Time-Frequency-Space Transmit Design and Signal Processing with Dynamic Subarray for Terahertz Integrated Sensing and Communication

Terahertz (THz) integrated sensing and communication (ISAC) enables simultaneous data transmission with Terabit-per-second (Tbps) rate and millimeter-level accurate sensing. To realize such a blueprint, ultra-massive antenna arrays with directional beamforming are used to compensate for severe path loss in the THz band. In this paper, the time-frequency-space transmit design is investigated for THz ISAC to generate time-varying scanning sensing beams and stable communication beams. Specifically, with the dynamic array-of-subarray (DAoSA) hybrid beamforming architecture and multi-carrier modulation, two ISAC hybrid precoding algorithms are proposed, namely, a vectorization (VEC) based algorithm that outperforms existing ISAC hybrid precoding methods and a low-complexity sensing codebook assisted (SCA) approach. Meanwhile, coupled with the transmit design, parameter estimation algorithms are proposed to realize high-accuracy sensing, including a wideband DAoSA MUSIC (W-DAoSA-MUSIC) method for angle estimation and a sum-DFT-GSS (S-DFT-GSS) approach for range and velocity estimation. Numerical results indicate that the proposed algorithms can realize centi-degree-level angle estimation accuracy and millimeter-level range estimation accuracy, which are one or two orders of magnitudes better than the methods in the millimeter-wave band. In addition, to overcome the cyclic prefix limitation and Doppler effects in the THz band, an inter-symbol interference- and inter-carrier interference-tackled sensing algorithm is developed to refine sensing capabilities for THz ISAC

Terahertz Communications and Sensing for 6G and Beyond: A Comprehensive View

The next-generation wireless technologies, commonly referred to as the sixth generation (6G), are envisioned to support extreme communications capacity and in particular disruption in the network sensing capabilities. The terahertz (THz) band is one potential enabler for those due to the enormous unused frequency bands and the high spatial resolution enabled by both short wavelengths and bandwidths. Different from earlier surveys, this paper presents a comprehensive treatment and technology survey on THz communications and sensing in terms of the advantages, applications, propagation characterization, channel modeling, measurement campaigns, antennas, transceiver devices, beamforming, networking, the integration of communications and sensing, and experimental testbeds. Starting from the motivation and use cases, we survey the development and historical perspective of THz communications and sensing with the anticipated 6G requirements. We explore the radio propagation, channel modeling, and measurements for THz band. The transceiver requirements, architectures, technological challenges, and approaches together with means to compensate for the high propagation losses by appropriate antenna and beamforming solutions. We survey also several system technologies required by or beneficial for THz systems. The synergistic design of sensing and communications is explored with depth. Practical trials, demonstrations, and experiments are also summarized. The paper gives a holistic view of the current state of the art and highlights the issues and challenges that are open for further research towards 6G.Comment: 55 pages, 10 figures, 8 tables, submitted to IEEE Communications Surveys & Tutorial

Antenna Selection With Beam Squint Compensation for Integrated Sensing and Communications

Next-generation wireless networks strive for higher communication rates, ultra-low latency, seamless connectivity, and high-resolution sensing capabilities. To meet these demands, terahertz (THz)-band signal processing is envisioned as a key technology offering wide bandwidth and sub-millimeter wavelength. Furthermore, THz integrated sensing and communications (ISAC) paradigm has emerged jointly access spectrum and reduced hardware costs through a unified platform. To address the challenges in THz propagation, THz-ISAC systems employ extremely large antenna arrays to improve the beamforming gain for communications with high data rates and sensing with high resolution. However, the cost and power consumption of implementing fully digital beamformers are prohibitive. While hybrid analog/digital beamforming can be a potential solution, the use of subcarrier-independent analog beamformers leads to the beam-squint phenomenon where different subcarriers observe distinct directions because of adopting the same analog beamformer across all subcarriers. In this paper, we develop a sparse array architecture for THz-ISAC with hybrid beamforming to provide a cost-effective solution. We analyze the antenna selection problem under beam-squint influence and introduce a manifold optimization approach for hybrid beamforming design. To reduce computational and memory costs, we propose novel algorithms leveraging grouped subarrays, quantized performance metrics, and sequential optimization. These approaches yield a significant reduction in the number of possible subarray configurations, which enables us to devise a neural network with classification model to accurately perform antenna selection.Comment: 14pages10figures, submitted to IEE

