Improving Bandwidth Efficiency in E-band Communication Systems

The allocation of a large amount of bandwidth by regulating bodies in the 70/80 GHz band, i.e., the E-band, has opened up new potentials and challenges for providing affordable and reliable Gigabit per second wireless point-to-point links. This article first reviews the available bandwidth and licensing regulations in the E-band. Subsequently, different propagation models, e.g., the ITU-R and Cane models, are compared against measurement results and it is concluded that to meet specific availability requirements, E-band wireless systems may need to be designed with larger fade margins compared to microwave systems. A similar comparison is carried out between measurements and models for oscillator phase noise. It is confirmed that phase noise characteristics, that are neglected by the models used for narrowband systems, need to be taken into account for the wideband systems deployed in the E-band. Next, a new multi-input multi-output (MIMO) transceiver design, termed continuous aperture phased (CAP)-MIMO, is presented. Simulations show that CAP-MIMO enables E-band systems to achieve fiber-optic like throughputs. Finally, it is argued that full-duplex relaying can be used to greatly enhance the coverage of E-band systems without sacrificing throughput, thus, facilitating their application in establishing the backhaul of heterogeneous networks.Comment: 16 pages, 6 Figures, Journal paper. IEEE Communication Magazine 201

High frequency band communication application in Malaysia

High frequency (HF) radio frequencies are between 3 and 30 MHz.[1] Also known as the decameter band or decameter wave as the wavelengths range from one to ten decameters. Shortwave (2.310 - 25.820 MHz)[1] overlaps and is slightly lower than HF. Since the ionosphere often reflects HF radio waves quite well (a phenomenon known as skywave), this range is extensively used for medium and long range terrestrial radio communication. However, suitability of this portion of the spectrum for such communication varies greatly with a complex combination of factors[1]: • Sunlight/darkness at site of transmission and reception • Transmitter/receiver proximity to terminator • Season • Sunspot cycle • Solar activity • Polar aurora • Maximum usable frequency • Lowest usable high frequency • Frequency of operation within the HF rang