi-Fi standard. Also, I have developed standardised practices for measuring EE in RANs and produced software-tools for modelling RAN performance.
I have led 27 major research projects with a total research spend of approximately £29M. I led the UK Research Strategy Community Organisation in Communications, Mobile Computing and Networking within the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council portfolio (CommNet II, EP/N007824/1) and currently, I am the director of the UKRI National 6G Radio Systems Facility (EP/X030016/1).