Rethinking Integrated Sensing and Communication: When Near Field Meets Wideband

TL;DR

This paper explores how near-field effects in large antenna arrays combined with wideband signals can enhance integrated sensing and communication, enabling new multiplexing and sensing capabilities.

Contribution

It reveals that near-field effects can replace large bandwidths for effective S&C, and introduces novel Doppler-based multiplexing and velocity sensing methods.

Findings

Near-field effects enable wideband-like S&C functionalities.

Non-uniform Doppler frequencies facilitate velocity sensing.

Near-field effects improve multiplexing efficiency.

Abstract

This article revisits integrated sensing and communication (ISAC) systems that operate in the near-field region of large antenna arrays while utilizing large bandwidths. The article first describes the basic characteristics of a wideband sensing and communication (S&C) channel, highlighting the key changes that occur during the transition from the far-field to the near-field region, namely strong angular delay correlations and non-uniform Doppler frequencies. It is then revealed that the near-field effect can facilitate wideband-like S&C functionality, leading to efficient signal multiplexing and accurate distance sensing, and making large antenna arrays a viable alternative to large bandwidths. In addition, new capabilities for Doppler-domain signal multiplexing and velocity sensing enabled by non-uniform Doppler frequencies, which cannot be achieved by extending the bandwidth alone, are presented. Motivated by these results, several paradigm shifts required to leverage the full potential of near-field wideband ISAC systems are discussed, with particular emphasis on spectrum allocation, antenna array arrangement, transceiver architecture, and waveform design.