Like shouting from a great distance
Amplifiers are used because wireless signals are not very strong in themselves and weaken over long distances.
“It’s like when someone speaks from a great distance. We can hardly hear them, but if we place a microphone in front of them, they can be heard, so we can say that the amplifier functions like a microphone,” Zain Ahmed Kahn says.
“The solutions in use are now up to 20-30 years old,” Zain explains, “and they are not adapted to the demands of wireless communication today.”
In old-fashioned technology, an antenna is used to transmit and receive signals, but 5G requires hundreds of antennas and base stations, so 5G will demand the use of hundreds of amplifiers operating simultaneously.
“Solutions today are often very complex, and for this reason we are trying to find simple solutions for a large number of amplifiers because then less processing power will be needed and we will save electric power and money.”
The big cell towers
If researchers can develop simpler solutions, millions of people will not need to charge their mobile phones as often, and society will save electricity.
Zain adds that the big cell towers and the electricity they demand are major concerns.
“If we manage to reduce energy consumption in these big towers, we will save a great deal of energy,” Zain Ahmed Kahn concludes.