Flexible Use of D Band Spectrum for 5G Transport: a Research Field Trial as Input to Standardization

A flexible use of spectrum at D band (130-174.8 GHz) is presented, as a result of a positive cross connection among industrial research, cooperation with university on a field trial and standardization activity. The research work of the Huawei European Microwave Centre in Milan produced radio unit prototypes operating in the frequency range between 140 and 160 GHz, which have recently been installed in Politecnico di Milano over a short (325 m) link connecting two buildings in the university campus. The targets of the field trial are multiple, ranging from technology validation to propagation study and to the support for regulatory and standardization activities. A new approach to the use of spectrum is proposed with reference to the fixed step frequency division duplexing that is traditionally used in microwave radio links; the proposed scheme, based on the architecture of the radio system with different antennas for TX and RX, allows more flexible and efficient use of the spectrum.