LTE Link Budget

Link Budget, Capacity and

Dimensioning Features
Radio Network Design for Roll-Outs (RNDR)
RL/FL15A
• NPO Global

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RNDR Training Link Budget and
Scope: Radio Planning Process Features

Link Budget Planning Tool Acceptance Testing

− Coverage thresholds – Detailed coverage/throughput – Cluster acceptance
simulations (plots) – From coverage /
calculation
– Site database throughput targets
− Dimensioning is out of
– PCI, neighbour planning
the scope of this definition (optional)
training

Planning Parameters Plan Creation Mobility Management

– Site specific radio – Based on radio/HW – Mobility types
planning inputs (parameters) – Mobility thresholds
parameters – (Transport parameters (parameters)
– Areas: PCI, out of scope) – Layering Strategies
PRACH, UL DM – Tools/methods used in
RS network plan creation

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Table of Contents

• LTE Link Budget

• Selected Details of Link Budget
• Small Cell Specifics
• LB for Control Channels
• Capacity
• How to Improve Link Budget?
• Features FL / TL16
• Coverage Criteria (RSRP, RSRQ, SINR)

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 LTE Link Budget

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Useful Links
- Access to the RAN_DIM (10.6 is the latest version) tool and the associated documentation:
• https://sharenet-ims.inside.nokiasiemensnetworks.com/Open/318048181

- Dimensioning Guidelines:
• https://sharenet-ims.inside.nokiasiemensnetworks.com/Open/433598230

- Dimensioning Tool underlying LTE parameters from link and system level simulations:
• Parameter tables containing MCS thresholds, HARQ gains, capacity gains, etc.
• https://sharenet-ims.inside.nokiasiemensnetworks.com/Open/434397349

- NetEng Training Information (go to release RL16 or previous and then into specific feature file)
• https://sharenet-ims.int.net.nokia.com/Open/524954747

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 Link Budget Module Overview
- Link Budget is calculated based on service throughput
defined by the user
• Cell range also considers a given service or cell edge criteria Coverage
- Link Level (LL) simulations, 4GMax - EIRP
- RX sensitivity
• Define a SINR for each MCS - Carrier frequency
- Other margins (i.e. body loss,
- eNB / UE height
- System Level (SL) simulations, MoRSE gains, interference margin)
- Clutter specific
• To calculate the interference margin corrections
Maximum Allowable Path - Shadowing std.
- There is possible to calculate indoor Link Budget by the Loss deviation
inclusion of 3 different indoor propagation models:
- WINNER A1 Propagation
- COST231 Multi-Wall Propagation models: macro and
-
indoor
ITU-R, P1238
Coverage reliability
- More information about indoor planning can be found in:
https://sharenet-ims.inside.nokiasiemensnetworks.com/Overview/D530 Cell range
780911
Site count
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 Typical LTE Link Budget

20W at RF Module (or RRH) antenna connector and UE Power Class

3 (23±2dBm).
3dB because of having two transmit antennas at eNB transmitting
same to cell-edge UE.
System overhead assuming all PHY channels other than
PDSCH/PUSCH (compliant with 3GPP Release 8).
MCS/TBS configuration according to 3GPP Release 8; optimized
for cell-edge UE.
OL MIMO (no PMI) in SFBC mode at cell-edge (relevant for link
budget considerations). Spatial multiplexing for capacity estimation.

MRC at eNB receiver.

Channel awareness in DL, possibility of Interference Awareness in

UL or Channel Awareness in UL.
Transmit diversity (SFBC) gain is included in simulated SINR
requirements considering number of Tx/Rx antennas and channel
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For internal use
~2GHz).
Typical LTE Link Budget Typical LTE link budget is usually UL limited.
Possible improvements are:
System Overhead DL UL
Total number of PRBs per TTI 50.00
• 4Rx diversity (~3..4.5 dB over 2Rx),
Cyclic prefix Normal • TTI Bundling (~9..11dB over “BLER10%”
Total system overhead [%] 29.23% 23.37% dimensioning for AMR12.2),
Modulation and coding scheme (Optimized) - 5_QPSK
Modulation and coding scheme (User defined) 9_QPSK - • IRC (depending on interference
Service Type Data characteristic),
Cell Edge User Thr [kbps] 1024.00 384.00
Residual BLER / Number of Transmissions rBLER=10% (1Tr) rBLER=10% (1Tr)
• Channel awareness.
Number of PRBs per User 8.00 5.00
Channel Usage per TTI [%] 16.00% 10.00%
Transport Block Size for PDSCH/PUSCH 1256.00 424.00
Effective Coding Rate 0.66 0.32 Downlink can be balanced in order not to
Channel DL UL “overshoot” UL MAPL for this link budget 
Channel Model Enhanced Pedestrian A 5 Hz
Antenna configuration 2Tx-2Rx 1Tx-2Rx setting higher MCS leads to fewer PRBs per UE
Tx/Rx Algorithm at eNB CL TxDiv (with PMI) MRC and possibly more scheduled UEs per TTI.
Frequency scheduler Channel aware Channel aware
Number of users per TTI 6.00 9.00
Frequency scheduling gain [dB] 3.30 2.00
Required SINR @ BLER10% [reference] [dB] 4.59 0.99
Interference Margin [Formula/Simulation] [dB] 3.63 1.81
Not the lowest MCS are selected:
Number of Received Subcarriers [dB] 27.78 17.78 • DL MCS intentionally increased to balance
Thermal Noise Density [dBm/Hz] -173.93 the links,
Subcarrier Bandwidth [kHz] 15.00
Noise Power per Subcarrier [dBm] -132.17 • UL MCS chosen by optimizing required
Receiver Sensitivity [dBm] -96.88 -112.91 SINR and power density on PUSCH.
Maximum Allowable Path Loss(clutter not considered) [dB] 157 153
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 Impact of cell-edge throughput

UL Link Budget is clearly determined by the

amount of allocated resources (due to sharing
UPLINK the Tx power among allocated subcarriers).

DOWNLINK

DL Link Budget is less impacted by

throughput requirement (especially in range
of throughput<2Mbps).

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 Selected Details of Link Budget

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Link Budget Module Capacity
Cell Edge User Throughput (kbps)

• Target throughput requirement to be achieved at the cell edge; minimum single UE throughput requirement.
Determines the service that can be provided at the cell border.
• It can limit the MCS to be used if the required cell edge user throughput is higher than the Max MCS
Throughput
• Normally customer requirement
• Tool automatically updates the MCS each time a different cell edge user throughput value is entered.

