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Bell Laboratories Layered Space-Time

About: Bell Laboratories Layered Space-Time is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 79 publications have been published within this topic receiving 29164 citations. The topic is also known as: BLAST.


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Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examined the performance of using multi-element array (MEA) technology to improve the bit-rate of digital wireless communications and showed that with high probability extraordinary capacity is available.
Abstract: This paper is motivated by the need for fundamental understanding of ultimate limits of bandwidth efficient delivery of higher bit-rates in digital wireless communications and to also begin to look into how these limits might be approached. We examine exploitation of multi-element array (MEA) technology, that is processing the spatial dimension (not just the time dimension) to improve wireless capacities in certain applications. Specifically, we present some basic information theory results that promise great advantages of using MEAs in wireless LANs and building to building wireless communication links. We explore the important case when the channel characteristic is not available at the transmitter but the receiver knows (tracks) the characteristic which is subject to Rayleigh fading. Fixing the overall transmitted power, we express the capacity offered by MEA technology and we see how the capacity scales with increasing SNR for a large but practical number, n, of antenna elements at both transmitter and receiver. We investigate the case of independent Rayleigh faded paths between antenna elements and find that with high probability extraordinary capacity is available. Compared to the baseline n = 1 case, which by Shannon‘s classical formula scales as one more bit/cycle for every 3 dB of signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) increase, remarkably with MEAs, the scaling is almost like n more bits/cycle for each 3 dB increase in SNR. To illustrate how great this capacity is, even for small n, take the cases n = 2, 4 and 16 at an average received SNR of 21 dB. For over 99% of the channels the capacity is about 7, 19 and 88 bits/cycle respectively, while if n = 1 there is only about 1.2 bit/cycle at the 99% level. For say a symbol rate equal to the channel bandwith, since it is the bits/symbol/dimension that is relevant for signal constellations, these higher capacities are not unreasonable. The 19 bits/cycle for n = 4 amounts to 4.75 bits/symbol/dimension while 88 bits/cycle for n = 16 amounts to 5.5 bits/symbol/dimension. Standard approaches such as selection and optimum combining are seen to be deficient when compared to what will ultimately be possible. New codecs need to be invented to realize a hefty portion of the great capacity promised.

10,526 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
Gerard J. Foschini1
TL;DR: This paper addresses digital communication in a Rayleigh fading environment when the channel characteristic is unknown at the transmitter but is known (tracked) at the receiver with the aim of leveraging the already highly developed 1-D codec technology.
Abstract: This paper addresses digital communication in a Rayleigh fading environment when the channel characteristic is unknown at the transmitter but is known (tracked) at the receiver. Inventing a codec architecture that can realize a significant portion of the great capacity promised by information theory is essential to a standout long-term position in highly competitive arenas like fixed and indoor wireless. Use (n T , n R ) to express the number of antenna elements at the transmitter and receiver. An (n, n) analysis shows that despite the n received waves interfering randomly, capacity grows linearly with n and is enormous. With n = 8 at 1% outage and 21-dB average SNR at each receiving element, 42 b/s/Hz is achieved. The capacity is more than 40 times that of a (1, 1) system at the same total radiated transmitter power and bandwidth. Moreover, in some applications, n could be much larger than 8. In striving for significant fractions of such huge capacities, the question arises: Can one construct an (n, n) system whose capacity scales linearly with n, using as building blocks n separately coded one-dimensional (1-D) subsystems of equal capacity? With the aim of leveraging the already highly developed 1-D codec technology, this paper reports just such an invention. In this new architecture, signals are layered in space and time as suggested by a tight capacity bound.

6,812 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: The gains in multiuser systems are even more impressive, because such systems offer the possibility to transmit simultaneously to several users and the flexibility to select what users to schedule for reception at any given point in time.
Abstract: Multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) technology is maturing and is being incorporated into emerging wireless broadband standards like long-term evolution (LTE) [1]. For example, the LTE standard allows for up to eight antenna ports at the base station. Basically, the more antennas the transmitter/receiver is equipped with, and the more degrees of freedom that the propagation channel can provide, the better the performance in terms of data rate or link reliability. More precisely, on a quasi static channel where a code word spans across only one time and frequency coherence interval, the reliability of a point-to-point MIMO link scales according to Prob(link outage) ` SNR-ntnr where nt and nr are the numbers of transmit and receive antennas, respectively, and signal-to-noise ratio is denoted by SNR. On a channel that varies rapidly as a function of time and frequency, and where circumstances permit coding across many channel coherence intervals, the achievable rate scales as min(nt, nr) log(1 + SNR). The gains in multiuser systems are even more impressive, because such systems offer the possibility to transmit simultaneously to several users and the flexibility to select what users to schedule for reception at any given point in time [2].

5,158 citations

Proceedings ArticleDOI
29 Sep 1998
TL;DR: This paper describes a wireless communication architecture known as vertical BLAST (Bell Laboratories Layered Space-Time) or V-BLAST, which has been implemented in real-time in the laboratory and demonstrated spectral efficiencies of 20-40 bps/Hz in an indoor propagation environment at realistic SNRs and error rates.
Abstract: Information theory research has shown that the rich-scattering wireless channel is capable of enormous theoretical capacities if the multipath is properly exploited In this paper, we describe a wireless communication architecture known as vertical BLAST (Bell Laboratories Layered Space-Time) or V-BLAST, which has been implemented in real-time in the laboratory Using our laboratory prototype, we have demonstrated spectral efficiencies of 20-40 bps/Hz in an indoor propagation environment at realistic SNRs and error rates To the best of our knowledge, wireless spectral efficiencies of this magnitude are unprecedented and are furthermore unattainable using traditional techniques

3,925 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: Using this joint space-time approach, spectral efficiencies ranging from 20-40 bit/s/Hz have been demonstrated in the laboratory under flat fading conditions at indoor fading rates.
Abstract: The signal detection algorithm of the vertical BLAST (Bell Laboratories Layered Space-Time) wireless communications architecture is briefly described. Using this joint space-time approach, spectral efficiencies ranging from 20-40 bit/s/Hz have been demonstrated in the laboratory under flat fading conditions at indoor fading rates. Early results are presented.

1,791 citations

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Performance
Metrics
No. of papers in the topic in previous years
YearPapers
20211
20201
20192
20182
20172
20162