5GNR

5G NR, short for 5G New Radio, is the global standard for the air interface of fifth-generation wireless networks. Developed by the 3GPP, it provides faster data rates, lower latency, higher capacity, and the ability to support new applications such as enhanced mobile broadband, ultra-reliable low-latency communications, and massive machine-type communications.

Technically, 5G NR is built on an orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing (OFDM) waveform with flexible numerology. It supports scalable bandwidth parts, multiple subcarrier spacings (from 15 kHz up to 240 kHz in FR1/FR2), advanced antenna techniques such as massive MIMO and beamforming, carrier aggregation, and dynamic spectrum sharing.

Spectrum and deployment: 5G NR operates in sub-6 GHz bands and in higher-frequency millimeter waves, enabling wide bandwidths. It supports both standalone and non-standalone deployments, where NSA still relies on an existing 4G core, and SA uses a 5G core network with a service-based architecture and capabilities like network slicing and edge computing.

Performance and use cases: 5G NR aims to deliver higher peak data rates, lower end-to-end latency, improved reliability, and efficient support for dense device deployments. It enables three main use cases defined by 3GPP: enhanced mobile broadband, URLLC, and massive machine-type communications.

Standardization and evolution: The first 5G NR specifications were introduced in Release 15 (2018), with subsequent releases expanding features, spectrum access, efficiency, and roaming. Ongoing work continues to add enhancements for efficiency, new bands, and new industry applications.