Channel capacity estimation method for 2 × 2 MIMO considering received power imbalance and antenna correlation

In cellular systems, optimization of cell coverage planning is advantageous in the deployment of service areas. For this purpose, it is important to adequately estimate MIMO capacity in MIMO wireless systems. In the planning, one requirement is that MIMO channel capacity must be estimated as simply as possible to reduce computation time. We have shown that an eigenvalue ratio, which is a key parameter deriving 2 × 2 MIMO channel capacity, can be estimated from the received power imbalance in a propagation environment where antenna correlation is low [1]. However, the method can cause significant estimation errors in propagation environments with higher antenna correlation. This paper proposes a new method to estimate eigenvalue ratios with a high degree of accuracy considering the antenna correlation as well as the received power imbalance. The method leads to more accurate MIMO channel capacity estimation regardless of the propagation environments.