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Link Budget Module
BLER & HARQ

• Defines the number of HARQ transmissions and

a residual BLER after the last transmission
– Recommended value (data): 10% at 1st
transmission because of the nature of link
adaptation
– Recommended value (VoIP): 1% after the
4th transmission

• Tool also considers the possibility of BLER 1% and 2% at 2 nd, 3rd and 4th transmissions but its use
is only recommended in particular cases not strictly related to an RFQ dimensioning (e.g.
comparison between LTE and GSM/UMTS link budget on lower frequency bands or to show the
potential of HARQ gain)

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Link Budget Module
Channel

Required SINR @ BLER10%

- Value comes from system level simulations
(SINR tables in the Parameters Sheet)
- Values is for 10% BLER after 1st
Transmission
- In order to get the required SINR,
the following inputs must be determined:
- Modulation and Coding Scheme
- Number of resource blocks
- Antenna scheme
- Channel model

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Link Budget Module
Channel

Cell Load (%)

- Cell load represents the resource utilization in terms of RBs
- It refers to neighbour cells: no information about own cell load is considered in LiBu as intra-cell
interference is not taken into account
- Affects the Interference Margin (IM)
• High neighbour cell load increases the IM that in terms reduces the MAPL
- Affects also the cell capacity as cell load is related to the resource utilization and to the inter-cell
interference level
- Recommended value: 50%
- Customer may provide this value
- UL and DL cell load can have different values

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Interference Margin (IM)

• Relation between signals received with and without interference

- DL: IM is defined by analytical methods (formula below)
- UL: value is taken from simulations due to non-deterministic user’s distribution
- Tool offers additional possibility of entering user defined values for DL and UL
- The DL Interference Margin is defined as -10 LOG(1 – Load) where load is defined by:
Req.SINR at Cell Edge Max. SINR at Cell Edge

Load  10 10
 Cell Load  10 10

• From the formula above it shall be noted that

Interference Margin is a function of required SINR,
Cell Load and Maximum SINR at cell edge

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 Link Budget Module
Channel
Receiver Sensitivity [dBm]
• Gives and indication of receiver’s ability for detection of low level signals
Single RB bandwidth

S Rx  174dBm / Hz  10  log(15kHz  12# RB)  NF  SINR

Receiver bandwidth

Noise power
Maximum allowed pathloss [dB]
• Maximum allowable attenuation of the radio wave traversing the air interface
• Excludes clutter data (e.g. penetration looses, propagation data)
– Tx EIRP – Rx Sensitivity + Rx Ant. Gain + Additional Gains - Interference Margin - Body Losses

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 Small Cells Specifics

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Small Cells

• Small Cell calculations can be activated in the Area configuration tab using Small Cells parameter

• available options are:

- Flexi Zone Micro in LTE
- Flexi Lite in 3G
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Small Cells

• Small Cells activation causes that the most important parameters can be edited for both Macro and Small Cell
layers (also on the further tabs). Coverage and throughput calculations are performed separately as well

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Coverage dimensioning
Interference Margin estimation – impact of Macro on Small Cells
RAN Dim
• In case of co-channel deployment scenarios there should be In case of intra-band (co-channel) deployments user
included additional interference from Macro sites that impacts Small have to include additional 2.5 dB interference in the
Small Cell layer calculations adjusting Interference
Cell layer coverage calculations Margin [User defined] parameter accordingly:
• Interference rise depends on the Small Cell transmit power

3.5
Recommended
Additional interference [dB]

To indicate such need there is displayed warning

3.0 3.2
message in the hints window:
2.5
2.5
2.0
2.0
1.5

1.0

0.5 Those additional interference are automatically

included in the calculations when using conservative
0.0 formulas.
FZM 250mW + 250mW FZM 1W x 1W FZM 5W + 5W

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Coverage dimensioning
Interference Margin estimation – impact of Small Cells on Macro
RAN Dim
• In case of co-channel deployment scenarios there should be
included additional interference from Small Cell sites that impacts In case of intra-band (co-channel) deployments user
Macro layer coverage calculations have to include additional 1.5 dB interference in the
Macro layer calculations adjusting Interference
Margin [User defined] parameter accordingly:
• Interference rise depends on the Small Cell transmit power and the
number of Small Cells deployed in Macro cell

7.0 FZM 250mW + 250mW FZM 1W + 1W FZM 5W + 5W

To indicate such need there is displayed warning
Additional Interference [dB]

6.0 message in the hints window:

5.0

4.0

3.0 Recommended

2.0

1.0
Those additional interference are automatically
0.0 included in the calculations when using conservative
1 2 4 7 10 formulas.
Number of Small Cells per Macro cell

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 Control Channels

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Control channels
LTE control channels are robust enough so that they are not likely to limit the coverage
LTE CCH Link Budget (20MHz)
• Enhanced Pedestrian A 5Hz (EPA05)
• Equipment parameters:
– Tx Power: eNB 2x60W / UE 24 dBm
– Antenna Gain: eNB 18 dBi / UE 0 dBi
– Feeder Loss: DL 0.5 dB / UL 0.5 dB
– Noise Figure: eNB 2.0 dB / UE 7 dB
• Other features:
– eNB: 2 Tx antennas, 2 Rx antennas (MRC)
– UE: 1 Tx antenna, 2 Rx antennas (MRC)
– HARQ for RACH Msg3 (sent on PUSCH)
• Additional margins:
– Interference margin 3dB for all except from RACH Msg3 (1dB)
– Gain against shadowing 0dB

- Robust modulation schemes (BPSK, QPSK) and additional mechanisms improving the robustness (e.g.
aggregation levels at PDCCH) are applied at control channels
- Typical FDD LTE coverage is also achieved by control channels
- In particular scenarios coverage of control channels may differ from the presented numbers because of many
factors impacting the required SINR (i.e. PUCCH format, PRACH preamble format, Msg3 payload size, PDCCH
aggregation, etc.)
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 Capacity

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 Spectral efficiency (bps/Hz) LTE SIMO achieves ~1.3 bps/Hz downlink
and 0.7 bps/Hz uplink
- Limited scheduling efficiency for smaller channel
bandwidth leads to slight performance degradation Downlink, SIMO, full buffer
• Fewer resources  less frequency diversity
- Uplink often requires optimization of Power Control
parameters (P0, alpha)
• PC parameters determine a trade-off between cell
throughput and cell-edge data rates
- Presented results are:
• Optimistic when considering regular hexagonal layout,
Uplink, SIMO, full buffer
• Pessimistic when considering 100% load in all cells
(maximum interference)
- Capacity is thoroughly investigated in the Nokia
dimensioning tool
• Average cell throughput is estimated based on the link
budget output (inter site distance)

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 Adaptive MIMO Mode Control
Flexi switches between single and dual stream depending on UE radio condition

UE reporting is configured by the

CQI Mode.
• CQI: Channel Quality Indicator
Poor SINR Good / very good
SINR
(0..15; step=1)
• RI: Rank Indicator (1,2)
• PMI: Precoding Matrix Indicator
Matter of parameterization
(UE-suggested precoding vector for
closed loop MIMO)
SM
TX div.

