Microcell and picocell base station internal antennas

Microcell and picocell base stations for 900, 1800 and 1900 MHz applications have been designed with antennas internal to the overall casings. For the microcell case, a 90 degree sector coverage for a wall mounted base is required, whereas for the picocell, omnidirectional azimuth coverage is required for both wall and ceiling mounting. Receive diversity is needed for both applications. For transmit, the microcell base, with two transceivers, uses two antennas for spatial combining. Transmit for the picocell base requires an antenna combination to allow for an external remote antenna option. The limited space available, and the coverage and diversity requirements, has required significant innovation in both the microcell and picocell antenna designs. Details of the antenna designs and their performance are presented, showing that the demanding requirements have been met.