Massive MIMO Channel Measurements and Simulations at 3.7 GHz in Outdoor Environment

Massive multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) is considered as one of the building blocks of 5G. This technology offers higher capacity, faster speed and improved spectral and energy efficiency. In this paper, we investigate massive MIMO propagation channel performances in real propagation environment. Therefore, channel measurements were carried out at 3.7 GHz using a uniform planar array (UPA) with 64 elements as a receiver and a patch array made of 8 elements PIFA as a transmitter. Both line-of-sight (LoS) and non-line-of-sight (NLoS) conditions were investigated in this campaign. Additionally, simulations using Orange ray-based 3D propagation model termed as Starlight were conducted. The objective is to characterize both measured and simulated Massive MIMO channels and optimize this propagation model to ensure agreement between simulations and measurements.