SINR distribution strictly depends on the site grid (Site-to-Site distance) and determines MIMO
performance in terms of overall capacity gain. MIMO Mode Control is based on CQI/RI reports.
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 DL capacity gain with respect to 1x2 SIMO

LTE MIMO multiplies user data rates

and improves average cell throughput
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 Achieving a more competitive Link Budget

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 Release independent
How to achieve more competitive Link Budget?
• Interference margin
• Default: formula for DL (10xlog10(1+load^(SINR/C/I)), simulation curve for UL
• Aggressive: 1dB
• LTE air interface is not impacted by own-cell interference (as it is with WCDMA). Perfect intra-cell orthogonality can be assumed for
LTE. Thus one can claim the interference margin is lower compared to 3G (WCDMA/HSPA). Simple 3G formula says
10xlog10(1+50%)=3dB where 50% stands for the cell load
• In rural scenarios (extended coverage, extreme ISD) could be even 0dB claiming that there is no impact from inter-cell interference
• Very conservative: 5..8dB

3G  3dB @50% load

LTE  10xlog10(1+0.5^3)
LTE  10xlog10(1+0.5^3.3)
This plot is not backed with any simulation. It shall give you general view
on possible 3G vs. LTE relation for aggressive dimensioning.
DO NOT SHARE WITH CUSTOMERS!
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Coverage & Capacity & KPI Impacts of Features

• Web based tool suitable for feature consideration against KPI performance
• https://workspaces.emea.nsn-net.net/sites/PMcorrelations/Lists/Features%20vs%20Performance/TopFeatures.aspx

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Features FL/TL 16

‒ LTE2007 Inter eNode B carrier aggregation -> PBGT F

‒ LTE2180 TDD-FDD downlink carrier aggregation 2CC -> PBGT F,T
‒ LTE2316 3CC TDD-FDD downlink carrier aggregation I -> PBGT F,T
‒ LTE2233 N out of M carrier aggregation -> PBGT F,T
‒ LTE2105 TDD UL intra-band carrier aggregation - 2 CC -> PBGT F,T
‒ LTE1987 4x4 DL SU MIMO with TM9 -> PBGT F,T
‒ LTE2068 8x4 DL SU MIMO with TM9 -> PBGT T
‒ LTE44 Uplink 64 QAM -> PBGT F,T (RL45)

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 LTE2007 Inter eNode B carrier aggregation -> PBGT F

Full & the latest version at https://

sharenet-ims.int.net.nokia.com/Overview/D540976298

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Introduction
Inter-eNB FDD CA for 3 macro eNodeBs

LTE2007 enhances the functionality introduced with legacy 2CC or 3CC Carrier
feature - LTE2305 Inter-eNB DL CA for 2 Macro eNBs Aggregation
• Besides supporting inter-eNB CA for 2 eNBs, it enables DL Carrier

(up to 3 co-located eNBs)

eNB 1
Aggregation between three co-located eNBs
- It increases flexibility in configuration for DL Carrier Agrregation ie r 1
o ne n t C a rr
C omp
- Due to synchronization and delay requirements all three eNBs have to be co- eNB 2

CA CLUSTER
located
er 2
• In case of inter-eNB CA for 3 eNBs failure, Inter-eNB CA for 2 eNBs is still C a rri
o ne nt
C omp
possible eNB 3

ie r 3
o ne n t C a rr
Please note that with LTE2007 there is a possibility to define inter-eNodeB CA for 2 eNBs, C omp
SRIO
because LTE2007 replaces LTE2305 from FL16 onwards. For basic information about link
LTE2007 functionality please refer to NEI material for LTE2305 Sync link

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Introduction
Inter-eNB FDD DL Carrier Aggregation evolution
FL15A LTE2305 Inter-eNB DL CA for 2
FL16 LTE2007 Inter-eNB DL CA (2CC/3CC)
Macro eNBs (2CC/3CC)

CA CLUSTER eNB 1
CA CLUSTER eNB 1 (Co-located eNBs)
(Co-located eNBs)

r 1
Carrie **
onent

SRIO*
Comp

SRIO*
1
rrier
nt Ca

SYNC**
one
Comp eNB 2
extension
r 2
Carrie
eNB 2 onent
Comp
eNB 3
r2
Carrie
onent
Comp r3
Carrie ier 3
mponent Carr
C o onent
Comp

*Serial Rapid IO link

**Synchronization connectivity
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 LTE2180TDD-FDD downlink carrier aggregation 2CC -> PBGT F,T
LTE23163CC TDD-FDD downlink carrier aggregation I -> PBGT F,T

Full & the latest version at https://

sharenet-ims.int.net.nokia.com/Overview/D537152310
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Introduction
LTE2180 FDD-TDD DL Carrier Aggregation 2CC (F+T)
LTE2316 FDD-TDD DL Carrier Aggregation 3CC (F+2T)

• LTE2180 FDD-TDD DL Carrier Aggregation

2CC (F+T) and LTE2316 FDD-TDD DL
Carrier Aggregation 3CC (F+2T) are the first UL
B R,
features in Nokia portfolio allowing for L no
n -G
,D R
aggregation of component carriers working in BR GB
G o n-
DL Ln BR
D -G
FDD and TDD duplex modes in terms of DL
no
n

downlink Carrier Aggregation

• Primary aim of the feature is to boost mean FDD-TDD
CA capable UE F DD C
arrier
FDD eNB

and peak downlink user throughput via 2

ar r i e r
sending user data simultaneously over two or TDD C TDD eNB
3
ar r i e r
three component carriers TDD C

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Introduction
LTE2180 FDD-TDD DL Carrier Aggregation 2CC (F+T)
LTE2316 FDD-TDD DL Carrier Aggregation 3CC (F+2T)

• In LTE2180/2316 features it is always an FDD cell

that plays a role of Primary Cell (PCell)
- TDD cell(s) can play a role of Secondary Cell(s) only in
FDD carrier TDD carriers
FDD-TDD scenarios (but still can play a role of PCell in
TDD only CA scenarios) DL DL DL

domain
UL DL

Time
- There is no support of 3CC scenario with FDD PCell and PCell SCell
FDD and TDD SCells (2F+T) – it will be introduced to PCell SCell1+SCell2
the product in LTE2337 in FL/TL16A
SCell PCell
- There is no support for TDD-FDD CA with TDD PCell –
it will be introduced in the future by LTE2472 UL UL UL
Frequency domain
• Only non-GBR data could be sent via SCell(s)
• All cells handling CA UEs can serve simultaneously
also regular, non-CA UEs
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Introduction
LTE2180 FDD-TDD DL Carrier Aggregation 2CC (F+T)
LTE2316 FDD-TDD DL Carrier Aggregation 3CC (F+2T)

• Both LTE2180 FDD-TDD DL Carrier Aggregation 2CC (F+T) and LTE2316 FDD-TDD DL
Carrier Aggregation 3CC (F+2T) are based on legacy CA solutions from FDD and TDD:
- LTE1089/1332 DL Carrier Aggregation 2CC 40 MHz
- LTE1558/1830 TDD DL Carrier Aggregation 2CC 40 MHz
- LTE1804 DL Carrier Aggregation 3CC 60 MHz
- LTE1836 TDD DL Carrier Aggregation 3CC 60 MHz
- LTE2305 Inter-eNB CA for two Macro eNBs
- LTE2244 Inter-eNB TDD Carrier Aggregation

