Antenna interconnection strategies for personal communication systems

Microcellular and distributed antenna systems are two promising candidates for implementing personal communication systems. Antenna interconnection strategies for these systems are studied in order to determine cost-efficient as well as robust and flexible architectures in hexagonal layouts. To this end, some results from minimal networks theory are used, in particular, those dealing with the problem of Steiner trees. The significant reduction in conduit and cable lengths that the Steiner minimal tree (SMT) architecture provides over the star type, especially in large networks, is demonstrated. It is further shown that the SMT architecture also provides more flexibility and robustness compared to the star type. The suboptimal, but easy-to-construct, minimal spanning tree (MST) architecture is given as well, and it is compared to the SMT and star types