Radio Frequency (RF) & Wireless Design

There are many companies and providers that are pushing (rolling) out 5G cellular networks are the current next generation of cellular wireless.

All 4G networks (LTE) operated within the typical 350 MHz ~ 6 GHz bands (typical of the WiFi networks as well) : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/LTE_frequency_bands

However 5G is moving beyond these saturated frequencies and into the Ka-Band with operating frequencies from 24 to 40 GHz and "The spectrum ranging from 24.25–29.5 GHz has been the most licensed and deployed 5G mmWave spectrum range in the world."

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/5G

So scaling up to 10x the operating frequencies will yield data rates that are also 10x faster :

"5G can be implemented in low-band, mid-band or high-band millimeter-wave 24 GHz up to 40 GHz. Low-band 5G uses a similar frequency range to 4G cellphones, 600–850 MHz, giving download speeds a little higher than 4G: 30–250 megabits per second (Mbit/s).[3] Low-band cell towers have a range and coverage area similar to 4G towers. Mid-band 5G uses microwaves of 2.5–3.7 GHz, allowing speeds of 100–900 Mbit/s, with each cell tower providing service up to several kilometers in radius. This level of service is the most widely deployed, and was deployed in many metropolitan areas in 2020. Some regions are not implementing the low band, making this the minimum service level. High-band 5G uses frequencies of 25–39 GHz, near the bottom of the millimeter wave band, although higher frequencies may be used in the future. It often achieves download speeds in the gigabit-per-second (Gbit/s) range, comparable to cable internet."

So what's next on the horizon that you might ask ? Well don't ask the CTO of Ericsson since his response will be “I really don’t know what the hell 6G is.” 

https://www.digitaltrends.com/mobile/what-is-6g/

But I can tell you that in order to go at least an order of magnitude for data rates, there will also need to be a push for an order of magnitude in frequencies !! This means that 6G will be in the hundreds of Gigahertz !!

"Although the data has not been published yet, the researchers claim it shows promising results, and, according to their plan, they will eventually test the new devices at even higher frequencies than before (140 GHz and 230 GHz, with both firmly in the terahertz range).[17]" 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/6G_(network)

But herein lies some the caveats :

• As frequencies go up power must be increased to sustain range.
• As frequencies go up geometries go smaller and tolerances increase.
• As frequencies go up temperature effects become more apparent.
• As frequencies go up beam-forming (phased arrays) become required.
• As frequencies go up costs and complexities increase.
• As frequencies go up health risks increase (especially near-field to human body).

So where will 5G be used ? It's more than likely that 5G will be used in very densely populated areas such as shopping malls, airports, stadiums, college and corporate campuses, downtown cities, and other closely regional areas where bandwidth will be (or is) limited by the number of cell sites.

These small cells called micro-cells, nano-cells, or femto-cells are dense and short range clusters that serve the high-density needs : https://www.5gradar.com/features/5g-small-cells-everything-you-need-to-know

But don't expect that 5G is going to be used for your cross country road trips and rural areas ! Only where bandwidth demands are very high are the first rollout locations and then gradually over larger metropolitan areas.

So consider your location first for choosing to jump to 5G as well as whether you really need 5G cellular link communications rather than using traditional WiFi and Wi-Max hot spots (which may be more ubiquitous and lower cost - as in free). Since you will be getting what you pay for !

6G will likely be reserved for very expensive satellite communications where high data rates and very remote locations (off-shore oil rigs) are required. So don't look for it any time within the next decade, but it is likely to be the next jump in Star Trek wireless communications (prior to sub-space communications - - - - just kidding ! ;-).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Technology_in_Star_Trek#Subspace