Antenna System Design for 5G and Beyond – A Modal Approach

Antennas are one of the key components that empower a new generation of wireless technologies, such as 5G and new radar systems. It has been shown that antenna design strategies based on modal theories represent a powerful systematic approach to design practical antenna systems with high performance. In this thesis, several innovative multi-antenna systems are proposed for wireless applications in different frequency bands: from sub-6 GHz to millimeter-wave (mm-wave) bands. The thesis consists of an overview (Part I) and six scientific papers published in peer-reviewed international journals (Part II). Part I provides the overall framework of the thesis work: It presents the background and motivation for the problems at hand, the fundamental modal theories utilized to address these problems, as well as subject-specific research challenges. Brief conclusions and future outlook are also provided. The included papers of Part II can be divided into two tracks with different 5G and beyond wireless applications, both aiming for higher data rates.In the first track, Papers [I] to [IV] investigate different aspects of antenna system design for smart-phone application. Since Long Term Evolution (LTE) (so-called 3.5G) was deployed in 2009, mobile communication systems have utilized multiple-input multiple-output antenna technology (MIMO) technology to increase the spectral efficiency of the transmission channel and provide higher data rates in existing and new sub-6 GHz bands. However, MIMO requires multi-antennas at both the base stations and the user equipment (mainly smartphones) and it is very challenging to implement sub-6 GHz multi-antennas within the limited space of smartphones. This points to the need for innovative design strategies. The theory of characteristic modes (TCM) is one type of modal theory in the antenna community, which has been shown to be a versatile tool to analyze the inherent resonance properties of an arbitrarily shaped radiating structure. Characteristic modes (CMs) have the useful property of their fields being orthogonal over both the source region and the sphere at infinity. This property makes TCM uniquely suited for electrically compact MIMO antenna design.In the second track, Papers [V]-[VI] investigate new integrated antenna arrays and subarrays for the two wireless applications, which are both implemented in a higher part of the mm-wave frequency range (i.e. E-band). Furthermore, a newly developed high resolution multi-layer “Any-Layer” PCB technology is investigated to realize antenna-in-package solutions for these mmwave antenna system designs. High gain and high efficiency antennas are essential for high-speed wireless point-to-point communication systems. To meet these requirements, Paper [V] proposes directive multilayer substrate integrated waveguide (SIW) cavity-backed slot antenna array and subarray. As a background, the microwave community has already shown the benefits of modal theory in the design and analysis of closed structures like waveguides and cavities. Higher-order cavity modes are used in the antenna array design process to facilitate lower loss, simpler feeding network, and lower sensitivity to fabrication errors, which are favorable for E-band communication systems. However, waveguide/cavity modes are confined to fields within the guided media and can only help to design special types of antennas that contain those structures. As an example of the versatility of TCM, Paper [VI] shows that apart from smartphone antenna designs proposed in Papers [I]-[IV], TCM can alsobe used to find the desirable modes of the linear antenna arrays. Furthermore, apart from E-band communications, the proposed series-fed patch array topology in Paper [VI] is a good candidate for application in 79 GHz MIMO automotive radar due to its low cost, compact size, ability to suppress surface waves, as well as relatively wide impedance and flat-gain bandwidths

