A Practical Approach to Generating First-Order Rician Channel Statistics in a RC plus CATR Chamber at mmWave

This paper explores a novel hybrid configuration integrating a Reverberation Chamber (RC) with a Compact Antenna Test Range (CATR) to achieve a controllable Rician K-factor. The focus is testing directive antennas in the lower FR2 frequency bands (24.25-29.5 GHz) for 5G and beyond wireless applicati...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:IEEE transactions on antennas and propagation 2024-11, p.1-1
Main Authors: Anton Ruiz, A., Hosseinzadegan, S., Kvarnstrand, J., Arvidsson, K., Alayon Glazunov, A.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
5G mobile communication
Antenna accessories
Antenna measurements
Compact Antenna Test Range (CATR)
Directive antennas
Frequency measurement
Horn antennas
Millimeter wave communication
mmWave
Over-the-air (OTA) testing
Reverberation Chamber
Rician channels
Rician K-factor
Testing
Wireless networks
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Summary:This paper explores a novel hybrid configuration integrating a Reverberation Chamber (RC) with a Compact Antenna Test Range (CATR) to achieve a controllable Rician K-factor. The focus is testing directive antennas in the lower FR2 frequency bands (24.25-29.5 GHz) for 5G and beyond wireless applications. The study meticulously evaluates 39 unique configurations, using a stationary horn antenna for consistent reference K-factor characterization, and considers variables like absorbers and CATR polarization. Results demonstrate that the K-factor can be effectively adjusted within the hybrid setup, maintaining substantial margins above the noise level across all configurations. Sample independence is confirmed for at least 600 samples in all cases. The Bootstrap Anderson-Darling goodness-of-fit test verifies that the data align with Rician or Rayleigh distributions. Analysis of total received power, stirred and unstirred power and frequency-dependent modeling reveals that power variables are inversely related to frequency, while the K-factor remains frequency-independent. The hybrid RC-CATR system achieves a wide range of frequency-averaged K-factors from -9.2 dB to 40.8 dB, with an average granularity of 1.3 dB. Notably, configurations using co-polarized CATR signals yield large K-factors, reduced system losses, and improved frequency stability, underscoring the system's efficacy for millimeter-wave over-the-air testing. This research offers a cost-efficient and repeatable method for generating complex Rician fading channels at mmWave frequencies, crucial for the effective OTA testing of advanced wireless devices.
ISSN:0018-926X
1558-2221
DOI:10.1109/TAP.2024.3502904