Professor Xufeng Jing’s research team at China Jiliang University has conducted a systematic study on wireless communication technologies based on metasurfaces. This paper provides a detailed introduction to the working principles and classifications of passive, active, and semi-active metasurfaces, with a particular focus on how digital-coded metasurfaces achieve precise control over the phase and polarization of electromagnetic waves through dynamic tuning of unit structures.
The research team emphasizes the core advantages of metasurfaces in wireless communication, including miniaturization, low power consumption, real-time programmability, and their potential value in applications such as expanding signal coverage and enhancing multi-user MIMO capacity.
Wireless Relay Technology, The research team compared the hardware designsof reflective and transmissive metasurfaces, including control mechanisms based on PIN diodes and varactor diodes. They analyzed how these designs enable functions such as beamforming and frequency conversion. Additionally, the team conducted a systematic review of channel estimation techniques, evaluating the advantages and disadvantages of methods such as compressed sensing, deep learning, and orthogonal matching pursuit (OMP). They explored strategies to reduce pilot overhead and improve estimation accuracy under low signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) conditions. Furthermore, the team studied channel modeling, comparing statistical models (e.g., geometric models, Rician fading models) with physical models (e.g., path loss, near/far-field effects). They also analyzed how channel sparsity and spatial correlation impact overall system performance.
The research team summarized the basic principles of modulation techniques such as digital coding, time-domain coding, and space-time coding, and explored the application of these methods in communication schemes such as frequency/phase shift keying (FSK/PSK) and quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM). Furthermore, they proposed a direct radiation emitter architecture based on coded metasurfaces, replacing traditional complex antenna arrays, thus simplifying the communication system structure and enhancing spectral efficiency.
The research team also emphasized the key advantages of intelligent coded metasurfaces, pointing out that their dynamic unit control enables precise manipulation of electromagnetic waves. Compared to traditional metasurface technologies, they show significant advantages in areas such as multi-path fading resistance and communication capacity enhancement. Additionally, the team explored a novel communication mode based on vector vortex optical fields (OAM), investigating the potential of metasurfaces in generating and controlling OAM beams and looking forward to their applications in the field of high-speed, high-capacity optical communications.
Building on this, the team proposed three major innovative perspectives: First, hardware-channel joint design, where metasurfaces directly control the propagation path of electromagnetic waves, embedding functions such as signal modulation and multi-user beamforming into the metasurface units. For instance, the FSK and PSK metasurface transmitter design eliminates traditional mixers and power amplifiers, reducing hardware complexity and energy consumption by more than 60%. Second, intelligent dynamic response, where metasurfaces, combined with artificial intelligence algorithms, can sense changes in the channel in real-time and optimize control strategies accordingly. Third, multi-dimensional information transmission, using vortex optical fields (OAM) for mode multiplexing, resulting in a more than threefold increase in single-link transmission capacity.
From an application value perspective, coded metasurfaces can greatly enhance the flexibility and adaptability of communication systems. For example, in complex indoor environments, metasurfaces can be deployed to extend signal coverage to blind spots and effectively suppress multipath interference. In Internet of Things (IoT) applications, their low-power characteristics can support the long-term operation of large-scale sensor networks.
On the societal impact front, this technology is expected to become a core enabler of 6G “intelligent wireless environments”, driving the deployment of frontier applications such as industrial IoT, vehicular networks, and holographic communication. For example, in the future, base stations could leverage the dynamic programmable features of metasurfaces to seamlessly blend into building facades or road signs, providing seamless signal coverage and offering a novel solution for smart wireless communications.
This work, titled "Review for wireless communication technology based on digital encoding metasurfaces",was published in Opto-Electronic Advances 2025, Volume 8, No.7.
About the team:
Professor Jing Xufeng's research team focuses on several areas, including metamaterials, metasurfaces, micro-nano photonics, optoelectronic devices, optical films, terahertz waves, microwave communications, and coded metamaterials metasurfaces. The team consists of three professors, five associate professors, and several young faculty members. They conduct fundamental and applied research in optoelectronic devices, materials, and sensors.
The team has published more than 150 research papers in prominent academic journals in the field, including AFM, Opto-Electronic Advances, Laser & Photonics Reviews, Nanophotonics, ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces, Photonics Research, Optics Letters, Carbon, and Journal of Lightwave Technology. The team has received support from several major research funding projects, including the National Natural Science Foundation of China, the Zhejiang Provincial Natural Science Foundation Key Project, and the National Key R&D Program. Additionally, the team has received the First Prize of the China Metrology and Testing Society.
Read the full article here: https://www.oejournal.org/oea/article/doi/10.29026/oea.2025.240315
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