Tiny Receiver That Could Help 5G Devices Stay Connected Without Killing Battery Life

Staying connected to fast, reliable networks usually comes at a cost—especially when it comes to power. Millimeter-wave 5G networks promise high data rates, but tapping into them often drains a device’s battery and requires bulky, power-hungry components. Engineers at MIT have been working on a better way.

Their team has built a tiny receiver that uses less than a milliwatt of power to pick up 5G-like signals in the 28 GHz millimeter-wave band. That’s roughly 100 times less power than conventional receivers operating at similar frequencies. And the entire receiver fits on a chip smaller than a fingernail.

Instead of relying on traditional radio-frequency mixers and filters, the researchers took a different approach. They used a spin-torque oscillator, or STO—a nanoscale device that generates high-frequency signals by flipping the direction of electron spins in magnetic materials. By tuning this oscillator, the team was able to directly receive and downconvert mmWave signals without a lot of extra analog circuitry.

Ruonan Han, associate professor of electrical engineering at MIT and one of the lead researchers, explained that the device could help bring high-frequency wireless connections to devices that don’t have a lot of room to spare or power to burn. That includes wearables, remote sensors, and battery-powered IoT devices—systems where every milliwatt matters.

The team’s latest version of the receiver can decode real-world signals and has already demonstrated consistent performance at key mmWave bands. It’s compact, efficient, and compatible with standard chip manufacturing processes, which could make it easier to scale for commercial use.

For engineers, the implications are clear: there’s a path forward for building high-frequency connectivity into devices that have traditionally been left out of the mmWave conversation. The researchers are continuing to refine the receiver, working to improve its sensitivity and integrate it into full transceiver systems.

This kind of low-power RF innovation could open up new options for everything from health monitors to smart home devices—without forcing designers to choose between performance and battery life.

Original Story: This compact, low-power receiver could give a boost to 5G smart devices | MIT News | Massachusetts Institute of Technology