PHYCOM: Physical Communication is an international and archival journal providing complete coverage of all topics of interest to those involved in all aspects of physical layer communications. Theoretical research contributions presenting new techniques, concepts or analyses, applied contributions reporting on experiences and experiments, and tutorials are published.

Topics of interest include but are not limited to:

Physical layer issues of Wireless Local Area Networks, WiMAX, Wireless Mesh Networks, Sensor and Ad Hoc Networks, PCS Systems; Radio access protocols and algorithms for the physical layer; Spread Spectrum Communications; Channel Modeling; Detection and Estimation; Modulation and Coding; Multiplexing and Carrier Techniques; Broadband Wireless Communications; Wireless Personal Communications; Multi-user Detection; Signal Separation and Interference rejection: Multimedia Communications over Wireless; DSP Applications to Wireless Systems; Experimental and Prototype Results; Multiple Access Techniques; Space-time Processing; Synchronization Techniques; Error Control Techniques; Cryptography; Software Radios; Tracking; Resource Allocation and Inference Management; Multi-rate and Multi-carrier Communications; Cross layer Design and Optimization; Propagation and Channel Characterization; OFDM Systems; MIMO Systems; Ultra-Wideband Communications; Cognitive Radio System Architectures; Platforms and Hardware Implementations for the Support of Cognitive, Radio Systems; Cognitive Radio Resource Management and Dynamic Spectrum Sharing.

Special Issue on Cognitive Semantic Communications for 6G Wireless Networks
Submission Date: 2025-10-14

To address the challenges posed by multi-scale connectivity and massive data traffic in 6G wireless networks, semantic communication has emerged as an innovative paradigm, aiming to integrate user needs with the semantic meaning of information into the communication process. Following the Shannon era, semantic communication is regarded as a key approach to overcoming the technical bottlenecks of traditional communication systems. Its core principle lies in understanding and transmitting the "semantics" or "features" of information by extracting meaningful content at the source and interpreting it at the receiver.

In the development of semantic communication, Cognitive Semantic Communication (CSC) has emerged as a paradigm aimed at augmenting reliability, robustness, and interpretability. CSC endeavors to emulate human cognitive processes by perceiving, interpreting, and encoding information, thereby selectively and proactively extracting semantic content from the raw signal. This methodology facilitates the construction of a semantically interpretable and reliable communication framework, showcasing marked advantages in enhancing transmission efficiency and robustness. Nonetheless, the establishment of a comprehensive CSC theory continues to confront several formidable challenges. Furthermore, the implementation of CSC necessitates the development of innovative semantic and channel encoding schemes, along with novel modulation techniques designed to support integrated cognitive and communication functions. To further advance spectral efficiency, it is imperative to develop new theoretical frameworks that consider the interplay between CSC and other cutting-edge concepts, such as reconfigurable or holographic intelligent surfaces, as well as sophisticated spectrum resource management strategies. These issues and opportunities are anticipated to draw significant scrutiny from the research and development community.

This special issue aims to aggregate the latest advancements and novel contributions from both academic researchers and industry practitioners in the domain of CSC within the context of 6G. The topics of focus for this special issue include, but are not limited to:

    CSC network architecture/transport protocol/frame design for 6G wireless networks
    Trade-off between cognition and communication
    Coding/modulation/receiver design for CSC
    Information theory framework for CSC
    Cognitive learning-based semantic spectrum transmission design
    Intelligent semantic spectrum allocation scheme/dynamic spectrum access strategy for CSC in the 6G wireless networks
    Intelligent Reflective Surfaces/backscatter assisted resource allocation for 6G network
    Security and privacy issues of CSC in the 6G wireless networks
    Multi-task/Multi-modal/Multi-domain resource optimization for CSC
    CSC for future 6G UAV/V2X/metaverse
    Time-frequency features enhanced/knowledge driven communication approach
    Advanced machine learning and artificial intelligence for CSC

Guest editors:

Wei Wu, PhD
Nanjing University of Posts and Telecommunications, Nanjing, China
(weiwu@njupt.edu.cn)

Zhaohui Yang, PhD
Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, China
(yang_zhaohui@zju.edu.cn)

Qun Wang, PhD
San Francisco State University, San Francisco, America
(qunwang@sfsu.edu)

Rose Qingyang Hu, PhD
Utah State University, Logan, UT, United States
(rose.hu@usu.edu)

Kai-Kit Wong, PhD
University College London, London, U.K.
(kai-kit.wong@ucl.ac.uk)

Manuscript submission information:

​The journal's submission platform (Editorial Manager®) will be open for submissions to this Special Issue from October 21st, 2024. Please refer to the Guide for Authors to prepare your manuscript and select the article type of “VSI: CSC-6GWN” when submitting your manuscript online. Both the Guide for Authors and the submission portal could be found on the Journal Homepage: Guide for authors - Physical Communication - ISSN 1874-4907 | ScienceDirect.com by Elsevier.

Timeline:

Submission Open Date *21/10/2024
Final Manuscript Submission Deadline *14/10/2025
Editorial Acceptance Deadline *31/12/2025

Keywords:

cognitive semantic communication; resource allocation; information theory; artificial intelligence