It was June 2026, and the first summer heatwave had reached Málaga. We were attending the EuCNC & 6G Summit, held in the Spanish city from 2 to 5 June 2026. 6G-REFERENCE took the stage on several occasions during the conference to showcase the project’s hardware innovations and antenna technologies designed to enhance 6G connectivity in urban areas.
Our first contribution took place during the “Microelectronics and Photonics Hardware Challenges and Solutions towards 6G” workshop, where Hua Wang, Full Professor at ETH Zürich, presented the project’s research on Time-Modulated Arrays (TMAs) for concurrent multi-beam MIMO systems. This work was selected as one of the Top-10 Key Achievements of SNS JU projects.
“Concurrent multi-beam MIMO arrays are key enablers for Integrated Sensing and Communication (ISAC) functionalities in future 6G networks. Time Modulated Array (TMA) can be a compelling solution to realise such MIMOs with low hardware overhead, achieving more functionalities with less complexity”, explained Hua Wang.
During the “Second Workshop on Integrated Sensing and Communications Initiatives on the European Research Framework”, Marc Baudiun, Research Engineer at imec, contributed to discussions on how sensing and communication functions can be tightly integrated within future network architectures.
Robin Lohuis, PhD candidate in Integrated Circuit Design at the University of Twente, presented his scientific paper “Analysis of Over-the-Air Frequency and Time Synchronisation Requirements for Cooperative ISAC Radio Units with an RF Crystal Oscillator”, co-authored by the researchers Erwin Hardeveld and Eric Klumperink.
Zabdiel Brito-Brito, Senior Researcher at Centre Tecnològic de Telecomunicacions de Catalunya (CTTC), the organisation coordinating 6G-REFERENCE, participated in Poster Session I with the poster “Planar Low-Cost RF Sensor for Volatile Organic Compound Detection”, depicting research exploring low-cost Radio Frequency (RF) sensing technologies with potential applications beyond traditional communications.
Recent Dissemination Activities of 6G-REFERENCE: Our Past Events
The EuCNC & 6G Summit 2026 was the main event of the season, but it was not the only one. On 3 July, we travelled to another sunny Spanish city, Valencia, to present our latest innovations in 6G antenna technologies at the IEEE MTT-S International Conference on Numerical Electromagnetic and Multiphysics Modelling and Optimisation (IEEE NEMO 2026).
As part of the technical session Antennas and Reconfigurable Surfaces for 6G Communication Systems, 6G-REFERENCE partners delivered two presentations: “Additively Manufactured Dual-Linear 4×8 Array for Beam-Steering in 6G Base Stations”, presented by Javier Jiménez Peña, Radio Frequency Engineer at Anteral, and “Reconfigurable Intelligent Surface for 6G Systems Operating in the FR3 Band”, presented by Fermín Mira Pérez, Research Associate at CTTC.
Back in March, our coordinator, CTTC, offered a seminar at the Henry Royce Institute, hosted at the White City Campus of the Imperial College London, in a session hosted by Dr. Peter Petrov, Principal Research Scientist at Imperial College London.
Ignacio Llamas and Zabdiel Brito-Brito, CTTC researchers, introduced the vision and objectives of 6G-REFERENCE, and explained the project’s approach to joint communications and sensing hardware.
Also in March, CTTC showcased our antenna technologies at Mobile World Congress 2026 in Barcelona, Spain. Our coordinator, Ignacio Llamas, Senior Researcher at CTTC, demonstrated our antenna arrays and Reconfigurable Intelligent Surfaces (RIS), and explained how these components contribute to enabling high-frequency, and high-efficiency wireless systems for future 6G deployments. The demonstration took place during a visit to the booth by representatives from the Smart Networks and Services Joint Undertaking (SNS JU) and the European Commission.
“Our presence at this year’s MWC Barcelona enabled us to present the 6G-REFERENCE antenna technologies to an international audience and to engage directly with representatives from the SNS JU, the European Commission and the wider 6G and connectivity ecosystem. The event was an excellent opportunity to increase the visibility of the project’s results and to strengthen networking with potential collaborators to shape the 6G research landscape”, highlighted Ignacio Llamas.
The first 6G-REFERENCE Webinar: Complementary Microelectronics Hardware Concepts
We started the year with the first 6G-REFERENCE webinar, a session co-organised with the FirstTo6G SNS project, to speak about “Complementary Microelectronics Hardware Concepts”. The webinar was a success, attended by more than 60 participants who joined leading researchers and innovators to explore how complementary hardware approaches can accelerate the development of future 6G systems.
WATCH THE RECORDING AND READ ALL ABOUT IT.
Advancing the 6G-REFERENCE Demos on Communications, ISAC and Synchronisation
Conferences are not the only reason we travel. Last April, the 6G-REFERENCE consortium met in person in Pamplona, Spain. During the meeting, hosted by Alejandro Astibia Bruno and Javier Jiménez at Anteral’s facilities, we reviewed the project’s progress and agreed on the next steps towards developing innovative hardware solutions for future 6G systems through three demonstration cases, which will be tested in factory hall and urban square scenarios:
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Low latency Communications leveraging Full Duplex
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Integrated Sensing and Communication: Passive vs Active Sensing
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Over-the-Air accurate Frequency and Time Synchronisation
Thank you to the Anteral team involved for making this meeting possible!
Upcoming Events: See you around Europe!
This autumn, the 6G-REFERENCE partners will attend five further events across Spain and the UK, actively disseminating our results and engaging with the 6G research and innovation community, as the project enters its final months before its completion in December 2026:
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19th United Conference on Millimetre Waves & Terahertz Technologies (UCMMT 2026): 23-26 August, Birmingham, UK.
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XLI Simposio Nacional de la Unión Científica Internacional de Radio / XLI National Symposium of the International Union of Radio Science (URSI 2026): 2-4 September, San Cristóbal de La Laguna, Tenerife, Spain.
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52nd IEEE European Solid-State Electronics Research Conference (ESSERC 2026): 7-10 September, Palma de Mallorca, Spain.
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29th European Microwave Week (EuMW 2026): 4-9 October, London, UK.
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29th International Workshop on Smart Antennas (WSA 2026): 5-7 October, Barcelona, Spain.
Meet you there to continue advancing 6G connectivity in Europe and beyond!
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This newsletter was originally published on LinkedIn.