The Emerging 3GPP 6G RAN Architecture: An Overview

ETSI ISG MAT: Bridging Multiple Access Techniques Research and 6G Standardisation

Improved spectral efficiency and inter-user interference mitigation are important aspects of IMT-2030 and the ongoing 3GPP 6G study. ETSI established the Industry Specification Group on Multiple Access Techniques (ISG MAT) as a research and pre-standardisation activity to build wider consensus on downlink MAT for 3GPP-based 6G systems. Its first report, ETSI GR MAT 001 V1.1.1, provides a standards-oriented comparison of 3GPP-specified techniques, including OMA, MU-MIMO, and MUST, with candidate techniques comprising power-domain NOMA, RSMA, and cache-aided MU-MIMO. The report identifies operating conditions in which candidate MAT can improve spectral efficiency and assesses implications for transceiver processing, network assistance information, and reference-signal requirements. Ongoing work includes realistic 5G NR link-level evaluations and the study of MAT for non-terrestrial networks, providing timely technical evidence for 3GPP 6G standardisation discussions.

Integrating Wi-Fi into 3GPP 5G Network Slicing: An Experimental Prototype Study

Network Slicing (NS) is a fundamental pillar of 5G and beyond networks, enabling the provisioning of isolated, logical networks tailored to specific Quality of Service (QoS) requirements. While 3GPP standards comprehensively define slicing architectures over cellular access networks, the seamless integration of Non-3GPP technologies such as Wi-Fi into a unified slice instance remains an active area of investigation, particularly regarding empirical validation. This paper presents an end-to-end prototyping study that integrates 5G Standalone (SA) and Wi-Fi networks by adapting the Trusted Non-3GPP Gateway Function (TNGF) to extend NS to WLAN networks, enabling the unified management of Wi-Fi transmission resources. We implement a functional testbed leveraging an open-source 5G Core and an explicit Non-3GPP access to validate multi-Radio Access Technology (multi-RAT) slice operation. Our empirical results showcase the dynamic viability of multi-RAT slicing under varying bandwidth allocations and traffic steering policies, providing a concrete proof of concept for unified 3GPP and Non-3GPP service delivery.

A Survey and Quantitative Analysis of Network Architectures for Future 6G Services in Rural and Underserved Areas

A comprehensive survey and quantitative analysis of network architectures for enabling future sixth-generation (6G) services in rural and underserved regions and identifies emerging technologies, including direct-to-device non-terrestrial access, programmable radio environments, and intelligent RAN control that are expected to play a central role in extending sustainable rural 6G connectivity.

ISAC in 3GPP: Evolution Toward 6G

Integrated sensing and communication (ISAC) is emerging as an important direction in the Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) evolution toward 6G because it allows cellular networks to provide environmental awareness in addition to connectivity. This paper surveys the current 3GPP trajectory from Release~19 feasibility studies to Release~20 radio, protocol, and architecture studies, while distinguishing established requirements, ongoing study assumptions, and possible forward directions. The survey covers service requirements, sensing topologies, channel model evolution beyond 3GPP Technical Report (TR)~38.901, Radio Access Network Working Group~1 (RAN1) physical layer design, Radio Access Network Working Groups~2 and~3 (RAN2 and RAN3) system implications, and the role of sensing-assisted communication. It also synthesizes the main unresolved issues in waveform and reference signal design, multi-node coordination, sensing data reporting, service exposure, privacy, and implementation constraints. By connecting service-level motivations to physical layer, protocol, and architecture implications, the paper provides a standards-centric reading of how 3GPP may evolve toward practical 6G ISAC support.

Empirical Comparison of Full and Split gNB Architectures in 5G NTN Based on a Laboratory Testbed

Ubiquitous connectivity remains a primary focus for 3GPP, driving the development of 5G Non-Terrestrial Networks (NTN) to integrate regenerative satellites directly into the network. To this end, 3GPP proposes two on-board architectural approaches: hosting a monolithic Next Generation Node B (gNB) or hosting only the Distributed Unit (DU), following the functional split architecture. The technical trade-off between both architectures has already been addressed in literature from a theoretical perspective, but this work goes a step further by providing an empirical analysis, specifically examining the 3GPP-induced feeder link overhead and the on-board resource utilization. By deploying an experimental testbed based on OpenAirInterface (OAI), this study profiles the CPU and memory footprints as well as the feeder link performance of the 3GPP-standardized split option 2 against the monolithic gNB. Results demonstrate that the split architecture yields asymmetric feeder link performance due to variations in the GPRS Tunnelling Protocol (GTP) header, reducing IP-level overhead by 11% in Mobile Originated (MO) traffic while increasing it by 16% in Mobile Terminated (MT) traffic. Furthermore, the CPU profiling reveals that the computational bottleneck resides in the Physical (PHY) layer, particularly due to the DFT/IDFT, LDPC decoder, and RX/TX pipeline processing. The memory profiling identifies buffering mechanisms of Radio Link Control (RLC) Data Radio Bearers (DRBs) and Media Access Control (MAC) Hybrid Automatic Repeat Request (HARQ) processes as the main consumers. Consequently, the split gNB architecture does not reduce satellite hardware utilization, breaking the preliminary perception of functional split benefits in embedded systems. However, this work expands the discussion by offering a perspective on functional network management, which leads to the identification of potential security enhancements, geographic-based Quality of Service (QoS) strategies, and handover optimizations. The empirical findings provide validated guidelines for satellite hardware dimensioning and network design of future 6G systems.

3GPP NR: the standard for 5G cellular networks