‌Introduction: Generational transition of wireless communication‌
The evolution from 4G to 5G is not only an order of magnitude increase in network speed, but also a paradigm revolution in antenna technology from "wide-ranging coverage" to "precise sniping". In the 4G era, base station antennas pursued signal breadth with omnidirectional coverage as the core logic; in the 5G era, the rise of massive MIMO (multiple input multiple output) and beamforming technology has driven antennas from "indiscriminate broadcasting" to "dynamic precise projection". Behind this technological iteration is the profound transformation of mobile communications from meeting the needs of "connecting people to people" to supporting the needs of "intelligent connection of all things". This article will deeply analyze the key differences between the two generations of antenna technology and explore their reconstruction effects on network performance, industrial ecology and even user experience.

‌1. 4G Antenna: "Inclusive Logic" in the Era of Omnidirectional Coverage‌
The design goal of 4G network is to popularize mobile Internet. Its antenna technology revolves around "wide-area coverage" and "balanced capacity". The core features include:

‌Omnidirectional radiation mode‌: Traditional 4G base stations use plate antennas to cover the surrounding area through 120-degree fan-shaped beams in the horizontal plane. The signal is evenly distributed, similar to "light bulb lighting", ensuring seamless switching of users on the move.
‌Limited MIMO technology‌: 4G later introduced 2×2 or 4×4 MIMO configurations to improve spectrum efficiency through multi-antenna parallel transmission, but the gain is limited by the number of antennas and algorithm complexity.
‌Fixed beam design‌: The antenna radiation pattern is fixed in advance and cannot be dynamically adjusted according to user distribution, which can easily lead to energy waste and signal interference.
According to Ericsson statistics, the average spectrum efficiency of 4G network is 3-4bps/Hz, and the theoretical peak rate of a single base station is about 1Gbps, which can support high-definition video and mobile payment, but it is easy to have capacity bottlenecks in dense scenarios (such as stadiums and commercial centers).

‌II. 5G Antenna: "Surgery-like Coverage" with Precise Beamforming‌
5G networks are oriented to three major scenarios: enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), ultra-reliable and low-latency communications (uRLLC), and massive machine-type communications (mMTC). Antenna technology has undergone three disruptive changes:

‌1. Massive MIMO: From "addition" to "exponential breakthrough"‌
5G base stations are equipped with 64T64R (64 transmit and 64 receive) antenna arrays as standard, and some scenarios even deploy 128T128R, which is dozens of times more than the number of 4G antennas. Through space division multiplexing technology, the same frequency band can serve multiple users at the same time, and the spectrum efficiency has jumped to 30-40bps/Hz, which is more than 10 times higher than 4G. For example, Huawei's MetaAAU (ultra-large-scale antenna array) improves beam focusing accuracy by 60% by introducing metamaterial lenses, and the capacity of a single base station exceeds 20Gbps.

‌2. Beamforming: From "fixed broadcast" to "dynamic tracking"‌
5G antennas use digital beamforming technology to project electromagnetic wave energy to user terminals in a directional manner, forming a "searchlight that follows the user's movement". Taking ZTE's Deep Beam solution as an example, it uses AI algorithms to analyze user locations and channel status in real time, dynamically generates hundreds of narrow beams, and reduces interference from neighboring areas while increasing the edge user rate by 300%.

‌3. High-frequency band adaptation: the miniaturization revolution of millimeter-wave antennas‌
In order to unleash the potential of 5G's large bandwidth, millimeter-wave (above 24GHz) frequency bands are widely used. However, high-frequency signals are easily blocked, and high-density deployment of micro-antennas (such as Small Cell) is required to make up for the coverage shortcomings. Nokia's AirScale millimeter-wave antenna module, which is only 1/5 of the size of a 4G antenna and supports a peak rate of 25Gbps, has been applied to Verizon's 5G ultra-wideband network in the United States.

