LTE-Advanced: The Next Step in the Evolution of Mobile Communication Technology
What is LTE-Advanced and why you should care
If you are using a smartphone, tablet, laptop, or any other device that connects to the internet via cellular networks, you have probably heard of LTE (Long Term Evolution), the fourth-generation (4G) mobile communication standard that offers high-speed data transmission and improved coverage. But did you know that there is an even more advanced version of LTE that can offer even higher speeds, lower latency, better reliability, and more efficient use of spectrum? This version is called LTE-Advanced, and it is the next step in the evolution of mobile communication.
lte advanced sassan ahmadi pdf download
LTE-Advanced is not a new technology, but rather an enhancement of the existing LTE technology that introduces new features and capabilities to meet the growing demand for mobile data and multimedia services. LTE-Advanced was standardized by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) in Releases 10 and 11, and it is compatible with the existing LTE networks and devices. LTE-Advanced is also considered as a pre-5G technology, as it lays the foundation for the future 5G networks that will offer even more advanced services and applications.
So what are the benefits of LTE-Advanced for you as a user? Here are some of them:
Higher data rates: LTE-Advanced can achieve peak data rates of up to 1 Gbps in the downlink and 500 Mbps in the uplink, which is about 10 times faster than LTE. This means that you can download or upload large files, stream high-definition videos, play online games, or use cloud-based applications with much faster speeds and less buffering.
Lower latency: LTE-Advanced can reduce the delay between sending and receiving data packets to less than 10 milliseconds, which is about half of that of LTE. This means that you can enjoy more responsive and interactive applications, such as voice over IP (VoIP), video conferencing, online gaming, or virtual reality.
Better reliability: LTE-Advanced can improve the quality of service (QoS) and reduce the packet loss rate by using advanced techniques such as coordinated multipoint transmission and reception (CoMP) and enhanced inter-cell interference coordination (eICIC). These techniques enable multiple base stations to cooperate with each other to serve a user device, thereby increasing the signal strength, reducing the interference, and enhancing the coverage.
More efficient use of spectrum: LTE-Advanced can utilize multiple frequency bands simultaneously by using carrier aggregation (CA), which allows combining up to five component carriers of different bandwidths and frequencies. This increases the overall bandwidth available for data transmission and improves the spectral efficiency. Moreover, LTE-Advanced can also support unlicensed spectrum bands, such as the 5 GHz band used by Wi-Fi, by using licensed-assisted access (LAA) or license-exempt (LE) technologies. This enables coexistence and aggregation of licensed and unlicensed spectrum resources, thereby increasing the network capacity and performance.
How LTE-Advanced works and what are its key features
As mentioned earlier, LTE-Advanced is an enhancement of the existing LTE technology that introduces new features and capabilities to meet the requirements of IMT-Advanced (International Mobile Telecommunications-Advanced), which is the global standard for 4G mobile communication. IMT-Advanced specifies the minimum performance criteria and technical specifications for 4G networks, such as peak data rates, latency, spectral efficiency, mobility, and interoperability. LTE-Advanced meets or exceeds these criteria by using various techniques and technologies, such as:
Carrier aggregation
Carrier aggregation (CA) is the most important and widely deployed feature of LTE-Advanced, as it enables the network to combine multiple component carriers (CCs) of different bandwidths and frequencies to form a larger aggregated carrier. This increases the overall bandwidth available for data transmission and improves the spectral efficiency. For example, a network can aggregate two 20 MHz CCs to form a 40 MHz carrier, which can double the peak data rate compared to a single 20 MHz carrier.
CA can be classified into three types based on the frequency bands used for aggregation: intra-band contiguous CA, intra-band non-contiguous CA, and inter-band CA. Intra-band contiguous CA means that the CCs belong to the same frequency band and are adjacent to each other. Intra-band non-contiguous CA means that the CCs belong to the same frequency band but are separated by some gap. Inter-band CA means that the CCs belong to different frequency bands. For example, a network can aggregate a 20 MHz CC in the 1800 MHz band and a 10 MHz CC in the 2600 MHz band to form a 30 MHz carrier.
CA can also be classified into two types based on the number of antennas used for transmission and reception: single-input single-output (SISO) CA and multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) CA. SISO CA means that only one antenna is used at both ends of the link. MIMO CA means that multiple antennas are used at both ends of the link, which can further increase the data rate by exploiting the spatial diversity and multiplexing gains. For example, a network can use 2x2 MIMO with two 20 MHz CCs to achieve a peak data rate of up to 300 Mbps in the downlink.
Coordinated multipoint transmission and reception
Coordinated multipoint transmission and reception (CoMP) is another key feature of LTE-Advanced that enables multiple base stations (also known as eNodeBs or eNBs) to cooperate with each other to serve a user device (also known as user equipment or UE). This can improve the QoS and reduce the packet loss rate by increasing the signal strength, reducing the interference, and enhancing the coverage. CoMP can also improve the cell-edge performance and increase the cell throughput by utilizing the resources more efficiently.
CoMP can be classified into two types based on the direction of data transmission: downlink CoMP and uplink CoMP. Downlink CoMP means that multiple eNBs transmit data to a UE simultaneously or sequentially. Uplink CoMP means that multiple eNBs receive data from a UE simultaneously or sequentially. Downlink CoMP can be further classified into two types based on the transmission scheme: joint transmission (JT) and coordinated beamforming (CB). JT means that multiple eNBs transmit the same data to a UE using different precoding vectors, which can create constructive interference at the UE and increase the signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (SINR). CB means that multiple eNBs transmit different data to different UEs using different beamforming vectors, which can reduce the interference among UEs and increase the SINR.
Enhanced inter-cell interference coordination
Enhanced inter-cell interference coordination (eICIC) is another feature of LTE-Advanced that aims to mitigate the interference caused by heterogeneous networks (HetNets), which are networks that consist of macro cells and small cells (such as pico cells, femto cells, or relay nodes). HetNets can improve the network capacity and coverage by deploying small cells in areas with high traffic demand or poor signal quality. However, HetNets can also introduce severe interference between macro cells and small cells, especially when they operate on the same frequency band.
eICIC can reduce this interference by using various techniques, such as adaptive resource partitioning, power control, cell range expansion, and interference cancellation. Adaptive resource partitioning means that macro cells and small cells allocate different subframes or subchannels for data transmission, thereby avoiding overlapping transmissions on the same resources. Power control means that macro cells and small cells adjust their transmit power levels according to their traffic load and interference situation, thereby reducing unnecessary interference. Cell range expansion means that small cells increase their coverage area by allowing UEs with low SINR from macro cells to connect to them, thereby offloading traffic from macro cells. Interference cancellation means that UEs apply advanced signal processing techniques to cancel out or suppress 71b2f0854b