Multiuser MIMO downlink with limited inter-cell cooperation: Approximate interference alignment in time, frequency and space

We consider a realistic albeit simplified scenario for wireless cellular systems of the next generation (4G and beyond), where MIMO-OFDM, opportunistic scheduling, channel state information at the transmitter and limited base-station cooperation are envisaged. We propose two strategies with limited base-station cooperation that can be easily implemented with today's technology and achieve an approximate form of inter-cell interference alignment. The first strategy consists of imposing a ldquopower maskrdquo in frequency such that adjacent cooperative clusters of base stations generate different interference levels in different frequency subchannels. The second strategy consists of switching between different cooperative clusters such that no user is in a permanently disadvantaged location.We compare single-user and multiuser MIMO systems in terms of average throughput as a function of the user location.