Investigation into the performance of an adaptive array in cellular environment

This paper presents results which provide insight into the interference reduction capabilities of the adaptive linear array. It is shown that there is an improvement in SIR as N (number of linear array antenna elements) increases. The range of angles over which the most significant improvement occurs is limited to about /spl plusmn/60/spl deg/. This occurs when 12 antenna elements are used. Increasing N further results in diminishing returns. This suggests that in order to extend the angular range of improvement, a conformal (curved) array such as a cylindrical array covering a larger angular view, would be more beneficial. The findings indicate the need and importance of investigating design strategies and technologies for conformal base station antenna systems and associated adaptive algorithms.