Performance analysis of the forward link in a power controlled CDMA network

The forward link capacity of a CDMA system has not been extensively studied. A Monte Carlo simulation is used to investigate the effect of base station antenna height and cell radius on the forward link capacity. Key features of CDMA, including soft hand off and power control are implemented in this simulation algorithm. Practical considerations, such as log-normal fading and in-building penetration loss, are also incorporated into the simulation model. Preliminary results indicate that the forward link capacity can be noticeably impacted by the variations discussed in this paper. It is also shown that under certain conditions, the forward link can be the limiting link, and the forward link capacity should be studied more carefully during a CDMA system design.