Wireless Channel Modeling: Challenges Across the Field and Significance of Modeling Inaccuracies

The modeling of wireless channels has been ongoing for over a century. Recent expansion of wireless applications in an expanding variety of environments along with the use of higher frequency bands has brought the need for new types of channel models, new modeling techniques, and greater modeling accuracy. In this paper we review these topics as an introduction to our special session Frontiers in Propagation and Wireless Channel Modeling. We describe the session contents, current active channel modeling areas and techniques, and how new applications bring new and more stringent requirements for accurate channel modeling. We also briefly describe the importance of accurate channel modeling to new and future applications.