Massive MIMO with Dual-Polarized Antennas

This paper considers a single-cell massive MIMO (multiple-input multiple-output) system with dual-polarized antennas at both the base station and users. We study a channel model that includes the key practical aspects that arise when utilizing dual-polarization: channel cross-polar discrimination (XPD) and cross-polar correlations (XPC) at the transmitter and receiver. We derive the achievable uplink and downlink spectral efficiencies (SE) with and without successive interference cancellation (SIC) when using the linear minimum mean squared error (MMSE), zero-forcing (ZF), and maximum ratio (MR) combining/precoding schemes. The expressions depend on the statistical properties of the MMSE channel estimator obtained for the dual-polarized channel model. Closed-form uplink and downlink SE expressions for MR combining/precoding are derived. Using these expressions, we propose power-control algorithms that maximize the uplink and downlink sum SEs under uncorrelated fading but can be used to enhance performance also with correlated fading. We compare the SEs achieved in dual-polarized and uni-polarized setups numerically and evaluate the impact of XPD and XPC conditions. The simulations reveal that dual-polarized setups achieve 40-60\% higher SEs and the gains remain also under severe XPD and XPC. Dual-polarized also systems benefit more from advanced signal processing that compensates for imperfections.Comment: 15 pages, 9 figures. To appear in IEEE Transactions on Wireless Communication

Tri-Polarized Holographic MIMO Surface in Near-Field: Channel Modeling and Precoding Design

This paper investigates the utilization of triple polarization (TP) for multi-user (MU) holographic multiple-input multi-output surface (HMIMOS) wireless communication systems, targeting capacity boosting and diversity exploitation without enlarging the antenna array sizes. We specifically consider that both the transmitter and receiver are both equipped with an HMIMOS consisting of compact sub-wavelength TP patch antennas within the near-field (NF) regime. To characterize TP MU-HMIMOS systems, a TP NF channel model is constructed using the dyadic Green's function, whose characteristics are leveraged to design two precoding schemes for mitigating the cross-polarization and inter-user interference contributions. Specifically, a user-cluster-based precoding scheme assigns different users to one of three polarizations at the expense of the system's diversity, and a two-layer precoding scheme removes interference using the Gaussian elimination method at a high computational cost. The theoretical correlation analysis for HMIMOS in the NF region is also investigated, revealing that both the spacing of transmit patch antennas and user distance impact transmit correlation factors. Our numerical results show that the users far from transmitting HMIMOS experience higher correlation than those closer within the NF regime, resulting in a lower channel capacity. Meanwhile, in terms of channel capacity, TP HMIMOS can almost achieve 1.25 times gain compared with dual-polarized HMIMOS, and 3 times compared with conventional HMIMOS. In addition, the proposed two-layer precoding scheme combined with two-layer power allocation realizes a higher spectral efficiency than other schemes without sacrificing diversity

Near-Field Communications: A Comprehensive Survey

Multiple-antenna technologies are evolving towards large-scale aperture sizes, extremely high frequencies, and innovative antenna types. This evolution is giving rise to the emergence of near-field communications (NFC) in future wireless systems. Considerable attention has been directed towards this cutting-edge technology due to its potential to enhance the capacity of wireless networks by introducing increased spatial degrees of freedom (DoFs) in the range domain. Within this context, a comprehensive review of the state of the art on NFC is presented, with a specific focus on its 1) fundamental operating principles, 2) channel modeling, 3) performance analysis, 4) signal processing, and 5) integration with other emerging technologies. Specifically, 1) the basic principles of NFC are characterized from both physics and communications perspectives, unveiling its unique properties in contrast to far-field communications. 2) Based on these principles, deterministic and stochastic near-field channel models are investigated for spatially-discrete (SPD) and continuous-aperture (CAP) antenna arrays. 3) Rooted in these models, existing contributions on near-field performance analysis are reviewed in terms of DoFs/effective DoFs (EDoFs), power scaling law, and transmission rate. 4) Existing signal processing techniques for NFC are systematically surveyed, encompassing channel estimation, beamforming design, and low-complexity beam training. 5) Major issues and research opportunities associated with the integration of NFC and other emerging technologies are identified to facilitate NFC applications in next-generation networks. Promising directions are highlighted throughout the paper to inspire future research endeavors in the realm of NFC.Comment: 56 pages, 23figures; submit for possible journa

Holographic MIMO Communications: Theoretical Foundations, Enabling Technologies, and Future Directions

Future wireless systems are envisioned to create an endogenously holography-capable, intelligent, and programmable radio propagation environment, that will offer unprecedented capabilities for high spectral and energy efficiency, low latency, and massive connectivity. A potential and promising technology for supporting the expected extreme requirements of the sixth-generation (6G) communication systems is the concept of the holographic multiple-input multiple-output (HMIMO), which will actualize holographic radios with reasonable power consumption and fabrication cost. The HMIMO is facilitated by ultra-thin, extremely large, and nearly continuous surfaces that incorporate reconfigurable and sub-wavelength-spaced antennas and/or metamaterials. Such surfaces comprising dense electromagnetic (EM) excited elements are capable of recording and manipulating impinging fields with utmost flexibility and precision, as well as with reduced cost and power consumption, thereby shaping arbitrary-intended EM waves with high energy efficiency. The powerful EM processing capability of HMIMO opens up the possibility of wireless communications of holographic imaging level, paving the way for signal processing techniques realized in the EM-domain, possibly in conjunction with their digital-domain counterparts. However, in spite of the significant potential, the studies on HMIMO communications are still at an initial stage, its fundamental limits remain to be unveiled, and a certain number of critical technical challenges need to be addressed. In this survey, we present a comprehensive overview of the latest advances in the HMIMO communications paradigm, with a special focus on their physical aspects, their theoretical foundations, as well as the enabling technologies for HMIMO systems. We also compare the HMIMO with existing multi-antenna technologies, especially the massive MIMO, present various...Comment: double column, 58 page