What would be the most common topology in future 22-30 GHz massive MIMO radio module design? There are two trends now-
1.High gain sub-array antenna or 3D high gain antenna (11-15 dBi) integration with sub-mm transceiver module. This approach will use less number of RF chip but bigger antenna block for each RF chip.
2.Using moderate gain (4-7 dBi) antenna and RF transceiver chip integration. This approach will give better beam control resolution by the cost of more RF chip and antenna compare to first one.
Shifting from the cellular carrier frequencies used presently up toward the mm-Wave band introduces new problems that need careful consideration. Employing higher frequencies (mmWave) results in an increase in freespace path loss. Channel measurements in mmWave, indicate that mmW propagation is quite viable with directional, high gain antennas. Sensitivity to blockage, propagation losses, shadowing, large-scale attenuation of materials and human bodies, and atmospheric absorption are the main challenges in using these frequencies.
To overcome these challenges, high gain antennas will be deployed. Antenna arrays, usually organized by subarrays, are good candidates for the mmW band to compensate for the high path loss in that
band in exchange for design complexity and system cost. High antenna gain with less number of PA (chips) will be more effective in mmWave.
Yes, Anil Kumar - Thanks for your comments. This is also my guess. Still looking for more quantitative publication or researcher comments who might have done study in different scenario like where it seems typical gain (4-6 dBi) is good enough for antenna in mmWave commercial telecommunication service.
I agree with Anil Kumar, however, the second approach (moderate gain antenna) may be more robust against faults and hazardous RF signals.
It depends on the use and application scenarios actually. E.g., if it is targeted for UE design, many things have to be taken into account, not only technically but also commercially. If you take a look at this article: "5G Cellular User Equipment: From Theory to Practical Hardware Design", (https://arxiv.org/pdf/1704.02540.pdf) you will notice some challenges for 5G UE. On the other hand, some famous corporates, according to their published information, are also in favor of sub-array-like ideas for both basestation and user equipment. http://www.telecomtv.com/articles/5g/qualcomm-unveils-5g-nr-mmwave-test-device-and-collaborates-with-nokia-on-testing-15936/
Yiming Huo - Thank you very much for sharing those article. Yes, for user equipment radio design this answer can be different. It can vary also based on what would be the main application area for mmWave communication in user device. If in future it is adopt mainly for indoor communication then is it still require high gain phased array in user equipment?
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