3.5GHZ-based 5G Communications
SK Telecom announced on June 28 that it has successfully demonstrated 5G wireless service using the 3.5GHz band for the first time in Korea with the support of Samsung Electronics and Nokia.
5G frequencies are divided into an extremely high frequency and a low frequency range. The 3.5 GHz band, which is in a low frequency range, can send less data than a high frequency range but has a longer frequency travelling distance and a higher speed of transmission. Currently, global telecommunications carriers are seeking to secure 5G technologies based on extremely high frequency, also known as millimeter wave, including 28 GHz.
The extremely high frequency bandwidth shows higher transfer capacity for massive data that use a wide bandwidth compared to the low frequency. However, it has a relatively limited coverage because it tends to emanate in almost a straight line.
Accordingly, China, Japan and South Korea has focused on securing 5G technologies in the low frequency range of less than 6GHz, which can offer a giga-level speed and wider communication areas.
SK Telecom worked with Samsung Electronics to co-develop base station equipment, test device and virtualization core equipment for the 3.5GHz 5G spectrum based on 3GPP 5G standards.
The two companies successfully completed the trial test using low-density parity-check (LDPC) channel coding technology to minimize data loss and ultra-low latency communication technology at the Samsung Electronics’ R&D Center in Suwon on the previous day.
SK Telecom also co-developed with Nokia a 5G base station equipment and test device for the 3.5GHz spectrum and successfully realized gigabits per second (Gbps) speed while testing near its office in Bundang on the same day.
The two companies applied carrier aggregation techniques to expand bandwidth and measured the speed and quality of transmission while moving, which will serve as important data when designing 5G commercial networks in the 3.5GHz band.
SK Telecom is planning to operate 28GHz in city areas in where shows high data traffic and 3.5GHz in other areas or the combined network of 28GHz and 3.5GHz when it commercializes 5G wireless services.
The company will also use the 28GHz band in virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) media services which require mass data and the 3.5GHz band in autonomous vehicles and disaster recovery robots which needs stable communications. SK Telecom has already set up 5G trial networks using the 28GHz band in Gangnam in Seoul and Yeongjong Island in Incheon.