th cost multi-access edge compute and power against specially (MEC) is present in small cell designed SoC - Distributed unit can be - Scalable at central unit to efficiently designed to support multiple centralized operate as one cell cells and exploit pooling gains - Central unit would be - At distributed unit difficult to virtualized system compete with cost and power against specially designed SoC Network FAPI (nFAPI) - Distributed unit can be - Central unit scalable to efficiently designed to support multiple centralized operate as one cell cells and exploit pooling gains - Central unit not able to scale - At distributed unit difficult to or benefit from pooling gains compete with cost and power against specially designed SoC O-RAN Fronthaul (ORAN FH) - Central unit not able to scale - Central unit scalable to or benefit from pooling gains support multiple centralized cells and exploit pooling gains 4.6.4.3 Operating Frequency Impacts on Architecture Previous mobile technologies - 2G, 3G, and 4G - have focused on similar frequency ranges typically referred to as the sub-6 GHz spectrum, whereas 5G additionally extends into new frequency ranges for mobile networks, referred to as mmWave. For 2G to 5G this spectrum is predominately licensed, meaning an operator has exclusive access, but small cells are sometimes also deployed using the same unlicensed frequencies as Wi-Fi. Each of these frequency options results in different specifications and architectures for a small cell. Below 6 GHz a 5G small cell can have the same functions and features as a macro cell, with the only difference being a reduced transmit power. However, in real deployments small cells typically have a reduced set of features compared with a macro cell, where this reduction is due to a several factors: The reduced cell coverage area results in a smaller number of users. The number of users per subframe or slot that a cell supports is frequently reduced. This reduces the small cell processing requirements. A small cell's enclosure has a smalle