World first for Chinese scientists in terahertz wireless communication technology

A breakthrough in fast, long-distance data transmission is good news for future communication in space, researchers say

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Chinese scientists have made a breakthrough in terahertz wireless communication, which could help with future fast, long-distance communication. Photo: Shutterstock

Published: 10:00pm, 4 Oct 2024Updated: 10:47pm, 4 Oct 2024

Faster long-distance data transmission is a step closer, according to a team of Chinese scientists who say they have transmitted high-definition video signals over more than a kilometre using terahertz wireless communication technology.

The experiment, led by Purple Mountain Observatory of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), was the world’s first successful application of high-sensitivity superconducting receiver technology in long-distance terahertz wireless communication systems, according to the observatory.

Terahertz (THz) radiation is an electromagnetic wave that lies between the microwave and infrared frequency bands, a relatively unoccupied part of the electromagnetic spectrum. Terahertz technology is known for being a powerful imaging tool for security screening and medical diagnostics.

It is a key technology being explored by scientists for 6G and future ultra-fast wireless communication due to its ability to carry large amounts of data.

It could also prove crucial for communication in space, according to the team, enabling massive real-time data transmission.

Scientists have been trying to overcome bottlenecks such as severe signal attenuation that hinders long-range terahertz communication.

The team said transmission distances could be significantly increased by integrating ultra-sensitive terahertz telescopes with terahertz communication systems in certain environments.

“Think of microwave communication as a two-lane road. Terahertz communication is like widening that road to six or eight lanes because of the broader and richer spectrum,” Li Jing, a CAS research professor who worked on the experiment, told state broadcaster CCTV.

“The superconducting detection technology we used in this experiment has high sensitivity. It is like driving high-performance cars on this wider road – almost no energy is lost, allowing signals to travel much farther,” she said.

The five-day experiment began last Friday in the northwest province of Qinghai, where the submillimetre-wave astronomical observation base sits at an altitude of around 4,300 metres (14,107 feet) on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.

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Purple Mountain Observatory researches high-energy astrophysics, solar physics and space astronomical exploration technology, as well as star formation through the universe and the corresponding terahertz technology.

The team also included scientists from the China Academy of Engineering Physics, Shanghai Normal University, China Electronics Technology Group Corporation, Technical Institute of Physics and Chemistry of CAS, and the Changchun Institute of Optics, Fine Mechanics and Physics of CAS.

During the experiment, the signal transmission strength from the source was 10 microwatts – about one-millionth of the output from a typical mobile phone base station, according to state broadcaster CCTV.

Despite such a weak signal, the researchers said they received a high-definition video transmitted from a distance of 1.2km (0.75 miles) using their terahertz superconducting receiver.

It was the longest terahertz wireless communication transmission experiment achieved to date in the frequency range above 0.5THz, the observatory said.

It also laid a “critical technical foundation for future space and air-to-ground high-capacity terahertz communication, as well as the construction of a multidisciplinary platform at the submillimetre-wave observatory,” according to CCTV.

Chinese scientists started studying terahertz astronomical detection technology in the 1990s, CCTV said.

Now, after decades of research, Chinese scientists were at the forefront of superconducting detector technology, Purple Mountain Observatory radio astronomer Shi Shengcai, who is also an academician at CAS, told CCTV. This put them in a good position to progress in terahertz communication systems and make use of the observational site on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.