Massive MIMO channel models: A survey

Abstract

The exponential traffic growth of wireless communication networks gives rise to both the insufficient network capacity and excessive carbon emissions. Massive multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) can improve the spectrum efficiency (SE) together with the energy efficiency (EE) and has been regarded as a promising technique for the next generation wireless communication networks. Channel model reflects the propagation characteristics of signals in radio environments and is very essential for evaluating the performances of wireless communication systems. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the state of the art in channel models of massive MIMO. First, the antenna array configurations are presented and classified, which directly affect the channel models and system performance. Then, measurement results are given in order to reflect the main properties of massive MIMO channels. Based on these properties, the channel models of massive MIMO are studied with different antenna array configurations, which can be used for both theoretical analysis and practical evaluation. © 2014 Kan Zheng et al.