Skip to main content

Lund University Publications

LUND UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES

Phase-Compensated Optical Fiber-Based Ultrawideband Channel Sounder

Mbugua, Allan Wainaina ; Fan, Wei ; Olesen, Kim ; Cai, Xuesong LU and Pedersen, Gert Frolund (2020) In IEEE Transactions on Microwave Theory and Techniques 68(2). p.636-647
Abstract

In this article, a novel vector network analyzer (VNA)-based ultrawideband (UWB) channel sounder using radio-over-fiber (RoF) techniques is presented. Benefiting from the usage of optical fiber cable, the measurement range and the dynamic range are significantly increased compared with the conventional coaxial-based VNA system. Specifically, using RoF increases the dynamic range to a maximum of 112 dB at 30 GHz for the back-to-back connection with an optical fiber cable of length 300 m. Moreover, a state-of-the-art phase compensation scheme using optical circulators is proposed for the first time. The novel scheme renders the channel sounder immune to stochastic phase changes in the optical fiber cable due to thermal changes and... (More)

In this article, a novel vector network analyzer (VNA)-based ultrawideband (UWB) channel sounder using radio-over-fiber (RoF) techniques is presented. Benefiting from the usage of optical fiber cable, the measurement range and the dynamic range are significantly increased compared with the conventional coaxial-based VNA system. Specifically, using RoF increases the dynamic range to a maximum of 112 dB at 30 GHz for the back-to-back connection with an optical fiber cable of length 300 m. Moreover, a state-of-the-art phase compensation scheme using optical circulators is proposed for the first time. The novel scheme renders the channel sounder immune to stochastic phase changes in the optical fiber cable due to thermal changes and mechanical stress, thus permitting the remoting of virtual antenna arrays. The proposed channel sounder is experimentally validated in back-to-back measurements, an anechoic chamber, and practical indoor scenarios. The indoor channel measurements are conducted using a virtual uniform rectangular array (URA) at the millimeter-wave (mm-wave) band from 26.5 to 30 GHz. The measured results demonstrate the developed channel sounder's capability to perform UWB large-scale antenna array measurements with a long measurement range.

(Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
; ; ; and
publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
keywords
5G, Channel sounding, millimeter wave (mm-wave), radio propagation, radio-over-fiber (RoF), virtual antenna array
in
IEEE Transactions on Microwave Theory and Techniques
volume
68
issue
2
article number
8901446
pages
12 pages
publisher
IEEE - Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc.
external identifiers
  • scopus:85079637875
ISSN
0018-9480
DOI
10.1109/TMTT.2019.2948842
language
English
LU publication?
no
additional info
Funding Information: Manuscript received May 14, 2019; accepted September 24, 2019. Date of publication November 14, 2019; date of current version January 31, 2020. This work was supported in part by Huawei Technologies, in part by the Danish Council for Independent Research under Grant DFF611100525, and in part by the Virtusuo Project funded by Innovation Fund Denmark. (Corresponding author: Wei Fan.) The authors are with the Antennas, Propagation and Millimetre-wave Systems (APMS) Section, Department of Electronic Systems, Faculty of Engineering and Science, Aalborg University, 9220 Aalborg, Denmark (e-mail: awm@es.aau.dk; wfa@es.aau.dk; ko@es.aau.dk; xuc@es.aau.dk; gfp@es.aau.dk). Publisher Copyright: © 1963-2012 IEEE.
id
ec0ead42-adbd-4cfa-8049-35065ef32672
date added to LUP
2021-11-22 22:43:29
date last changed
2022-04-27 06:00:12
@article{ec0ead42-adbd-4cfa-8049-35065ef32672,
  abstract     = {{<p>In this article, a novel vector network analyzer (VNA)-based ultrawideband (UWB) channel sounder using radio-over-fiber (RoF) techniques is presented. Benefiting from the usage of optical fiber cable, the measurement range and the dynamic range are significantly increased compared with the conventional coaxial-based VNA system. Specifically, using RoF increases the dynamic range to a maximum of 112 dB at 30 GHz for the back-to-back connection with an optical fiber cable of length 300 m. Moreover, a state-of-the-art phase compensation scheme using optical circulators is proposed for the first time. The novel scheme renders the channel sounder immune to stochastic phase changes in the optical fiber cable due to thermal changes and mechanical stress, thus permitting the remoting of virtual antenna arrays. The proposed channel sounder is experimentally validated in back-to-back measurements, an anechoic chamber, and practical indoor scenarios. The indoor channel measurements are conducted using a virtual uniform rectangular array (URA) at the millimeter-wave (mm-wave) band from 26.5 to 30 GHz. The measured results demonstrate the developed channel sounder's capability to perform UWB large-scale antenna array measurements with a long measurement range.</p>}},
  author       = {{Mbugua, Allan Wainaina and Fan, Wei and Olesen, Kim and Cai, Xuesong and Pedersen, Gert Frolund}},
  issn         = {{0018-9480}},
  keywords     = {{5G; Channel sounding; millimeter wave (mm-wave); radio propagation; radio-over-fiber (RoF); virtual antenna array}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{2}},
  pages        = {{636--647}},
  publisher    = {{IEEE - Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc.}},
  series       = {{IEEE Transactions on Microwave Theory and Techniques}},
  title        = {{Phase-Compensated Optical Fiber-Based Ultrawideband Channel Sounder}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1109/TMTT.2019.2948842}},
  doi          = {{10.1109/TMTT.2019.2948842}},
  volume       = {{68}},
  year         = {{2020}},
}