A new world record in wireless transmission

A new world record in wireless transmission, promising faster and more reliable wireless communications, has been set by researchers from UCL.

The team successfully sent data over the air at a speed of 938Gigabits per second (Gb/s) over a record frequency range of 5-150 Gigahertz(GHz).

This speed is up to 9,380 times faster than the best average5G download speed in the UK, which is currently 100 Megabits per second (Mb/s)or over. The total bandwidth of 145GHz is more than five times higher than the previous wireless transmission world record.

Typically, wireless networks transmit information using radio waves over a narrow range of frequencies. Current wireless transmission methods, such as wi-fi and 5G mobile, predominantly operate at low frequencies below 6GHz.

But congestion in this frequency range has limited the speed of wireless communications.

Researchers from UCL Electronic & Electrical Engineering overcame this bottleneck by transmitting information through a much wider range of radio frequencies by combining both radio and optical technologies for the first time. The results are described in a new study published in The Journal of Lightwave Technology.

This more efficient use of the wireless spectrum is expected to help meet growing demand for wireless data capacity and speed over the next three to five years.

The new UCL-developed technology has the potential to revolutionise various sectors, not least the wi-fi connectivity that people rely on at home and in other public places.

Mobile phone users can expect faster mobile internet speeds and more stable connections, with 5G and later 6G networks powered by this type of system. This would allow more people to use the network in densely populated urban environments or at large events like concerts without experiencing slowdown, or provide the same number of users with much faster speeds.

Tom Blumsom, head of IoT at Stonehouse-based Lister Unified Communications, described the data speeds as 'mind blowing', saying: "It's wild to think how these advances don't just change industries—they change our everyday lives, how we connect, share, and understand the world around us. How the businesses and services we rely on adapt and evolve.

"It reminds me why I'm so passionate about this field; there's always something new just over the horizon.

"To put it in perspective, a two-hour 4k Ultra HD film(around 14GB of data) would take 19 minutes to download over 5G at 100 Mb/s. Using the new technology it could be downloaded in just 0.12 seconds."

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