Channel hardening in cell-free and user-centric massive MIMO networks with spatially correlated ricean fading

The irruption of the cell-free (CF) massive multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) network topology has meant taking one step further the concept of massive MIMO as a means to provide uniform service in large coverage areas. A key property of massive MIMO networks is channel hardening, by which the channel becomes deterministic when the number of antennas grows large enough relative to the number of serviced users, easing the signal processing and boosting the performance of simple precoders. However, in CF massive MIMO, the fulfillment of this condition depends on several aspects that are not considered in classical massive MIMO systems. In this work, we address the presence of channel hardening in both CF massive MIMO and the recently appeared user-centric (UC) approach, under a spatially correlated Ricean fading channel using distributed and cooperative precoding and combining schemes and different power control strategies for both the downlink (DL) and uplink (UL) segments. We show that the line-of-sight (LOS) component, spatially correlated antennas and UC schemes have an impact on how the channel hardens. In addition, we examine the existent gap between the estimated achievable rate and the true network performance when channel hardening is compromised. Exact closed-form expressions for both the hardening metric and achievable DL/UL rates are given as well.This work was supported in part by the Agencia Estatal de Investigación and Fondo Europeo de Desarrollo Regional (AEI/FEDER, UE), Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad (MINECO), Spain, through the project TERESA under Grant TEC2017-90093-C3-2-R and Grant TEC2017-90093-C3-3-R, and in part by the Spanish CDTI PID through the project OPALL5G: Optimization of Small Cells Performance in 5G NR

Power Scaling of Uplink Massive MIMO Systems with Arbitrary-Rank Channel Means

This paper investigates the uplink achievable rates of massive multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) antenna systems in Ricean fading channels, using maximal-ratio combining (MRC) and zero-forcing (ZF) receivers, assuming perfect and imperfect channel state information (CSI). In contrast to previous relevant works, the fast fading MIMO channel matrix is assumed to have an arbitrary-rank deterministic component as well as a Rayleigh-distributed random component. We derive tractable expressions for the achievable uplink rate in the large-antenna limit, along with approximating results that hold for any finite number of antennas. Based on these analytical results, we obtain the scaling law that the users' transmit power should satisfy, while maintaining a desirable quality of service. In particular, it is found that regardless of the Ricean $K$-factor, in the case of perfect CSI, the approximations converge to the same constant value as the exact results, as the number of base station antennas, $M$, grows large, while the transmit power of each user can be scaled down proportionally to $1/M$. If CSI is estimated with uncertainty, the same result holds true but only when the Ricean $K$-factor is non-zero. Otherwise, if the channel experiences Rayleigh fading, we can only cut the transmit power of each user proportionally to $1/\sqrt M$. In addition, we show that with an increasing Ricean $K$-factor, the uplink rates will converge to fixed values for both MRC and ZF receivers

Short-Term Power Constrained Cell-Free Massive-MIMO Over Spatially Correlated Ricean Fading

This paper considers short-term power constrained cell-free massive multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) scenarios where a large set of multi-antenna access points (APs) provide service to a group of single-antenna mobile stations (MSs) on a spatially correlated multipath environment. Based on a probabilistic approach, the spatially correlated propagation links are modeled using either Ricean or Rayleigh fading channel models that combine a deterministic line-of-sight (LOS) propagation path with a small-scale fading caused by non-line-of-sight (NLOS) multipath propagation. Assuming the use of minimum mean square error (MMSE) channel estimates, closed-form expressions for the downlink (DL) achievable spectral efficiency of a cellfree massive MIMO network with short-term power constraints (i.e., a vector normalized conjugate beamformer (NCB)) are derived and benchmarked against that provided by the conventional cell-free massive MIMO network with long-term power constraints (i.e., the conventional conjugate beamforming (CB)). These expressions, encompassing the effects of spatial antenna correlation, Ricean/Rayleigh fading and pilot contamination, are then used to derive both pragmatic and optimal max-min peruser power allocation strategies and to gain theoretical insight on the performance advantage provided by the use of short-term power constraints instead of the conventional long-term power constrained approach.This work was supported in part by the Agencia Estatal de Investigacion (AEI) of Spain under Grants TEC2017-90093-C3-2-R and TEC2017-90093-C3-3-R, and in part by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) funds of the European Union (EU) (AEI/FEDER, UE)

