In this first 2021 issue, the Mobile Communications and Networks Series welcomes the New Year by bringing to the readers of this magazine a collection of very interesting articles on mainstream topics in wireless communications. The COVID-19 pandemic that battered many parts of the world in the past year imposed health-preserving physical distancing rules that hampered many of our activities. The pandemic crisis made us realize how vital it is to be digitally connected and brought out an urgent need for further enhanced mobile services and applications. The most recent generations of wireless technologies, which are now becoming operational in an increasing number of regions, already address the need for enhanced performance and new features. At the same time, researchers in mobile communications are readily looking into the potential solutions that will boost performance and features of next generation networks. The article “The Road to 6G: Ten Physical Layer Challenges for Communications Engineers” looks at future 6G wireless networks from a physical layer perspective, highlighting key enabling technologies, e.g., intelligent reflecting surfaces, cell-free massive MIMO and terahertz communications, and related major challenges. The article discusses theoretical modeling challenges, hardware implementation issues and scalability, and concludes by delineating the critical role of signal processing.

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系列社论：移动通信和网络

在2021年的第一期中，“移动通信和网络丛书”迎接新年，向该杂志的读者带来了一系列有关无线通信主流主题的非常有趣的文章。在过去的一年中，席卷全球许多地方的COVID-19大流行实施了维护健康的身体疏散规则，这阻碍了我们的许多活动。大流行危机使我们意识到数字化连接的重要性，并迫切需要进一步增强移动服务和应用程序。最新一代的无线技术现已在越来越多的地区投入使用，它们已经满足了对增强性能和新功能的需求。同时，移动通信领域的研究人员正在随时寻找可以提高下一代网络性能和功能的潜在解决方案。文章“ 6G之路：通信工程师面临的十个物理层挑战”从物理层的角度审视了未来的6G无线网络，重点介绍了关键的启用技术，例如智能反射表面，无蜂窝大规模MIMO和太赫兹通信以及相关技术。重大挑战。本文讨论了理论建模挑战，硬件实现问题和可伸缩性，并通过描述信号处理的关键作用而得出结论。通信工程师面临的十个物理层挑战”从物理层的角度审视了未来的6G无线网络，重点介绍了关键的使能技术，例如智能反射面，无小区大规模MIMO和太赫兹通信以及相关的主要挑战。本文讨论了理论建模挑战，硬件实现问题和可伸缩性，并通过描述信号处理的关键作用而得出结论。通信工程师面临的十个物理层挑战”从物理层的角度审视了未来的6G无线网络，重点介绍了关键的使能技术，例如智能反射面，无小区大规模MIMO和太赫兹通信以及相关的主要挑战。本文讨论了理论建模挑战，硬件实现问题和可伸缩性，并通过描述信号处理的关键作用而得出结论。