Dynamic Carrier Aggregation in 5G network scenario

Carrier Aggregation (CA) is a key mechanism in order to increase per user and system throughput. Current 3GPP specifications are discussing upto 5 component carrier aggregation. Aggregation of Licensed and unlicensed bands are also under discussion as possible means of increasing available bandwidth. In a 5G network deployment scenario, it is anticipated that air interfaces based on mmWave and narrow band Cellular IOT would possible coexist with existing LTE network in a carrier aggregation mode. In this paper we present challenges in achieving carrier aggregation in such an environment where aggregation is not just dictated by raw bandwidth considerations. We propose enhanced signaling mechanisms to address the dynamic carrier aggregation challenges in a 5G scenario.