Scalable cell-free massive MIMO networks with LEO satellite support

This paper presents an integrated network architecture combining a cell-free massive multiple-input multiple-output (CF-M-MIMO) terrestrial layout with a low Earth orbit satellite segment where the scalability of the terrestrial segment is taken into account. The main purpose of such an integrated scheme is to transfer to the satellite segment those users that somehow limit the performance of the terrestrial network. Towards this end, a correspondingly scalable technique is proposed to govern the ground-to-satellite user diversion that can be tuned to different performance metrics. In particular, in this work the proposed technique is configured to result in an heuristic that improves the minimum per-user rate and the sum-rate of the overall network. Simulation results serve to identify under which conditions the satellite segment can become an attractive solution to enhance users’ performance. Generally speaking, although the availability of the satellite segment always leads to an improvement of users’ rates, it is in those cases where the terrestrial CF-M-MIMO network exhibits low densification traits that the satellite backup becomes crucial.This work was supported in part by the Agencia Estatal de Investigación, Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación (MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033) through the R+D+i Project under Grant PID2020-115323RB-C32 and Grant PID2020-115323RB-C31; and in part by the Centre Tecnológic de Telecomunicacions de Catalunya Researchers through the Grant from the Spanish Ministry of Economic Affairs and Digital Transformation and the European Union-NextGenerationEU under Grant UNICO-5G I+D/AROMA3D-Hybrid TSI-063000-2021-71.Peer ReviewedPostprint (published version

Multiple Access in Aerial Networks: From Orthogonal and Non-Orthogonal to Rate-Splitting

Recently, interest on the utilization of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) has aroused. Specifically, UAVs can be used in cellular networks as aerial users for delivery, surveillance, rescue search, or as an aerial base station (aBS) for communication with ground users in remote uncovered areas or in dense environments requiring prompt high capacity. Aiming to satisfy the high requirements of wireless aerial networks, several multiple access techniques have been investigated. In particular, space-division multiple access(SDMA) and power-domain non-orthogonal multiple access (NOMA) present promising multiplexing gains for aerial downlink and uplink. Nevertheless, these gains are limited as they depend on the conditions of the environment. Hence, a generalized scheme has been recently proposed, called rate-splitting multiple access (RSMA), which is capable of achieving better spectral efficiency gains compared to SDMA and NOMA. In this paper, we present a comprehensive survey of key multiple access technologies adopted for aerial networks, where aBSs are deployed to serve ground users. Since there have been only sporadic results reported on the use of RSMA in aerial systems, we aim to extend the discussion on this topic by modelling and analyzing the weighted sum-rate performance of a two-user downlink network served by an RSMA-based aBS. Finally, related open issues and future research directions are exposed.Comment: 16 pages, 6 figures, submitted to IEEE Journa

Multipair Massive MIMO Relaying Systems with One-Bit ADCs and DACs

This paper considers a multipair amplify-and-forward massive MIMO relaying system with one-bit ADCs and one-bit DACs at the relay. The channel state information is estimated via pilot training, and then utilized by the relay to perform simple maximum-ratio combining/maximum-ratio transmission processing. Leveraging on the Bussgang decomposition, an exact achievable rate is derived for the system with correlated quantization noise. Based on this, a closed-form asymptotic approximation for the achievable rate is presented, thereby enabling efficient evaluation of the impact of key parameters on the system performance. Furthermore, power scaling laws are characterized to study the potential energy efficiency associated with deploying massive one-bit antenna arrays at the relay. In addition, a power allocation strategy is designed to compensate for the rate degradation caused by the coarse quantization. Our results suggest that the quality of the channel estimates depends on the specific orthogonal pilot sequences that are used, contrary to unquantized systems where any set of orthogonal pilot sequences gives the same result. Moreover, the sum rate gap between the double-quantized relay system and an ideal non-quantized system is a moderate factor of $4/\pi^2$ in the low power regime.Comment: 14 pages, 10 figures, submitted to IEEE Trans. Signal Processin

Distributed Massive MIMO in Millimetre Wave Communication

This thesis considers a distributed massive MIMO (D-MaMIMO) system for millimetre wave (mmWave) communication for an outdoor coverage area, as the wavelength of mmWave makes it easier and the free space path loss necessitates the use of relatively large distributed antenna arrays. We assume that the line-of-sight (LoS) links are available between the access points (APs) and user equipment (UEs). We have examined different AP arrangements to serve a given square area using the beamforming (BF) for a single user case. Furthermore, the zero-forcing (ZF) pre-coding is applied at a central processing unit (CPU) on the downlink to separate multiple users. We focus on these multi-user scenarios with varying numbers of APs to demonstrate the extent to which closely spaced users can be separated by ZF processing. We examine the determinant of the effective composite channel matrix to demonstrate the conditions under which the ZF problem may become ill-conditioned. We then show that nearly perfect separation is attainable, even when the UEs are only a few metres apart. Subsequently, an eigenvalue decomposition (EVD) based ZF is proposed to improve the performance of multi-antenna UEs. It has been observed that 3DBF has limited scope in circumstances when users are distributed horizontally, near to the same height as the APs and it is advantageous to employ non-square AP antenna arrays to maximize azimuth separation, especially for multi-user environments. The throughput per UE indicates how many users could be served effectively using the aforementioned schemes and AP arrangements for these multi-user cases. We further explore the significant issue of multipath propagation characteristics for mmWave communication and propose the novel distinction between the effective and the environmental K-factor for Ricean channels. A closed-form approximation for the effective K-factor is derived and corroborated by comparison with numerical results