Abstract
Following recent advancements in Terahertz (THz)
technology, THz communications are currently being celebrated as key
enablers for various applications in future generations of communication
networks. While typical communication use cases are over medium-range
air interfaces, the inherently small beamwidths and transceiver
footprints at THz frequencies support nano-communication paradigms. In
particular, the use of the THz band for in-body and on-body
communications has been gaining attention recently. By exploiting the
accurate THz sensing and imaging capabilities, body-centric THz
biomedical applications can transcend the limitations of molecular,
acoustic, and radio-frequency solutions. In this paper, we study the use
of the THz band for body-centric networks, by surveying works on THz
device technologies, channel and noise modeling, modulation schemes, and
networking topologies. We also promote THz sensing and imaging
applications in the healthcare sector, especially for detecting zootonic
viruses such as Coronavirus. We
present several open research problems for body-centric THz networks.