Researchers Develop Switch To Revolutionize 6G Communications

The device, a telecommunications switch, enhances sustainability and offers twice the performance of existing devices.
Researchers at UAB developed a telecommunications switch that operates at extremely high frequencies while consuming less power than traditional technologies. This innovation, suitable for upcoming 6G communication systems, offers enhanced sustainability through reduced energy usage. The findings were recently published in Nature Electronics.

An indispensable element for controlling signals in electronic communication devices is the switch, whose function is to allow an electrical signal to pass (ON state) or to block it (OFF state). The fastest elements currently used to perform this function are silicon-based (the so-called RF silicon-on-insulator MOSFET switches) and operate using signals with frequencies of tens of gigahertz (GHz).