Pei Xiao
University of Surrey, UK
Pei Xiao is a professor of Wireless Communications at the Institute for Communication Systems, home of 5GIC and 6GIC at the University of Surrey. He is the technical manager of 5GIC/6GIC, leading the research team in the new physical layer work area, and coordinating/supervising research activities across all the work areas (https://www.surrey.ac.uk/institute-communication-systems/5g-6g-innovation-centre). He has published extensively in the fields of communication theory, RF and antenna design, signal processing for wireless communications. Professor Xiao’s research focuses on next-generation wireless technologies, with a specific emphasis on IoT applications, satellite communications, and high-mobility vehicular networks. A key aspect of his work involves innovative waveform designs for integrated sensing and communications (ISAC), which enable seamless integration of sensing and communication functionalities. His contributions have significantly reduced hardware complexity and enhanced radio resource utilization through advanced signal processing techniques. Additionally, he has played a pivotal role in advancing sparse code multiple access (SCMA) systems, driving improvements in connectivity and spectrum efficiency for 5G networks and beyond.
Affine Frequency Division Multiplexing (AFDM) has recently emerged as a promising waveform candidate for next-generation wireless communications, particularly in high-mobility environments such as V2X, NTN, and LEO satellite communications. In this talk, we present our recent progress and strategy toward the standardization of AFDM for 6G. We first discuss how AFDM can be made backward-compatible with existing 5G NR networks, enabling a smooth evolution of the physical layer while preserving robustness in doubly-dispersive channels. We then show how the affine-domain structure of AFDM naturally supports integrated sensing and communication (ISAC), offering a unified waveform for joint delay–Doppler estimation and reliable data transmission. Finally, we summarize our recent AFDM-related 3GPP standard contributions and outline key open challenges and future research directions on the path toward AFDM-based 6G air interfaces.