Chalcogenide phase-change material advances programmable terahertz metamaterials: a non-volatile perspective for reconfigurable intelligent surfaces
Author:
Chen Kai1, Song Wenju1, Li Zhaolin1, Wang Zihao2, Ma Junqing1, Wang Xinjie1, Sun Tao1, Guo Qinglei1, Shi Yanpeng1, Qin Wei-Dong3, Song Aimin14, Chen Hou-Tong5, Zhang Yifei1ORCID
Affiliation:
1. Shandong Technology Center of Nanodevices and Integration, School of Integrated Circuits, Shandong University , Jinan , 250100 , China 2. Institute of Novel Semiconductors, Shandong University , Jinan , 250100 , China 3. Department of Critical Care Medicine, Qilu Hospital, Cheeloo College of Medicine, Shandong University , Jinan , 250100 , China 4. Department of Electrical and Electronic Engineering , University of Manchester , Manchester , M13 9PL , UK 5. Center for Integrated Nanotechnologies , Los Alamos National Laboratory , Los Alamos , NM , 87545 , USA
Abstract
Abstract
Terahertz (THz) waves have gained considerable attention in the rising 6G communication due to their large bandwidth. However, the cost and power consumption become the major constraints for the commercialization of 6G THz systems as the frequency increases. Reconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS) comprising active metasurfaces and digital controllers has been proposed for beamforming in the 6G multiple-input-multiple-output systems, showing good potential to suppress the system size, weight, and power consumption (SWaP). Currently, their controlling diodes can hardly work up to THz frequencies. Therefore, several active stimuli have been investigated as alternatives. Among them, chalcogenide phase-change material Ge2Sb2Te5 (GST) addresses large modulation depth, picosecond switching speed, and non-volatile properties. Notably, the non-volatile GST may enable RIS systems with memory and low control power. This work briefly reviews the advances of GST-tuned THz metamaterials (MTMs), discusses the current obstacles to overcome, and gives a perspective of GST applications in the rising 6G communications.
Funder
National Key Research and Development Program of China National Natural Science Foundation of China Key Fundamental Research Program of Shandong Natural Science Foundation Center for Integrated Nanotechnologies (CINT), an Office of Science User Facility operated for the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Office of Science Key Research and Development Program of Shandong Province
Publisher
Walter de Gruyter GmbH
Subject
Electrical and Electronic Engineering,Atomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics,Electronic, Optical and Magnetic Materials,Biotechnology
Reference26 articles.
1. I. F. Akyildiz, A. Kak, and S. Nie, “6G and beyond: the future of wireless communications systems,” IEEE Access, vol. 8, pp. 133995–134030, 2020. https://doi.org/10.1109/ACCESS.2020.3010896. 2. W. Saad, M. Bennis, and M. Chen, “A vision of 6G wireless systems: applications, trends, technologies, and open research problems,” IEEE Network, vol. 34, no. 3, pp. 134–142, 2020. https://doi.org/10.1109/MNET.001.1900287. 3. B. Zheng, C. You, W. Mei, and R. Zhang, “A survey on channel estimation and practical passive beamforming design for intelligent reflecting surface aided wireless communications,” IEEE Commun. Surv. Tutor., vol. 24, no. 2, pp. 1035–1071, 2022. https://doi.org/10.1109/COMST.2022.3155305. 4. P. Yang, Y. Xiao, M. Xiao, and S. Li, “6G wireless communications: vision and potential techniques,” IEEE Network, vol. 33, no. 4, pp. 70–75, 2019. https://doi.org/10.1109/MNET.2019.1800418. 5. M. Giordani, M. Polese, M. Mezzavilla, S. Rangan, and M. Zorzi, “Toward 6G networks: use cases and technologies,” IEEE Commun. Mag., vol. 58, no. 3, pp. 55–61, 2020. https://doi.org/10.1109/MCOM.001.1900411.
|
|