User equipment, comprising: a determining unit, configured to determine configuration information of a reference signal, wherein the configuration information comprises information about a first candidate time-frequency resource and information about a second candidate time-frequency resource, wherein the first candidate time-frequency resource comprises a first partial time-frequency resource and a second partial time-frequency resource, the first partial time-frequency resource is a first partial resource in a first mute time-frequency resource, and the second partial time-frequency resource is a second partial resource in a second mute time-frequency resource; the second candidate time-frequency resource comprises a third partial time-frequency resource and a fourth partial time-frequency resource, the third partial time-frequency resource is a third partial resource in the first mute time-frequency resource, and the fourth partial time-frequency resource is a fourth partial resource in the second mute time-frequency resource; and the first partial resource, the second partial resource, the third partial resource, and the fourth partial resource do not overlap one another; and a detection unit, configured to detect the reference signal according to the configuration information, characterized in that the first candidate time-frequency resource, the second candidate time-frequency resource, the first mute time-frequency resource, and the second mute time-frequency resource all belong to a time-frequency resource pool of a channel state information reference signal, CSI-RS, or a time-frequency resource pool of a cell-specific reference signal, CRS, or a time-frequency resource pool of a primary synchronization signal, PSS, or a time-frequency resource pool of a secondary synchronization signal, SSS. a determining unit, configured to determine configuration information of a reference signal, wherein the configuration information comprises information about a first candidate time-frequency resource and information about a second candidate time-frequency resource, wherein the first candidate time-frequency resource comprises a first partial time-frequency resource and a second partial time-frequency resource, the first partial time-frequency resource is a first partial resource in a first mute time-frequency resource, and the second partial time-frequency resource is a second partial resource in a second mute time-frequency resource; the second candidate time-frequency resource comprises a third partial time-frequency resource and a fourth partial time-frequency resource, the third partial time-frequency resource is a third partial resource in the first mute time-frequency resource, and the fourth partial time-frequency resource is a fourth partial resource in the second mute time-frequency resource; and the first partial resource, the second partial resource, the third partial resource, and the fourth partial resource do not overlap one another; and a detection unit, configured to detect the reference signal according to the configuration information, characterized in that the first candidate time-frequency resource, the second candidate time-frequency resource, the first mute time-frequency resource, and the second mute time-frequency resource all belong to a time-frequency resource pool of a channel state information reference signal, CSI-RS, or a time-frequency resource pool of a cell-specific reference signal, CRS, or a time-frequency resource pool of a primary synchronization signal, PSS, or a time-frequency resource pool of a secondary synchronization signal, SSS.