Millimetera: Toward a large-scale open-source mmwave and terahertz experimental testbed

The promise of widespread 5th generation (5G) and beyond wireless systems can only be fulfilled through extensive experimental campaigns aimed at validating the large body of theoretical findings on millimeter wave (mmWave) and Terahertz (THz) frequencies. However, experimental research efforts in this field are often stymied by the lack of open hardware, open-source software, and affordable testbeds accessible by the research community at large, who is now forced to perform simulation-based research or – if at all possible – small-scale, ad hoc experiments. After discussing existing research challenges in mmWave and THz testbeds, in this paper we propose MillimeTera, a vision for a new generation of disruptive experimental platforms that will radically transform the status quo in mmWave and THz research. We next discuss our preliminary hardware and software efforts, and finally provide a roadmap of our main design and development goals in the years to come.