• Only small adjustments in existing RRM algorithms were needed to allow for FDD-TDD Carrier
Aggregation
• SCell configuration/de-configuration and activation/deactivation procedures from legacy solutions
are fully re-used in FDD-TDD DL CA
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Introduction
LTE2180 FDD-TDD DL Carrier Aggregation 2CC (F+T)
LTE2316 FDD-TDD DL Carrier Aggregation 3CC (F+2T)

• As FDD and TDD carriers cannot be configured within 2CC or 3CC FDD-TDD Carrier
Aggregation
single eNB it is necessary to assure direct cooperation of
dedicated FDD and TDD eNBs to allow for FDD-TDD
downlink Carrier Aggregation eNB 1

• Aggregating FDD and TDD cells that are hosted by

SRIO, synchronization
separate System Modules significantly increases arrier
F DD C
flexibility in Carrier Aggregation configuration in 2CCs
and 3CCs scenarios
• Due to synchronization and delay requirements both
2
eNBs have to be co-located TDD C
ar r i e r
3 eNB 2
ar r i e r
TDD C

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 LTE2233N out of M carrier aggregation -> PBGT F,T

Full & the latest version at https://

sharenet-ims.int.net.nokia.com/Overview/D543540370

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Introduction
LTE2233 N-out-of-M downlink carrier aggregation

• The aim of Carrier Aggregation (CA) features is to

boost mean and peak user throughput by sending
the user data simultaneously over two or three GB
R,
U L

n-
carriers R,
DL
no
BR
GB n-G
DL L no BR
D -G
non
DL

1
arrier
• LTE2233 N-out-of-M downlink carrier CA configured UE Comp
onent
C
rrier 2
e nt C a
aggregation is the next feature which extends the Com p on
rrier 3
e nt C a
Carrier Aggregation functionality Com p on

41 © Nokia Solutions and Networks 2016 Nokia Internal Use

Introduction
LTE2233 N-out-of-M downlink Carrier Aggregation
• LTE2233 feature enhances the functionality of legacy CA features (including 2CC, 3CC, TDD,
FDD) by extension of the cell load based SCell selection functionality introduced in RL70 by
LTE1562 Carrier aggregation for multi-carrier eNodeBs
• The LTE2233 feature selects one or two SCell(s) to be configured at the UE among a higher
number of SCell candidates
- there can be up to 5 SCell candidates deployed on up to 5 frequency layers in TDD
- there can be up to 12 SCell candidates deployed on up to 6 frequency layers in FDD
- the choice of the SCell bases on SCell load
• the operator may also influence the relative priority of the SCell candidate frequency layer by biasing the load based
SCell selection

Selecting N out of M means either 1 or 2 SCells = N

among up to M (12 in FDD or 5 in TDD) SCells candidates per PCell may be configured

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Introduction
Features related to N-out-of-M downlink Carrier Aggregation

LTE1089 DL CA 20 MHz LTE1558 TD DL CA LTE1562 Carrier LTE2006 Flexible

LTE1332 DL CA 40 MHz 40MHz aggregation for multi- SCell selection
LTE1803 DL 3CC 40 LTE1838 TDD DL Inter- carrier eNBs
MHz band CA 40 MHz
LTE1804 DL 3CC 60 LTE1836 TDD DL CA This feature allows to find a Possibility to change a serving
MHz 60MHz lower loaded SCell (among SCell to another SCell with
LTE2233 feature is an LTE2233 feature is an two candidates) to be better RSRP still within the
extension to FDD Carrier extension to TDD Carrier configured for the given UE same PCell area has been
Aggregation features and Aggregation features and basing on the current load introduced with LTE2006
enhances their functionality enhances their functionality metric

LTE2233 is based on the legacy Carrier

Aggregation features so it is recommended to get a
knowledge about them as a prerequisite

since RL50 since RL45TD RL70/TL15A FL15A/TL16

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Introduction
LTE2233 N-out-of-M downlink Carrier Aggregation
M – Defined*) SCell candidate

PCell Frequency N – SCells selected among the

Layer N=2, M=5 defined SCell candidates (M)
• There can be up to 5 (M=5)
SCell candidates per PCell SCell Frequency A6 measurement based
Layer 1
best SCell selection
among up to 5 frequency SCell Frequency
layers in TDD Layer 2 Introduced by LTE2233:

LTE1562 extended
SCell Frequency Cell-load based selection of the
Layer 3 LTE2006
SCell candidate extended to 5
SCell Frequency frequency layers
Layer 4 Operator may influence on cell-
load based selection towards
TDD mode SCell Frequency the preferred frequency layers
Layer 5

1 2 3
4 5
Number of SCell candidates per frequency layer

*)
In the meaning of CAREL object configuration

44 © Nokia Solutions and Networks 2016 Nokia Internal Use

Introduction
LTE2233 N-out-of-M downlink Carrier Aggregation
M – Defined*) SCell candidate

PCell Frequency N – SCells selected among the

Layer N=2, M=12 defined SCell candidates (M)
• There can be up to 12
SCell Frequency A6 measurement based
(M=12) SCell candidates Layer 1 LTE2006
best SCell selection
per PCell among up to 6 SCell Frequency
frequency layers in FDD Layer 2
LTE2006 Introduced by LTE2233:

LTE1562 extended
SCell Frequency
Layer 3 LTE2006 Cell-load based selection of the
SCell candidate extended to 6
SCell Frequency frequency layers
Layer 4 LTE2006 Operator may influence on cell-
FDD mode SCell Frequency
load based selection towards
the preferred frequency layers
Layer 5

SCell Frequency
Layer 6

1 2 3
4 5 6
Number of SCell candidates per frequency layer
*)
In the meaning of CAREL object configuration

45 © Nokia Solutions and Networks 2016 Nokia Internal Use

Technical Details
LTE2233 N-out-of-M downlink carrier aggregation
Adding SCell(s) procedure starts after the following
events: B R, UL
DL non-G
DL GBR,
- Initial Context Setup BR
DL non-G
- Incoming Handover DL non-G
B R

- RRC Connection Reestablishment

CA
configured
Activation of SCell(s) is triggered when: UE
rrier 1
- n ent Ca
Carrier Aggregation capable UEs in PCell increases their Compo
PCell 2
throughput demand arrier
Comp onent C
SCell r 3
- eNB detects that the buffers of those CA capable UEs cannot be nent Carrie
Compo
drained by already serving cells (PCell only or PCell + SCell) SCell

• One or two SCells from up to 12 SCells candidates across up to 6 frequency layers in FDD
• One or two SCells from up to 5 SCells candidates across up to 5 frequency layers in TDD

