Wireless Spectrum Research and Development

The Wireless Spectrum Interagency Working Group (WSRD IWG) was formed in 2011 to coordinate Federal R&D across 18 participating agencies and to inventory, coordinate, and make recommendations that promote efficient use of wireless spectrum through advanced technologies and systems. In addition, WSRD works with academic and the private sectors to help develop priorities, encourage private investment, and develop public/private partnerships when appropriate.

Strategic Priorities

• Improve the performance of communications and other spectrum-dependent systems through better operation in shared and congested spectrum bands, dynamic use of higher and multiple frequency bands, and adaptation to the spectrum environment.
• Enhance robustness, resilience, and reliability of spectrum-dependent systems and networks in the face of spectrum access challenges, threats by malicious actors, limited available power, and other constraints.
• Increase the overall utilization of the electromagnetic spectrum through better systems and mechanisms for spectrum and interference management, sensing, sharing, monitoring, control, prediction, adaptation, and protection.
• Develop trustworthy measurement-based data-driven algorithms, analytics, and models to inform system design, spectrum policy, and management.
• Accelerate assessment of spectrum innovations and their translation into practice through better capabilities and facilities for modeling, simulation, and testing.