A Survey of Physical Layer Security Techniques for 5G Wireless Networks and Challenges Ahead

TLDR

Physical layer security protects data confidentiality by exploiting channel randomness, and its growing importance is amplified by the challenges posed by 5G wireless communications. This paper surveys physical layer security research across key 5G technologies such as coding, massive MIMO, millimeter wave, heterogeneous networks, NOMA, and full duplex. The survey compiles unresolved technical challenges and outlines future trends for physical layer security in 5G and beyond.

Abstract

Physical layer security which safeguards data confidentiality based on the information-theoretic approaches has received significant research interest recently. The key idea behind physical layer security is to utilize the intrinsic randomness of the transmission channel to guarantee the security in physical layer. The evolution toward 5G wireless communications poses new challenges for physical layer security research. This paper provides a latest survey of the physical layer security research on various promising 5G technologies, including physical layer security coding, massive multiple-input multiple-output, millimeter wave communications, heterogeneous networks, non-orthogonal multiple access, full duplex technology, and so on. Technical challenges which remain unresolved at the time of writing are summarized and the future trends of physical layer security in 5G and beyond are discussed.