46 © Nokia Solutions and Networks 2016 Nokia Internal Use

Technical Details
Impact on a SCell load metric Defined SCell candidate
(pointed by CAREL object)
The sFreqPrio parameter is introduced with LTE2233 and impacts the PCell
load-based SCell selection among candidates at different frequencies SCell f1
by biasing the Normalized Load Compare Value (NLCV) SCell f2
- NLCV is a load metric (introduced in LTE1562) taking into account: SCell f3
The NLCV based SCell
selection among the
• average PDCCH load SCell f4 frequency layers can be
• average PDSCH non-GBR load influenced by sFreqPrio
SCell f5
• potential Cell Resource Group (CRG) shares SCell 12
SCell f6 *) SCell 1
The resulting NLCV_original modified by the sFreqPrio *)
No more than 5 SCell 1 2 3 4
is calculated according to the following formula: candidates among 5 5 6
frequency layers
available in TDD SCells per frequency layer

The above equation translates the sFreqPrio value range of 1..10 into
multiplication of NLCV_original by 1.0 ... 1.9

sFreqPrio: (1…10) The smaller value the higher SCell selection priority

47 © Nokia Solutions and Networks 2016 Nokia Internal Use

Technical Details
Load dependent choice of the SCell Defined SCell candidate
(pointed by CAREL object)
The SCell selection in LTE2233 is expanded to allow SCell PCell
candidates operating on up to 6 frequency layers (up to 5 in TDD) SCell f1
and is performed by Radio Admission Control (RAC) SCell f2
- RAC is called to add either one SCell or two SCells (2CC or 3CC) SCell f3
- two SCells can be added in one shot or stepwise SCell f4 SCell candidates list
The SCell candidates are grouped in a lists per each frequency layer. per frequency f2
SCell f5
The SCell candidate in a list (at a frequency) is the one with highest SCell f6*)
priority (i.e. with the lower CAREL:scellPrio parameter value) *)
No more than 5 SCell 1 2 3 4
admitted by RAC candidates among 5
frequency layers
5 6
available in TDD SCells per frequency layer
- SCell frequency layers not supported by the UE are not considered
- list may consists of the one SCell and sorting is obsolete
- barred or reserved SCell candidates are sorted out

CAREL:scellPrio The smaller value the higher SCell ordering priority

48 © Nokia Solutions and Networks 2016 Nokia Internal Use

Benefits and Gains
LTE2233 N-out-of-M downlink Carrier Aggregation

Higher number of UEs with SCells added per eNB can be achieved
- probability that an UE capability matches at least one CA band combination configured in the eNB
(consisting of three or more SCell frequency layers) is expected to be higher than before activating the
LTE2233 feature
- the higher probability of CA functionality activation in UEs the higher end user DL non-GBR throughput
Operator is allowed to bias the load based SCell selection towards a selected SCell
candidate frequency layers, including TDD
- there is a possibility to influence a priority of all the SCell candidates under the eNB and also to provide a
priority settings per a certain SCell candidate frequency layer (e.g. towards a lower frequency bands)
- this is possible to prioritize FDD or TDD SCells candidates by setting a priorities of FDD or TDD specific
frequency layers (an inter FDD-TDD operability features are required)

49 © Nokia Solutions and Networks 2016 Nokia Internal Use

 LTE2105TDD UL intra-band carrier aggregation - 2 CC -> PBGT F,T

Full & the latest version at https://

sharenet-ims.int.net.nokia.com/Overview/D540443471

50 © Nokia 2014 - NPO GS

For internal use
 TD-LTE 16 back
TDD Uplink intra band carrier aggregation - 2CC

upcoming release
LTE2105
Boosting the uplink peak rates

• Extend uplink bandwidth up to 40MHz with two intra band

contiguous carriers DL SCC

• Bandwidth combination: UL SCC

- 20+10/20Mhz DL PCC
• 3GPP defined band combinations UL PCC
- Band38 + band38 PCC – primary component carrier
SCC – secondary component carrier
- Band39 + band39
- Band40 + band40
- Band41 + band41
- Band42 + band42

51 © Nokia Solutions and Networks 2015 D505690737

Carrier Aggregation Impact on dimensioning and PBGT

Cell Range stays. However as CA combine different bands, the DL range is limited by
the layer of the best propagation. Total cell range might stay as it is limited by the UL
(without CA effects) usually.

Cell capacity per spectrum unit –> stays more less. The CA allows to increase user
throughput of UE, but CA consume more spectrum as well. Main advantage of CA is in
seamless use of piece vise spectrum or big junk of spectrum. CA as kind of scheduling
feature is faster (& more safe against drops) compare to handover.

52 © Nokia Solutions and Networks 2015

 LTE1987 4x4 DL SU MIMO with TM9 -> PBGT F,T

Full & the latest version at https://

sharenet-ims.int.net.nokia.com/Overview/D538604783

53 © Nokia 2014 - NPO GS

For internal use
Introduction
LTE1987

• LTE1987 Downlink adaptive closed loop SU MIMO (4x4)

extends the current MIMO functionality of LTE568 (DL
adaptive CL MIMO 4x2) and LTE569 (DL adaptive CL MIMO
4x4) to support up to 4 downlink spatial multiplexing layers in
LTE FDD and TDD using transmission modes 4
and 9
• LTE568 MIMO 4x2 and LTE569 MIMO 4x4 with TM4 are
integrated in this feature
• Doubled DL peak throughput comparing to 4x2 MIMO
• 4x4 MIMO maximum peak throughput is only achieved in very
good SINR conditions
• Interworking with Carrier Aggregation is limited. 4x4 MIMO
capable UEs will not use CA and 4x4 MIMO at the same time
• The first 4x4 MIMO FDD feature

54 © Nokia Solutions and Networks 2014

For internal use
Introduction
Before & after

LTE568 & LTE569 LTE1987

• LTE568 supports MIMO 4x2 with TM4 for all • MIMO 4x4 with TM9 for Release≥10, Cat.6 and
Release 8 Cat≥2 UEs, TDD and FDD Cat.7 is supported
• LTE569 supports MIMO 4x4 with TM4 for all • MIMO 4x4 with TM4 for all Cat. 5 and Cat.8
Cat.5 and Cat.8 UEs, only in TDD UEs is supported

TDD and FDD

4
( 2 4x 4 ( 2x x 4
x
Pe MI Pe MIM
4 x2

ak

4 x2
ak M Ra O
Ra O t e)
MI

MI
te Cat. 6|7 Rel.≥10 (TM9)
)
MO

MO
Cat. 5|8 (TM4)
Cat. 5|8 (TM4, TDD only)
Legacy UE (2RX) Legacy UE (2RX)

55 © Nokia Solutions and Networks 2014

For internal use
Technical Details
Transmission mode 9

LTE1987 uses Transmission Mode 9 as additional transmission mode based on the following
functionality:
• Closed Loop MIMO feedback in terms of CQI (Channel Quality
DL Indicator), RI (Rank Indicator) and PMI (Precoding Matrix
CQI
PMI feedback Indicator) channel state information reports are used
Rank • Downlink Control Information (DCI) format 2C
• Channel State Information Reference Signal (CSI-RS) transmitted
using antenna ports 15, 16, 17, 18
DM-RS

CSI-RS

• Demodulation Reference Signal (DM-RS) transmitted using

CRS

antenna ports 7, 8, 9, 10
• Support of Channel State Information (CSI) reporting modes 1-1,
2-1, 2-2, 3-1
MCS • Dynamic activation/deactivation of CSI-RS
UL Rank • Scheduling of non-TM9 capable and TM9 capable UEs during
feedback CSI-RS sub-frames
56 © Nokia Solutions and Networks 2014
For internal use
Technical Details
PDSCH, DM-RS and CSI-RS

In Transmission Mode 9 Additional Reference Signals are mapped subsequently:

• CSI Reference Symbols (CSI-RS) for four antennas (antenna ports 15,16,17,18)
• UE specific Demodulation Reference Signals (DM-RS) with antenna ports 7,8,9 and 10 to support up to 4
layers spatial multiplexing
ant. port 15 (CSI-RS)
4x2 ant. port 15 (CSI-RS)
ant. port 7
MIM + phys. ant. a PDSCH, DM-RS + phys. ant. a
O ant. port 16 (CSI-RS)
ant. port 7
ant. port 16 (CSI-RS) ant. port 8
PDSCH, DM-RS + phys. ant. b
+ phys. ant. b PDSCH, DM-RS
ant. port 17 (CSI-RS)
ant. port 17 (CSI-RS) ant. port 9
PDSCH, DM-RS + phys. ant. c
+ phys. ant. c
ant. port 8
PDSCH, DM-RS ant. port 18 (CSI-RS) ant. port 10 ant. port 18 (CSI-RS) 4x4
PDSCH, DM-RS + phys. ant. d
MIM
+ phys. ant. d
58
For internal use
© Nokia Solutions and Networks 2014 O
Benefits and Gains
Link Level Simulation Results
• Double peak throughput 4x4 MIMO with TM4 compared to 4x2
MIMO with TM4
• 80% peak throughput increase 4x4 MIMO with TM9 compared to 4x2
MIMO with TM9
• 40% worse peak throughput of 4x4 MIMO with TM9 vs. TM4
• TM9 4x2 MIMO performance degradation vs. TM4 due to DMRS
overhead
• Maximum L1 peak throughput = 244.216 Mbit/s (FDD 20 MHz)

Performance of 4x4 MIMO TM9 is degraded compared to TM4 due to

system overhead introduced by DMRS.
Still it is possible to achieve peak throughput improvement with 4x4
MIMO with TM9 over 4x2 MIMO with TM4. 150%

Peak throughputs, TDD, System bandwidth: 20 MHz, *Throughput [Mbps]

TM9* Th-put Gain TM4* Th-put Gain TM4/TM9 100%

1 layer 28.0 34.3 1.23

2 layers 56.0 2.0 68.5 2.0 1.23
3 layers 75.0 2.7 102.8 3.0 1.34
59 © Nokia Solutions and Networks 2014
4 layers 101.0 3.6 137.7
Nokia Internal Use
4.0 1.36
Source:Source: DL MMO 4x4 with TM4.pptx
https://sharenet-ims.int.net.nokia.com/Open/D535684229
 LTE2068 8x4 DL SU MIMO with TM9

Full & the latest version at https://

sharenet-ims.int.net.nokia.com/Overview/D538623235

60 © Nokia 2014 - NPO GS

For internal use
Introduction
LTE2068

LTE2068 extends the current MIMO functionality of the LTE1543 Uplink Control Information (Desirable RI & PMI)

8x2 SU MIMO with TM9 to support up to 4 layers spatial eNodeB

UE
multiplexing with using MIMO 8x4 and TM9
• Reusing algorithms from features: LTE1543 and LTE1987
Downlink adaptive closed loop SU MIMO (4x4) layer1

• Dynamic switching between 1 – 4 layers layer2

- Transmit Diversity based on 2 ports CRS in case of no valid layer3

RI/PMI reports from UE layer4

• 4 Rx UEs category 5 or higher from Rel.10

- Legacy UEs are operated like in LTE1543 feature
• Avoiding performance degradation for non-TM9 UEs Downlink Control Information

- Dynamic activation/deactivation CSI-RS

61 © Nokia Solutions and Networks 2014
For internal use
Introduction TM9
Transmission Mode 9
CQI DL feedback
PMI
RI
• Physical Downlink Shared Channel (PDSCH)

DM-RS
CSI-RS
channel estimation based on Demodulation

CRS
Reference Signals (DM-RS) – ports 7..14 (up to 8
layers)
MCS
• Channel Quality Indicator (CQI) report based on UL feedback
Rank

Channel State Information Reference Signals (CSI-

RS) – ports 15..22 11 4
4
5

5
5

5
5

5
5

5
2

2
2

2
5

5
5

5
5

5
5

5
5

5
2

2
2

2 1 CRS 24
10

• Closed loop precoding based on CSI-RS, reported by 9

1

4
1

5
5

5
5

5
1

5
3

5
3

5
1

5
1

5
5

5
5

5
1

5
5

5
5

5
2
3
DM-RS
CSI-RS
24
8
8

Precoding Matrix Indicator (PMI) 7

4 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 4 PDCCH 8
6
1 1 5 5 1 2 2 1 1 5 5 1 2 2 5 PDSCH 108
• CSI-RS is configured to each Rel.10 UE via RRC 5
4 5 5 5 5 2 2 5 5 5 5 5 2 2

4 4 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5

reconfiguration 3 1 1 5 5 1 3 3 1 1 5 5 1 5 5 Transmission
2 4
Mode 9
5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5

1 4 5 5 5 5 2 2 5 5 5 5 5 2 2

0 1
4 layers
1 5 5 1 2 2 1 1 5 5 1 2 2

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13

62 © Nokia Solutions and Networks 2014

For internal use
Technical Details
Difference between TM4 and TM9 RE allocation
11 4 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5

10 4 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 1 CRS 24 CQI
9 1 1 5 5 1 5 5 1 1 5 5 1 5 5 4 PDCCH 8 PMI* DL feedback
8 4 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 PDSCH 136 Rank
7 4 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5

6 1 1 5 5 1 5 5 1 1 5 5 1 5 5 UL feedback

CRS
5 4 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5
TM9 contains additional
4 4
3 1
5
1
5
5
5
5
5
1
5
5
5
5
5
1
5
1
5
5
5
5
5
1
5
5
5
5
TM4 DM-RS and CSI-RS.
2 4
4 layers
5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5

1 4 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 Therefore the code rate for

0 1 1 5 5 1 5 5 1 1 5 5 1 5 5 MCS
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 PMI TM9 is always more than
Rank
for TM4
11 4 5 5 5 5 2 2 5 5 5 5 5 2 2

