How Can Reconfigurable Intelligent Surfaces Drive 5G-Advanced Wireless Networks: A Standardization Perspective

The reconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS) is a promising technology for achieving smart radio environment in future wireless networks with significantly reduced cost. While most existing works focused on several theoretical challenges of RIS empowered wireless communication systems, the engineering and standardization aspects taking into account practical implementation constraints regarding deployment costs and compatibility have not been investigated clearly yet. To fill this gap, this paper provides an overview of the RIS enabled opportunities for the fifth generation (5G) Advanced and also highlight the critical requirements and challenges from a standardization perspective. In particular, the use cases and deployment of RIS, the realistic channel models, the smart RIS control, and the interference management of multiple RISs are elaborated.