In this talk, we begin with an overview of technology evolution towards 4G. We also outline candidate technologies for 4G wireless standard. We identify key research issues that need to be addressed to improve spectral efficiency in wireless networks for improved data rate and Quality of Service (QoS). Specifically, we describe one of the representative contributions that we have made towards 4G wireless (IEEE 802.16m standard). One of the challenges in providing Quality of Service (QoS) is the time varying nature of the wireless channel. Scheduling algorithms that exploit the characteristics of the channel to satisfy some QoS performance measure are referred to as Cross Layer algorithms. In this talk, we review some of the recent approaches to opportunistic scheduling algorithms and present a new approach for on-line implementation of the algorithm. Finally, we identify some of the challenges to bridge the Digital Divide in India and the technological solutions that can potentially revolutionize the broadband penetration.

Bio: Abhay Karandikar obtained his M.Tech and Ph.D from IIT Kanpur. He was with C-DAC for three years before joining IIT Bombay in 1997. He started an Open Source MPLS and Linux based MPLS emulator prjects and also co-founded a company, Eisodus Networks. He is currently leading TTSL-IIT Bombay Center for Excellence in Telecom and is also the Head of IIT's Computer Center. He made several contributions to IEEE 802.1 and 802.16m WiMAX standards. Dr. Karandikar was a recipient of Dr Vikram Sarabhai Research award, Prof. S. V. Aiya Memorial Award and Prof. K. Srinivasan Awards.