Evaluation of MIMO radio channel characteristics from TDM-switched MIMO channel sounding

• Main Author: Taparugssanagorn, A. (Attaphongse)
• Format: Doctoral Thesis
• Language: English
• Published: University of Oulu 2007
• Subjects: TDM-switched MIMO channel sounding; channel capacity; channel characteristic; channel parameter estimation; phase noise
• Online Access: http://urn.fi/urn:isbn:9789514286506; http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:isbn:9789514286506

Abstract The present dissertation deals with the evaluation of multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) radio channel characteristics from time-division multiplexing (TDM)-switched MIMO channel sounding. The research can be divided into three main areas. First, the impacts of phase noise in TDM-switched MIMO channel sounding on channel capacity are studied. Second, we focus on those impacts on channel parameter estimation using the SAGE algorithm. And in the last part, spatial correlation, channel eigenvalue distribution, and ergodic capacity in realistic environments are analyzed. The rationale behind the first two areas is that most advanced MIMO radio channel sounders employ the TDM technique, which has significant problems from phase noise of the TX and RX phase locked loop (PLL) oscillators causing measurement errors in terms of estimated channel capacity and parameters. We propose statistical models that reproduce the capacity estimates. The effects of the sounding mode (SM), the length of pseudo-random noise (PN) sequence L of the sounding signal, and the system size are disclosed. The distinctive basis is to consider the impact of the actual phase noise in TDM switched MIMO channel sounding, instead of assuming white Gaussian-type phase noise. In a reality, the short-term phase noise component affecting one measurement cycle of a MIMO system plays an important role in the traditional estimators of the radio channel parameters and capacity. We show that the performance impairment is less than that been under the hypothesis of uncorrelated white Gaussian phase-noises samples. The difference is due to the non-vanishing correlation of phase-noise within the measurement cycle. Two approaches to mitigating the impact of phase noise are proposed. The former is the simple and efficient sliding averaging method, where the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) of the channel impulse response can be increased. The latter is the choice of SM and L, which is more thorough. In the second part, two approaches to mitigating its impact on channel parameter estimation using the SAGE algorithm are also discussed. Besides the sliding averaging, which in general can increase the SNR, the new SAGE algorithm based channel parameter estimation based on the improved signal model accounting for the phase noise in the measurement device is proposed. Finally, the channel eigenvalue distribution and ergodic capacity based on complex hypergeometric functions and their asymptotic characteristics are analyzed. It is shown that the derived theoretical expressions closely approximate the simulated results of the measured finite-dimensional MIMO channels. The spatial correlation and the eigenvalue statistics in frequency selective channels for single and dual polarized antennas are investigated. This knowledge is useful when different MIMO and beamforming techniques are applied.