Principles and Enabling Technologies of 5G Network Slicing

Abstract

5G mobile systems can be comprehended as highly flexible and programmable E2E networking infrastructures that provide increased performance in terms of capacity, latency, reliability, and energy efficiency while meeting a plethora of diverse requirements from multiple services. Network slicing is emerging as a prospective paradigm to meet these requirements with reduced operating cost and improved time and space functionality. A network slice is the way to provide better resource isolation and increased statistical multiplexing. With dynamic slicing, 5G will operate on flexible zone of the network, permitting varying, adaptable levels or bandwidth and reliability. In this chapter, a comprehensive survey of network slicing is presented from an E2E perspective, detailing its origination and current standardization efforts, principal concepts, enabling technologies, as well as applicable solutions. In particular, it provides specific slicing solutions for each part of the 5G systems, encompassing orchestration and management in the radio access and the core network domains.