Future 6G networks promise blistering speeds, but there's a catch. The wireless channels they'll rely on can't pass through walls. But now, engineers have designed a workaround that could help solve one of the technology's biggest obstacles.
The next generation of cellular network technology is expected to lean heavily on millimeter waves — a sliver of the electromagnetic spectrum that can carry huge amounts of data but with wavelengths so short that they struggle to pass through solid objects like walls and furniture.
That's very different from the lower-frequency signals used by Wi-Fi and older cellular networks like 5G and 4G, which travel through obstacles far more easily. The result is patchy indoor coverage — a major roadblock for any technology that depends on millimeter waves.
But engineers think they've found an inexpensive workaround in the form of thin, 3D-printed tiles that reflect millimeter-wave signals around obstacles instead of trying to punch through ...
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