Millimeter Wave Systems for Wireless Cellular Communications

This thesis considers channel estimation and multiuser (MU) data transmission for massive MIMO systems with fully digital/hybrid structures in mmWave channels. It contains three main contributions. In this thesis, we first propose a tone-based linear search algorithm to facilitate the estimation of angle-of-arrivals of the strongest components as well as scattering components of the users at the base station (BS) with fully digital structure. Our results show that the proposed maximum-ratio transmission (MRT) based on the strongest components can achieve a higher data rate than that of the conventional MRT, under the same mean squared errors (MSE). Second, we develop a low-complexity channel estimation and beamformer/precoder design scheme for hybrid mmWave systems. In addition, the proposed scheme applies to both non-sparse and sparse mmWave channel environments. We then leverage the proposed scheme to investigate the downlink achievable rate performance. The results show that the proposed scheme obtains a considerable achievable rate of fully digital systems. Taking into account the effect of various types of errors, we investigate the achievable rate performance degradation of the considered scheme. Third, we extend our proposed scheme to a multi-cell MU mmWave MIMO network. We derive the closed-form approximation of the normalized MSE of channel estimation under pilot contamination over Rician fading channels. Furthermore, we derive a tight closed-form approximation and the scaling law of the average achievable rate. Our results unveil that channel estimation errors, the intra-cell interference, and the inter-cell interference caused by pilot contamination over Rician fading channels can be efficiently mitigated by simply increasing the number of antennas equipped at the desired BS.Comment: Thesi

Advanced automotive radar front-end based on gapwaveguide technology

The pursuit of higher levels of autonomous driving necessitates the utilization of advanced radar sensors that possess improved environmental perception capabilities. Consequently, next-generation automotive radars require sophisticated antenna systems with high efficiency, thereby making waveguide antennas a more viable choice. In this context, it has been observed that gapwaveguides exhibit superior performance in comparison to traditional waveguides, particularly in terms of assembly reliability, when employed in the development of multi-layer waveguide antennas. Within the scope of this thesis, the primary objective is to comprehensively explore the design of front-ends for cutting-edge automotive radar sensors by leveraging the potential of gapwaveguide technology. The initial aspect of this thesis involves an exploration of integration techniques capable of achieving high performance in waveguide-based RF front-ends. In particular, the thesis introduces novel vertical gapwaveguide-to-microstrip transitions that facilitate the integration of RF front-ends featuring multi-layer configurations. Furthermore, this thesis introduces radar transceivers equipped with built-in waveguide-to-microstrip transitions, known as launcher-in-package, along with an imaging radar antenna featuring customized interconnections explicitly designed utilizing gapwaveguide technology to interface with the transceivers.Secondly, in light of the utilization of radar sensors incorporating orthogonal dual polarizations on the transmitting and/or receiving ends, an opportunity arises to acquire polarimetric information from the surrounding environment, thereby representing a promising advancement in the realm of autonomous driving. This thesis presents novel antenna designs based on gapwaveguide technology for polarimetric radar sensors. An 8$\times$8 planar array utilizing double grooved circular waveguide polarizers is introduced, specifically designed for fixed beam, high gain polarimetric sensing applications. In addition, this thesis presents a polarimetric radar sensor that utilizes a MIMO configuration featuring single-CP transmitting antennas and dual-CP receiving antennas. The antenna design incorporates series-fed septum polarizers, which offer low-profile characteristics.In summary, this thesis undertakes a comprehensive investigation into the designs of advanced automotive radar front-ends utilizing gapwaveguide technology. The study explores the advancements in terms of integration techniques and polarimetric capability, demonstrating the potential of gapwaveguide technology for the practical implementation of waveguide-based RF front-ends. The utilization of such front-ends can significantly enhance the capabilities of autonomous driving systems

Low-Rank Channel Estimation for Millimeter Wave and Terahertz Hybrid MIMO Systems

Massive multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) is one of the fundamental technologies for 5G and beyond. The increased number of antenna elements at both the transmitter and the receiver translates into a large-dimension channel matrix. In addition, the power requirements for the massive MIMO systems are high, especially when fully digital transceivers are deployed. To address this challenge, hybrid analog-digital transceivers are considered a viable alternative. However, for hybrid systems, the number of observations during each channel use is reduced. The high dimensions of the channel matrix and the reduced number of observations make the channel estimation task challenging. Thus, channel estimation may require increased training overhead and higher computational complexity. The need for high data rates is increasing rapidly, forcing a shift of wireless communication towards higher frequency bands such as millimeter Wave (mmWave) and terahertz (THz). The wireless channel at these bands is comprised of only a few dominant paths. This makes the channel sparse in the angular domain and the resulting channel matrix has a low rank. This thesis aims to provide channel estimation solutions benefiting from the low rankness and sparse nature of the channel. The motivation behind this thesis is to offer a desirable trade-off between training overhead and computational complexity while providing a desirable estimate of the channel