Map-Assisted Material Identification at 100 GHz and Above Using Radio Access Technology

Inclusion of material identification in wireless communication systems is an emerging area that offers many opportunities for 6G systems. By using reflected radio waves to determine the materials of the reflecting surfaces, not only the performance of 6G networks can be improved, but also some exciting applications can be developed. In this paper, we recap a few prior methods for material identification, then analyze the impact of the thickness of the reflecting surface on reflection coefficient and present a new concept “settling thickness” which indicates the minimum thickness of the reflecting surface to induce a steady reflection coefficient. Finally, we propose a novel material identification method based on ray-tracing and 3D-map. Compared to some prior methods that can be implemented in single-bounce-reflection scenarios only, we extend the capability of the method to multiple-bounce-reflection scenarios.