element size is different from MIMO
As [Asymptotic Optimality of Reconfigurable Intelligent Surfaces: Passive Beamforming and Achievable Rate
] reported, we know:
In principle, the electrical size of the unit reflecting elements (i.e., meta-atoms) deployed on RIS is between λ/8 and λ/4
, where λ is a wavelength of radio frequency (RF) signal [5].
Note that conventional large antenna-array systems, such as a massive multiple-input and multiple-output (MIMO) and MIMO relay system, typically require antenna spacing of greater than λ/2 [3]. Therefore, an RIS can provide more reliable and space-intensive communications
compared to conventional antennaarray systems as clearly explained in [2]–[4].
-
[
Reliability Analysis of Large Intelligent Surfaces (LISs): Rate Distribution and Outage Probability
]
An LIS system enables the desired channels to become line-of-sight (LOS) channels, resulting in more reliable and space-intensive communications compared to conventional massive multiple-input multipleoutput (MIMO) systems.
For an overview on how LIS differs from massive MIMO, see [3]–[7]. -
[
Intelligent Reflecting Surface vs. Decode-and-Forward: How Large Surfaces Are Needed to Beat Relaying?
]
Each element has a smaller size than the wavelength, thus it scatters the incoming signal with approximately constant gain in all directions of interest. -
A metasurface is a planar, artificial structure which comprises a repeated element, the meta-atom, over a substrate. In most usual compositions, the meta-atom is conductive and the substrate is dielectric. Common choices are copper over silicon, while silver and gold constitute other exemplary conductors [
A. Y. Zhu et al., “Traditional and emerging materials for optical metasurfaces,” Nanophotonics, vol. 6, no. 2, 2017.
].
More exotic approaches employ graphene, in order to interact with THz-modulated waves [S. H. Lee et al., “Switching terahertz waves with gate-controlled active graphene metamaterials,” Nature Materials, vol. 11, no. 11, pp. 936–941, 2012.
]. Metasurfaces are able to control EM waves impinging on them, in a frequency span that depends on the overall dimensions. The size of the meta-atom is comparable to the intended interaction wavelength, λ λ λ, with λ / 2 λ/2 λ/2 constituting a common choice. The thickness of the metasurface is smaller than the interaction wavelength, ranging between λ / 10 → λ / 5 λ/10 → λ/5 λ/10→λ/5 as a rule of a thumb. Metasurfaces usually comprise several hundreds of meta-atoms, which results into fine-grained control over the EM interaction control. In general, a minimum size of approximately 30×30 meta-atoms is required to yield an intended EM interaction [H.-T. Chen, A. J. Taylor, and N. Yu, “A review of metasurfaces: physics and applications,” Reports on progress in physics. Physical Society (Great Britain), vol. 79, no. 7, p. 076401, 2016.
].