Ericsson, PowerLight Wirelessly Power 5G Base Station

Ericsson, working with PowerLight Technologies, said Monday it showed a 5G millimeter wave base station can be powered wirelessly, through a laser beam. The technology converts electricity into high-intensity light, converted back to electricity at the base station. Ericsson noted the technology has been shown to work for smaller devices like cellphones. “The ability to safely transfer power across distances without having to be connected to the power grid eliminates one of the big obstacles we have when building new cellsites,” said Kevin Zvokel, Ericsson North America head-networks.