Antenna Phased Array Beamforming at 26 GHz Using Optical True Time-Delay

Multi-element antenna beam steering in freelicence higher frequency bands is one of the crucial features of 5G networks enabling better tracking of the users. In this paper, we present an experimental microwave photonics transmission system operating at 26 GHz where beamforming is fully realized in the optical domain. The system is designed to be deployed as a part of the mobile fronthaul network with an optical fiber span of 15 km. As a proof of concept, a planar 3-element antenna array has been developed and radiation patterns were measured in an anechoic chamber with high agreement between experimental and simulation results.

[1]  G. G. Stokes.  "J." , 1890, The New Yale Book of Quotations.

[2]  Hyoung-Joo Kim,et al.  Optical true time-delay beamformer based on microwave photonics for phased array radar , 2011, 2011 3rd International Asia-Pacific Conference on Synthetic Aperture Radar (APSAR).

[3]  A. M. J. Koonen,et al.  38-GHz Millimeter Wave Beam Steered Fiber Wireless Systems for 5G Indoor Coverage: Architectures, Devices, and Links , 2017, IEEE Journal of Quantum Electronics.

[4]  Kaibin Huang,et al.  Beam Management in Millimeter-Wave Communications for 5G and Beyond , 2020, IEEE Access.

[5]  Zabih Ghassemlooy,et al.  M-QAM transmission over hybrid microwave photonic links at the K-band. , 2019, Optics express.

[6]  K. Williams,et al.  Microwave photonics , 2002 .

[7]  Jianping Yao,et al.  Microwave Photonics , 2009, Journal of Lightwave Technology.

[8]  Qian Ma,et al.  Advanced Integration Techniques on Broadband Millimeter-Wave Beam Steering for 5G Wireless Networks and Beyond , 2016, IEEE Journal of Quantum Electronics.

[9]  Motoharu Matsuura,et al.  True-time delay beamforming using semiconductor optical amplifier and tunable dispersion medium , 2014, 2014 4th IEEE International Conference on Network Infrastructure and Digital Content.

[11]  S. Zvánovec,et al.  Impact of Thermal-Induced Turbulent Distribution Along FSO Link on Transmission of Photonically Generated mmW Signals in the Frequency Range 26–40 GHz , 2020, IEEE Photonics Journal.

[12]  Shukor Abd Razak,et al.  Big Data Challenges in 5G Networks , 2019, 2019 Eleventh International Conference on Ubiquitous and Future Networks (ICUFN).

[13]  Eduward Tangdiongga,et al.  Optical true-time-delay microwave beam-steering with 1 Gb/s wireless transmission for in-building networks , 2013 .

[14]  Jong Hyun Lee,et al.  5G Trial Services Demonstration: IFoF-Based Distributed Antenna System in 28 GHz Millimeter-Wave Supporting Gigabit Mobile Services , 2019, Journal of Lightwave Technology.

[15]  Andrey Tikhomirov,et al.  Recommended 5G frequency bands evaluation , 2018, 2018 Systems of Signals Generating and Processing in the Field of on Board Communications.