WSEAS Transactions on Communications
Print ISSN: 1109-2742, E-ISSN: 2224-2864
Volume 14, 2015
A Beamformer for 120-Degree Secterization in LTE Systems
Authors: , ,
Abstract: A Long Term Evolution (LTE) technology is the most possible candidate for next generation mobile wireless communications. One impairment of LTE is an interference from neighboring cells, so called Inter-Cell Interference (ICI). A Fractional Frequency Reuse (FFR) has been proposed to handle the problem. Also lately, soft FFR technique has been introduced for better utilization of frequency spectrum. In addition, beamforming technique is considered to be the solution to improve the performance of wireless communication systems. Therefore, this paper proposes a new beamforming matrix suitable for LTE systems in which the coverage area is divided into three 120°-sectors. The appropriate number of antenna elements and beam patterns is discussed. The computer simulation in terms of beam patterns confirms the proposed concept. Also, a prototype of new beamformer is fabricated and tested to reveal the real performance in terms of signal-to-interference ratio and channel capacity. The obtained results show that soft FFR technique including beamforming is the best choice for LTE systems.
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Keywords: Beamforming network, Inter-Cell Interference, LTE, Mobile networks, Switched-beam antennas, Secterization, Secterization
Pages: 287-300
WSEAS Transactions on Communications, ISSN / E-ISSN: 1109-2742 / 2224-2864, Volume 14, 2015, Art. #34