10
4 5 5 5 5 2 2 5 5 5 5 5 2 2 1 CRS 24 TM9 will have worse
2
9
1 1 5 5 1 3 3 1 1 5 5 1 5 5 DM-RS 24 CQI
DL feedback
performance due to the
4 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 3 CSI-RS 8 PMI
8

7
4 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 4 PDCCH 8 Rank additional RE being used
6
1 1 5 5 1 2 2 1 1 5 5 1 2 2 5 PDSCH 108 for reference symbol

DM-RS

CSI-RS
2 2

CRS
allocation
4 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 2 2
5
4 4 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5 5

3 1
2 4
1
5
5
5
5
5
1
5
3
5
3
5
1
5
1
5
5
5
5
5
1
5
5
5
5
5
TM9
1 4
0 1
5
1
5
5
5
5
5
1
2
2
2
2
5
1
5
1
5
5
5
5
5
1
2
2
2
2 4 layers UL feedback
MC
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 S
63 © Nokia Solutions and Networks 2014 Ran
For internal use k
Introduction
Signals mapping to antenna ports ant. port 15 (CSI-RS)

ant. port 7 + phys. ant. a

• Channel State Information Reference ant. port 16 (CSI-RS)
PDSCH, DM-RS
Symbols (CSI-RS) for eight antennas
are mapped to antenna ports 15, 16, + phys. ant. b

ant. port 17 (CSI-RS)

…,22 ant. port 8
• UE specific Demodulation Reference PDSCH, DM-RS + phys. ant. c
ant. port 18 (CSI-RS)
Signals (DM-RS) and PDSCH are
mapped to antenna ports 7,8,9 and 10 + phys. ant. d
ant. port 9 ant. port 19 (CSI-RS)
PDSCH, DM-RS
+ phys. ant. e

ant. port 20 (CSI-RS)

ant. port 10
PDSCH, DM-RS
+ phys. ant. f

ant. port 21 (CSI-RS)

+ phys. ant. g

8x4 ant. port 22 (CSI-RS)

64 © Nokia Solutions and Networks 2014 MIM + phys. ant. h

For internal use O
Introduction
Non-TM9 UEs protection

The operator can avoid performance degradation for non-TM9 UEs due to non coordinated puncturing of the
transmission for these UEs during CSI-RS subframes. The impact of CSI-RS can be controlled by the following
functionality:
• Avoiding transmissions of non-TM9 UEs during CSI-RS subframes and preferred scheduling of TM9 UEs
during these subframes (LNCEL:actCsiRsSubFNonTM9Sch=‘false’)
- If TM9 capable UEs have data in their buffer then eNB schedules transmission of TM9 UEs for CSI-RS
subframes
• Configuration of longer cycles for CSI-RS periodicity LNCEL:csiRsSubfrConf (5, 10, 20, 40, 80 ms)
• Dynamic activation/deactivation of the transmission of pre-configured CSI-RS

65 © Nokia Solutions and Networks 2014

For internal use
Introduction
Dynamic activation/deactivation of pre-configured CSI-RS for TM9
The CSI-RS transmission for TM9 is
dynamically activated when the first Access of 1st 2nd
8x4 TM9 UE 8x4-TM9 dlMimoMode=ClosedLoopMIMO(8x4)
UE is configured to TM9 8x2 or 8x4 activatedMimoTM=TM9Max4Layers
• When the last TM9 configured UE actCsiRsSubFNonTM9Sch=false(default)
zeroCsiRs TM9
leaves the cell the CSI-RS is enable=true 4x2 TM9 1st Last 8x4-TM9
Mix of TM9 and non-Access of UE is informed about 8x4-TM9 disconnected
dynamically deactivated 1st
TM9 capable UEs 8x4 TM9 UE CSI-RS config 4x4-
2nd
Deactivation of CSI-RS

Event
discon.
confirmed for TM4 when last 8x4-TM9 UE
• The CSI-RS periodicity is operator TM9 gets disconnected
configurable (5, 10, 20, 40 ms) CSI-RS time
CSI-RS
LNCEL:csiRsConfigInfo Activation De-activation
Rel.8 configured cell Rel.10/TM9 configured cell Rel.8 configured cell
Additionally, scheduling of non-TM9 CSI-RS is activated CSI-RS are de-activated
CSI-RS are de-activated
UEs during CSI-RS sub-frames is TM4 is used for all UEs
TM9 is used for 8x4-TM9 UEs all TM4 is used for all UEs
other UEs use TM4 No TM9-UEs in cell
avoided.
Shift allocation of non-TM9 UEs by one Preferably schedule
TTI:actCsiRsSubFNonTM9Sch=false TM9 UEs in CSI-RS subframes

No CSI-RS configured! Subframe with CSI-RS configured No CSI-RS configured!

66 © Nokia Solutions and Networks 2014

For internal use
Introduction
Before & after

LTE1543 8x2 Single User MIMO with LTE2068 8x4 Single User MIMO with
TM9 TM9
• Maximum 2 layers for spatial multiplexing • Maximum number of layers for spatial
multiplexing increased from 2 to 4
• UE peak rate is expected to be nearby doubled
under very good radio conditions

8x
(U 4 M
8x p I
Pe to do MO
2 ak u
M Ra bled
8 x2

8 x2
IM te)
O
MI

MI
MO

MO
TM9 4x4

UE2
UE1 Legacy UE (2RX)
67 © Nokia Solutions and Networks 2014
For internal use
 LTE44 Uplink 64 QAM -> (FL16/RL45)

Full & the latest version at https://

sharenet-ims.int.net.nokia.com/Overview/D543541280

68 © Nokia 2014 - NPO GS

For internal use
Technical Details
Subtitle

Feature LTE44 introduces 64 QAM modulation scheme in uplink extending the range of Modulation and Coding
Schemes (MCSs) that can be used by the UL Adaptive Modulation and Coding (AMC) mechanism
64 QAM modulation scheme characteristics:
- Supported in uplink by the MCS 21 – MCS 28
- Carries 6 bits per single modulated symbol (3 times more than QPSK and 1.5 time more than 16 QAM)
- RESTRICTION: supported only by the 3GPP Category 5 and Category 8 UEs

Q Q Q

I I I

11 1111 111111
QPSK 16 QAM 64 QAM

69 © Nokia Solutions and Networks 2014

For internal use
Technical Details
Signal quality requirements

Signal transmission over the propagation channel impacts the originally transmitted information causing distortions to the phase and
amplitude of sent symbols
Lower distance between adjacent modulation symbols in case of 64 QAM causes that the lower distortions to the symbols
phases/amplitudes are acceptable for correct signal demodulation at the receiver

Still good SINR – Poor SINR – no

“sharp” borders “sharp” borders
between adjacent between adjacent
modulation symbols modulation symbols

