The Smart EM Environment Paradigm - From the Idea Towards the Implementation

The Smart ElectroMagnetic Environment (SEME) is a revolutionary paradigm that is expected to become a fundamental pillar in the design of next generation wireless communication systems. It is based on the disruptive idea that the environment should be regarded, differently from the past, as an additional degree-of-freedom (DoF) to improve the overall Quality-of-Service (QoS), rather than an uncontrollable obstacle to the propagation of electromagnetic (EM) waves. This work summarizes the basic concepts and ideas on which the SEME is founded, surveying some of its most recent implementations and envisaging some future trends in this emerging research area, as well.