Massive MIMO with multi-cell MMSE processing: exploiting all pilots for interference suppression

Abstract

A new state-of-the-art multi-cell minimum mean square error (M-MMSE) scheme is proposed for massive multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) networks, which includes an uplink MMSE detector and a downlink MMSE precoder. Contrary to conventional single-cell schemes that suppress interference using only channel estimates for intra-cell users, our scheme shows the optimal way to suppress both intra-cell and inter-cell interference instantaneously by fully utilizing the available pilot resources. Specifically, let K and B denote the number of users per cell and the number of orthogonal pilot sequences in the network, respectively, where β=B/K is the pilot reuse factor. Our scheme utilizes all B channel directions that can be estimated locally at each base station, to actively suppress both intra-cell and inter-cell interference. Our scheme is practical and general, since power control, imperfect channel estimation, and arbitrary pilot allocation are all accounted for. Simulations show that significant spectral efficiency (SE) gains are obtained over the conventional single-cell MMSE scheme and the multi-cell zero-forcing (ZF) scheme. Furthermore, large-scale approximations of the uplink and downlink signal-to-interference-and-noise ratios (SINRs) are derived, which are tight in the large-system limit. These approximations are easy to compute and very accurate even for small system dimensions. Using these SINR approximations, a low-complexity power control algorithm is further proposed to maximize the sum SE.