Much lower distance

between adjacent
modulation symbols

70 © Nokia Solutions and Networks 2014

Technical Details
Signal quality requirements

Due to its higher vulnerability to interference, 64 QAM requires higher SINR (Signal to Noise and Interference Ratio) values than in
case of lower modulations (QPSK or 16 QAM)
Ues will use 64 QAM modulaiton in a very good radio conditions
UL 1Tx-2Rx, 10% BLER target, 12 PRBs
25.00
QPSK 16 QAM 64 QAM
20.00

15.00
SINR [dB]

10.00

5.00

0.00
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28
-5.00

-10.00

*4GMax Link Level simulation results MCS index

71 © Nokia Solutions and Networks 2014

Benefits and Gains
MoRSE system level simulation results

Exact feature gain depends strongly on the power control settings resulting in the UE transmit power and
level of interference observed in the cell – higher UE transmit power leads to higher interference in the cell,
however from the other side it leads to the better SINR in the cell center allowing for higher MCSs usage that in
turn improves average cell throughput
Another factor impacting average cell throughput are UEs locations and movement paths within the cell – if most
of the UEs are placed far from the cell center then 64 QAM cannot be used due to the poor radio conditions
bringing no gain to the average cell throughput value
Similar simulations were performed for other ISD values (1732m, 3000m) resulting in the mean LTE44 feature
gains as follows:

ISD [m] 500 1732 3000

LTE44 gain 14% 11% 17%
(over LTE788 – 16QAM in UL)

72 © Nokia Solutions and Networks 2014

For internal use
Coverage Criteria for Field Measurements and Network Planning

73 © Nokia 2014 - NPO GS

For internal use
Field measurement parameters

Terminals are measuring from serving cell:

• RSRP (Reference Signal Received Power)
• RSRQ (Reference Signal Received Quality)
- Scanners are measuring from all decoded cells:
• RSRP
• RSRQ
• Wideband channel power, RSSI
• P-SCH, S-SCH power
• Reference signal SINR
System and link level simulations gives SINR thresholds for a certain service level (MCS or
throughput)
- RSRP and RSRQ are more common measurements
Þ Mapping from SINR thresholds to RSRP/RSRQ threshold needed
74 27/02/2024 © Nokia 2014 - File Name - Version - Creator - DocID
For internal use
 Subframe
RSRP and RSRQ

Resource block = 12 subcarriers

RSRP:
- RSRP is the power of a single resource element.
- UE measures the power of multiple resource elements
used to transfer the reference signal but then takes an
average of them rather than summing them.
- Reporting range -44…-140 dBm RS used by the antenna port 0

3GPP RSRQ Definition:

• RSRQ: Reference Signal Received Quality (RSRQ) is defined as the
ratio N×RSRP/(E-UTRA carrier RSSI), where N is the number
- RSRQ = RSRP / (RSSI/N) of RBs of the E-UTRA carrier RSSI measurement bandwidth.
• N is the number of resource blocks over which the RSSI The measurements in the numerator and denominator shall be
made over the same set of resource blocks.
is measured E-UTRA Carrier Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI),
• RSSI is wide band power, including intracell power, comprises the linear average of the total received power (in
[W]) observed only in OFDM symbols containing reference
interference and noise. symbols for antenna port 0, in the measurement bandwidth,
- Reporting range -3…-19.5dB over N number of resource blocks by the UE from all sources,
including co-channel serving and non-serving cells, adjacent
• channel interference, thermal noise etc.
75 27/02/2024 © Nokia 2014 - File Name - Version - Creator - DocID
For internal use
 Mapping between RSRP, RSRQ and SINR (1/2)
- An study was conducted to establish the relationship between RSRP, RSRQ (used by measurement terminals)
and the SINR (used by SL simulations and the dimensioning tool)
- Full study can be found: https://sharenet-ims.inside.nokiasiemensnetworks.com/Overview/D411620577
- SNR vs RSRP has a linear relation:
RSRP vs. SNR

RSRP
SNR  40.00

Pn _ RE 35.00

Pn _ RE  15 KHz _ noise _ power 30.00

25.00

• RSRP is measured for a single 20.00

SNR (dB)
subcarrier
15.00
SNR
10.00

– noisepower_for_15KHz= - 5.00

125.2dBm 0.00
-135 -130 -125 -120 -115 -110 -105 -100 -95 -90 -85 -80 -75 -70

 Including Noise figure UE = 7 dB -5.00

-10.00

• Assumption: RSRP doesn’t -15.00

contain noise power Curve gives upper limit to SINR with certain RSRP. SINR
RSRP (dBm )

76 27/02/2024 © Nokia 2014 - File Name - Version - Creator - DocID

For internal use
is always lower than SNR in live network due to
interference.
 Mapping between RSRP, RSRQ and SINR (2/2)
• RSRQ depends on own cell traffic load, but SINR doesn’t depend on own cell load
• Used Resource Elements per Resource Block (RE/RB) in serving cell is an input parameter for RSRQ -> SINR
mapping
• Assumption: RSRP doesn’t contain noise power

• Equation used: RSRQ vs SINR

30.00

12
SINR  25.00

1
 x 20.00
RSRQ
15.00 2 RE/RB

– x=RE/RB 4 RE/RB

SINR (dB)
6 RE/RB
• 2RE/RB equals to empty cell. Only Reference 10.00
8 RE/RB
10 RE/RB
Signal power is considered from serving cell. 5.00 12 RE/RB

• 12RE/RB equals to fully loaded serving cell. All 0.00

resource elements are carrying data. -20 -19 -18 -17 -16 -15 -14 -13 -12 -11 -10 -9 -8 -7 -6 -5 -4 -3

-5.00

-10.00
RSRQ (dB)
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For internal use
 LiBu, RSSI and RSRP Relation
• LiBu provides the RSSI Interference power
• RSSI at the cell edge is the Rx Sensitivity Subframe

Resource block = 12 subcarriers

- RSSI=12*N*RSRP
• RSRP is the received power of 1 RE (3GPP definition) average of power
levels received across all Reference Signal symbols within the
considered measurement frequency bandwidth
• RSSI per resource block is measured over 12 resource elements (in LiBU
100% of the power is considered i.e. 43dBm)
• N: number of RBs across the RSSI is measured and depends on the BW
- Based on the above UNDER FULL LOAD AND HIGH SNR: RS used by the antenna port 0

RSRP (dBm)= RSSI (dBm) -10*log (12*N)

78 27/02/2024 © Nokia 2014 - File Name - Version - Creator - DocID

For internal use
Link Budget
Exercise
• Prepare Power Budget, i.e. get
• MAPL & Cell range, for various frequencies (900 MHz, 1800 MHz, 2100 MHz)
• For FD LTE:
• RL70, Data Scenario, no OTDOA
• Cell Edge User Throughput UL/DL = 1024kbps/4096kbps
• For SFBC (Diversity MIMO)
• 90% Cell Area Location Probability
• Urban Scenrio, BPL = 16dB
• 70m BTS
• UE height 1.5m

79 27/02/2024 © Nokia 2014 - File Name - Version - Creator - DocID

For internal use
81 © Nokia 2014 - NPO GS
For internal use