Fronthaul/Midhaul Networks: Capacity and Latency Requirements Imposed by 6G Disaggregated RANs

This article analyzes the capacity and latency requirements imposed by various 6G envisioned scenarios and technologies over the fronthaul/ midhaul networks when considering radio access network (RAN) disaggregation. We also examine how emerging 6G technologies - such as multi-connectivity, coordinated multi-point, and relays - impact on these requirements. For the capacity requirements, we differentiate between basic and advanced 6G RAN scenarios, considering both single-carrier and multi-carrier setups, while extrapolating configuration parameters based on previous generation systems. For the latency requirements, our study is based on values already envisioned for 5G Advanced. Finally, we propose various transport network scenarios tailored to address such requirements in future 6G fronthaul/midhaul networks, focusing on two specific use cases: flexible function split (FFS) and cell-free multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO).