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Arrays designed for multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) communication systems must provide good performance in terms of information theoretic and microwave theoretic performance measures for a large number of channel scenarios. Consequently, the general MIMO array design problem is challenging. This paper proposes a novel optimization methodology for designing circular patch arrays (CPAs), under a clustered MIMO channel model assumption. Based on the ergodic capacity, it is found that the single-cluster scenario can approximate CPA performance in clustered channels, reducing the number of channel scenarios that need to be considered. Using a new definition of channel spatial correlation that allows for pattern diversity, metrics are derived for evaluating average and outage capacity performance of CPAs, which can be expressed as a function of only the antenna parameters. With this expression, an optimization is formulated and solved numerically for optimizing the parameters of a 2-CPA on a capacity based objective function and microwave theory performance constraints. An example design is given corresponding to a 2-CPA in the 2.4 GHz unlicensed frequency band. Index Terms--MIMO systems, antenna arrays, pattern diversity, microstrip antennas, spatially correlated channels.

New reconfigurable antenna array is demonstrated for multiple input multiple output (MIMO) communication systems that improves link capacity in closely spaced antenna arrays. The antenna system consists of an array of two printed dipoles separated by a distance of a quarter wavelength. Each of the dipoles can be reconfigured in length using PIN diode switches. The switch configuration can be modified in a manner adaptive to changes in the environment. The configuration of switches effects the mutual coupling between the array elements, and subsequently, the radiation pattern of each antenna, leading to different degrees of pattern diversity which can be used to improve link capacity. The PIN diode-based reconfigurable antenna solution is first motivated through a capacity analysis of the antenna in a clustered MIMO channel model. A new definition of spatial correlation coefficient is introduced to include the effects of antenna mismatch and radiation efficiency when quantifying the benefit of pattern diversity. Next, the widespread applicability of the proposed technique is demonstrated, relative to conventional half wavelength printed dipoles, using computational electromagnetic simulation in an outdoor and indoor environment and field measurements in an indoor laboratory environment. It is shown for the 2 x 2 system considered in this paper, that an average improvement of 10% and 8% is achieved in link capacity for a signal to noise ratio (SNR) respectively of 10 dB and 20 dB in an indoor environment compared to a system employing non reconfigurable antenna arrays. Index Terms--Antenna measurements, multiple input multiple output (MIMO) systems, reconfigurable antennas, spatial correlation.

In this paper, a novel transmission technique for the multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) broadcast channel is proposed that allows simultaneous transmission to multiple users with limited feedback from each user. During a training phase, the base station modulates a training sequence on multiple sets of randomly chosen orthogonal beamforming vectors. Each user sends the index of the best beamforming vector and the corresponding signal-to-interfence-plus-noise ratio for that set of orthogonal vectors back to the base station. The base station opportunistically determines the users and corresponding orthogonal vectors that maximize the sum capacity. Based on the capacity expressions, the optimal amount of training to maximize the sum capacity is derived as a function of the system parameters. The main advantage of the proposed system is that it provides throughput gains for the MIMO broadcast channel with a small feedback overhead, and provides these gains even with a small number of active users. Numerical simulations show that a 20% gain in sum capacity is achieved (for a small number of users) over conventional opportunistic space division multiple access, and a 100% gain (for a large number of users) over conventional opportunistic beamforming when the number of transmit antennas is four. Index Terms--Beamforming, multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO), space-division multiple access (SDMA).

This paper considers low-complexity coded multiple-input-multiple-output transmission in Rayleigh channels with correlation between antennas at both the transmitter and receiver. We consider statistical beamforming (SB) and spatial multiplexing (SM) with a zero-forcing receiver. We calculate the link-level capacity of both schemes with bit-interleaved coded modulation and derive accurate closed-form approximations to the bit error rate. We then show how the resulting expressions can be used in an adaptive algorithm to select the best combination of code rate, modulation format, and transmission scheme (SB or SM) in order to maximize throughput. Unlike other mode-switching schemes that require empirical lookup tables, this approach applies to any correlation scenario. Numerical studies are used to demonstrate the performance as a function of signal-to-noise ratio and correlation parameters. Index Terms--Adaptive coding, modulation, multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) communications, spatially correlated channels.

An approximate spatial correlation model for clustered multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) channels is proposed in this paper. The two ingredients for the model are an approximation for uniform linear and circular arrays to avoid numerical integrals and a closed-form expression for the correlation coefficients that is derived for the Laplacian azimuth angle distribution. A new performance metric to compare parametric and nonparametric channel models is proposed and used to show that the proposed model is a good fit to the existing parametric models for low angle spreads (i.e., smaller than 10[degrees]). A computational-complexity analysis shows that the proposed method is a numerically efficient way of generating the spatially correlated MIMO channels. Index Terms--Channel capacity, circular arrays, correlation, linear arrays, multipath channels, multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) systems.

We consider a novel low-complexity adaptive multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) transmission technique. The approach is based on switching between low-complexity transmission schemes, including statistical beamforming, double space-time transmit diversity, and spatial multiplexing, depending on the changing channel statistics, as a practical means of approaching the spatially correlated MIMO channel capacity. We first derive new ergodic capacity expressions for each MIMO transmission scheme in spatially correlated channels. Based on these results, we demonstrate that adaptive switching between MIMO schemes yields significant capacity gains over fixed transmission schemes. We also derive accurate analytical approximations for the optimal signal-to-noise-ratio switching thresholds, which correspond to the crossing-points of the capacity curves. These thresholds are shown to vary, depending on the spatial correlation, and are used to identify key switching parameters. Finally, we propose a practical switching algorithm that is shown to yield significant spectral efficiency improvements over nonadaptive schemes for typical channel scenarios. Index Terms--Adaptive modulation, channel capacity, channel coding, fading channels, MIMO systems.

In this paper, we analyze a multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) array consisting of two circular microstrip antennas, designed to exploit pattern diversity. We analytically derive the spatial correlation coefficients of this array as a function of the mode excited, for realistic clustered MIMO channel models. We compare the performance of the circular patch array (CPA) against an array of two spaced dipoles. In particular, we compute a theoretical tradeoff to predict when the pattern diversity provided by the CPA is more effective than space diversity from the uniform linear array (ULA), based on the eigenvalues of the spatial correlation matrix. Through simulations, we show that CPAs yield better performance or satisfy more restrictive size constraints than ULAs in clustered MIMO channels, depending on the element spacing of the ULA. These results make the CPA an attractive solution for miniaturized MIMO arrays for portable devices or access points. Index Terms--Antenna arrays, diversity methods, microstrip antennas, multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) systems, Rician channels.

Link adaptation is a way to increase data rates in wireless systems by adapting transmission parameters such as the modulation and coding rate. While link adaptation in single antenna systems is now mature, its application to multiple-input multiple-output communication links, presented in several emerging wireless standards, has been challenging. The main reason is that the space-time transmission strategy can also be adjusted in MIMO communication links, introducing a new dimension for adaptation. This means that practical MIMO link adaptation algorithms must also provide a dynamic adaptation between diversity and multiplexing modes of operation. This article reviews a recently proposed framework for adaptive MIMO architectures and shows how to use this framework to reduce adaptive control overhead. We also discuss practical implementation issues. Simulations in an IEEE 802.16e (mobile WiMAX) system illustrate the framework's potential improvements in data rates. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, a novel transmission technique for the multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) broadcast channel is pro- posed that allows simultaneous transmission to multiple users with limited feedback from each user. During a training phase, the base station modulates a training sequence on multiple sets of randomly chosen orthogonal beamforming vectors. Each user sends the index of the best beamforming vector and the corresponding signal-to- interfence-plus-noise ratio for that set of orthogonal vectors back to the base station. The base station opportunistically determines the users and corresponding orthogonal vectors that maximize the sum capacity. Based on the capacity expressions, the optimal amount of training to maximize the sum capacity is derived as a function of the system parameters. The main advantage of the proposed system is that it provides throughput gains for the MIMO broadcast channel with a small feedback overhead, and provides these gains even with a small number of active users. Numerical simulations show that a 20% gain in sum capacity is achieved (for a small number of users) over conventional opportunistic space division multiple access, and a 100% gain (for a large number of users) over conventional opportunistic beamforming when the number of transmit antennas is four. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]