China says that it is leading the world in 6G research
China sets #6G speed world record, 10 to 20 times faster than #5G. pic.twitter.com/CKb1MD6iar
— Ambassador Deng Xijun (@China2ASEAN) January 8, 2022
The professor added that these signals add “a new dimension to wireless transmission” and means that China is “leading the world in research on potential key technologies for 6G.” Current technology uses two-dimensional electromagnetic waves that move up and down to represent information. The vortex millimetre waves have three dimensions that is being compared to the whirling motion of a tornado.
In 2020, a team from Japan’s Nippon Telegraph and Telephone company used vortex waves to produce a data speed of over 200Gbps over a distance of 33 feet.
A 6G researcher working in Beijing for the Chinese government said that this is “the start of a revolution” in communications technology. The researcher asked not to be named due to the confidential work he is doing but added that “The most exciting thing is not just about the speed. It is about introducing a new physical dimension, which can lead to a whole new world with almost unlimited possibilities.”
China owns 40% of the world’s 6G patents
The report says that the commercial launch of 6G could start by 2030 in China, although the military might be able to use it earlier because performance is more important to them than cost. Another research team in Tianjin said in January that it created a terahertz transmitter, another potential technology that could be used for 6G and China’s hypersonic weapons program.
The U.S. is trying to fight back and last April it announced a $4.5 billion partnership with Japan to work on 6G technology. But a study done last September by the Nikkei and Tokyo-based researcher Cyber Creative Institute found that China owns more than 40% of the world’s 5G patents. The U.S. is next with 35% followed by Japan (10%), Europe (9%), and South Korea (4%).