A survey on hybrid beamforming techniques in 5G : architecture and system model perspectives

The increasing wireless data traffic demands have driven the need to explore suitable spectrum regions for meeting the projected requirements. In the light of this, millimeter wave (mmWave) communication has received considerable attention from the research community. Typically, in fifth generation (5G) wireless networks, mmWave massive multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) communications is realized by the hybrid transceivers which combine high dimensional analog phase shifters and power amplifiers with lower-dimensional digital signal processing units. This hybrid beamforming design reduces the cost and power consumption which is aligned with an energy-efficient design vision of 5G. In this paper, we track the progress in hybrid beamforming for massive MIMO communications in the context of system models of the hybrid transceivers' structures, the digital and analog beamforming matrices with the possible antenna configuration scenarios and the hybrid beamforming in heterogeneous wireless networks. We extend the scope of the discussion by including resource management issues in hybrid beamforming. We explore the suitability of hybrid beamforming methods, both, existing and proposed till first quarter of 2017, and identify the exciting future challenges in this domain

On the Number of RF Chains and Phase Shifters, and Scheduling Design with Hybrid Analog-Digital Beamforming

This paper considers hybrid beamforming (HB) for downlink multiuser massive multiple input multiple output (MIMO) systems with frequency selective channels. For this system, first we determine the required number of radio frequency (RF) chains and phase shifters (PSs) such that the proposed HB achieves the same performance as that of the digital beamforming (DB) which utilizes $N$ (number of transmitter antennas) RF chains. We show that the performance of the DB can be achieved with our HB just by utilizing $r_t$ RF chains and $2r_t(N-r_t + 1)$ PSs, where $r_t \leq N$ is the rank of the combined digital precoder matrices of all sub-carriers. Second, we provide a simple and novel approach to reduce the number of PSs with only a negligible performance degradation. Numerical results reveal that only $20-40$ PSs per RF chain are sufficient for practically relevant parameter settings. Finally, for the scenario where the deployed number of RF chains $(N_a)$ is less than $r_t$, we propose a simple user scheduling algorithm to select the best set of users in each sub-carrier. Simulation results validate theoretical expressions, and demonstrate the superiority of the proposed HB design over the existing HB designs in both flat fading and frequency selective channels.Comment: IEEE Transactions on Wireless Communications (Minor Revision

Optimizing communication performance of low-resolution ADC systems with hybrid beamforming

Low-resolution analog-to-digital converter (ADC) systems and hybrid analog-and-digital beamforming systems have drawn extensive attention as a promising receiver architecture for millimeter wave (mmWave) communications by reducing hardware cost and power consumption. In this dissertation, hybrid beamforming systems that employ low-resolution ADCs are considered to achieve a better trade-off between communication performance and power consumption. Due to non-negligible quantization errors, however, existing state-of-the-art hybrid beamforming techniques cannot be directly applied to such systems as they ignore the impact of the quantization error. In this regard, I propose new receiver architectures and algorithms for hybrid beamforming with low-resolution ADC systems to enhance spectral efficiency under coarse quantization in different layers of the network stack, and provide subsequent analyses. First, problems of optimizing the number of ADC bits and designing analog combiners with fixed-resolution ADCs are tackled to design an energy-efficient receiver architecture with phase shifter-based hybrid beamforming. A hybrid receiver architecture with resolution-adaptive ADCs for mmWave communications is proposed to optimize the power distribution over ADCs. For the proposed architecture, a near-optimal bit-allocation solution is derived in closed form. In addition, the performance lower bound of the proposed receiver architecture is derived in ergodic rate. For a fixed-resolution ADC system, a new analog combining architecture is proposed for mmWave communications. The proposed analog combiner consists of two consecutive analog combiners that maximize channel gain and minimize effective quantization error. An approximated ergodic rate of the proposed receiver is also derived in closed form. Next, considering switch-based analog beamforming, antenna selection at a base station is investigated for low-resolution ADC systems. Unlike downlink transmit antenna selection problems, a quantization-aware antenna selection criterion is necessary and derived to incorporate quantization error for uplink receive antenna selection problems. Leveraging the criterion, a quantization-aware antenna selection algorithm is proposed and analyzed for uplink. Last, in a higher layer of the network stack, a user scheduling problem is investigated for hybrid beamforming systems with low-resolution ADCs. New user scheduling criteria are derived to maximize scheduling gain under coarse quantization and efficient scheduling algorithms are proposed accordingly. Subsequent analysis for the proposed algorithm provides closed-form ergodic ratesElectrical and Computer Engineerin

Compressive Sensing-Based Grant-Free Massive Access for 6G Massive Communication

The advent of the sixth-generation (6G) of wireless communications has given rise to the necessity to connect vast quantities of heterogeneous wireless devices, which requires advanced system capabilities far beyond existing network architectures. In particular, such massive communication has been recognized as a prime driver that can empower the 6G vision of future ubiquitous connectivity, supporting Internet of Human-Machine-Things for which massive access is critical. This paper surveys the most recent advances toward massive access in both academic and industry communities, focusing primarily on the promising compressive sensing-based grant-free massive access paradigm. We first specify the limitations of existing random access schemes and reveal that the practical implementation of massive communication relies on a dramatically different random access paradigm from the current ones mainly designed for human-centric communications. Then, a compressive sensing-based grant-free massive access roadmap is presented, where the evolutions from single-antenna to large-scale antenna array-based base stations, from single-station to cooperative massive multiple-input multiple-output systems, and from unsourced to sourced random access scenarios are detailed. Finally, we discuss the key challenges and open issues to shed light on the potential future research directions of grant-free massive access.Comment: Accepted by IEEE IoT Journa

A Reduced Complexity Ungerboeck Receiver for Quantized Wideband Massive SC-MIMO

Employing low resolution analog-to-digital converters in massive multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) has many advantages in terms of total power consumption, cost and feasibility of such systems. However, such advantages come together with significant challenges in channel estimation and data detection due to the severe quantization noise present. In this study, we propose a novel iterative receiver for quantized uplink single carrier MIMO (SC-MIMO) utilizing an efficient message passing algorithm based on the Bussgang decomposition and Ungerboeck factorization, which avoids the use of a complex whitening filter. A reduced state sequence estimator with bidirectional decision feedback is also derived, achieving remarkable complexity reduction compared to the existing receivers for quantized SC-MIMO in the literature, without any requirement on the sparsity of the transmission channel. Moreover, the linear minimum mean-square-error (LMMSE) channel estimator for SC-MIMO under frequency-selective channel, which do not require any cyclic-prefix overhead, is also derived. We observe that the proposed receiver has significant performance gains with respect to the existing receivers in the literature under imperfect channel state information.Comment: This work has been submitted to the IEEE for possible publication. Copyright may be transferred without notice, after which this version may no longer be accessibl