‌III. Performance comparison: the magnitude of key indicators has leaped ‌
From 4G to 5G, the generational differences in antenna technology are directly mapped to the overall improvement of network performance:

‌Coverage efficiency‌: The energy utilization rate of 4G omnidirectional antenna is less than 30%, and 5G beamforming can increase the energy concentration to more than 80%, and the coverage distance is increased by 20% under the same power.
‌Delay control‌: The end-to-end delay of 4G is about 30-50ms. 5G reduces the signal reflection path through precise beams, and the delay is compressed to 1ms level, meeting the real-time control requirements of industrial robots.
‌Connection density‌: A single 4G base station supports the access of about 2,000 devices, and 5G Massive MIMO expands its capacity to millions/km², supporting the massive sensor connections of smart cities.
China Mobile's measured data shows that after the deployment of 5G massive MIMO in the Hangzhou Asian Games venues, the average download rate of users reached 1.2Gbps, which is 8 times higher than that of 4G networks, and the number of simultaneous live broadcast users in a single area exceeded 100,000.

‌IV. Industrial Chain Reconstruction: From Standardized Hardware to Software-Hardware Collaborative Ecosystem‌
The generational change of antenna technology has forced the upstream and downstream of the communication industry chain to upgrade comprehensively:

‌Equipment vendors‌: Huawei, ZTE and others have launched an integrated "antenna-chip-algorithm" solution. For example, Huawei's BladeAAU integrates 5G AAU with 4G antennas, saving 70% of deployment space.
‌Component vendors‌: Qorvo and Skyworks develop high-frequency RF front-end modules to support the wide-band and high-linearity requirements of 5G antennas.
‌Material innovation‌: The application of new materials such as ceramic antenna covers and liquid crystal polymer substrates reduces the performance degradation of 5G antennas to less than 5% in high temperature and high humidity environments.
‌Software definition‌: Ericsson's Cloud RAN architecture dynamically optimizes beam parameters through cloud-based algorithms, reducing operation and maintenance costs by 40%.
At the policy level, China's "5G Application "Sailing" Action Plan" clearly requires "accelerating the research and development of 5G antennas in medium and high frequency bands" and building the world's largest 5G independent network by 2025. GSMA predicts that the global 5G antenna market will exceed US$50 billion in 2025, with China accounting for more than 35%.

‌V. Challenges and the Future: From Technological Breakthroughs to Commercial Positive Cycle‌
Although 5G antennas have significant advantages, their large-scale applications still face practical challenges:

‌Cost Pressure‌: The unit price of 5G Massive MIMO antennas is 3-5 times that of 4G, and operators need to balance investment and returns.
‌Deployment Complexity‌: The beam management algorithm needs to match complex scenarios. China Unicom once experienced rate fluctuations in high-speed rail scenarios due to untimely beam switching.
‌Energy Consumption Controversy‌: The power consumption of 5G base stations is 2-3 times higher than that of 4G. Huawei has reduced antenna energy consumption by 30% through "intelligent shutdown" technology.

In the future, 5G antenna technology will evolve towards higher integration and more intelligent directions:

‌Terahertz and RIS (intelligent reflective surface): Southeast University Laboratory has realized intelligent metasurface antennas in the terahertz frequency band. By programming and controlling the reflection direction of electromagnetic waves, the cost of blind coverage is reduced by 60%.
‌AI native antenna‌: Nokia Bell Labs launched a "self-learning beam" system that can predict user movement trajectories based on historical data and pre-generate the optimal beam path.
‌Green energy saving‌: ZTE's "solar antenna integrated base station" integrates photovoltaic panels and antennas to reduce dependence on city electricity by more than 50%.
‌Conclusion: The ultimate goal of antenna evolution - making connections ubiquitous‌
From 4G omnidirectional coverage to 5G precision beams, the transition of antenna technology is essentially the evolution of communication networks from "extensive expansion" to "lean operation". In the 6G era, antennas may become intelligent nodes that integrate communication, perception, and computing power, further blurring the boundaries between the physical and digital worlds. The current 5G antenna revolution is laying a solid foundation for the intelligent connection of all things with millimeter-level accuracy and millisecond-level response - this is not only a victory for technology, but also another great attempt by humans to break through the limits of connection.