mmWave Dual-Coverage RIS-Aided 6G Wireless Communications: Experimental Demonstration

The integration of 5G wireless communication with millimeter wave reconfigurable intelligent surfaces (RIS) has received moderate attention in previous studies. In this paper, we designed, manufactured, and integrated a 27 GHz RIS prototype into a custom-built 5G NR platform that is compliant with the 3GPP standard. We propose a dual-coverage RIS designed with a single-layer reflecting panel to enhance mmWave 6G communication. Through a series of receiver points in an indoor environment, we demonstrated the effectiveness of dual-coverage RIS-aided 6G communication at 27 GHz in establishing a reliable end-to-end link. Experimental results reveal significant improvements in key performance indicators such as the received power of the reference signal (RSRP), the signal-to-interference and noise ratio (SINR), and the error vector magnitude (EVM). The RIS prototype was evaluated through field measurements and compared with two end-to-end mmWave communication scenarios.