A Practical Approach to Generating First-Order Rician Channel Statistics in an RC Plus CATR Chamber at mmWave Frequencies

This article explores a novel hybrid configuration integrating a reverberation chamber (RC) with a compact antenna test range (CATR) to achieve a controllable Rician K-factor. The focus is testing directive antennas in the lower FR2 frequency bands (24.25–29.5 GHz) for 5G and beyond wireless applications. The study meticulously evaluates 39 unique configurations, using a stationary horn antenna for consistent reference K-factor characterization and considers variables like absorbers and CATR polarization. Results demonstrate that the K-factor can be effectively adjusted in the hybrid setup, maintaining substantial margins above the noise level across all configurations. Sample independence is confirmed for at least 600 samples in all cases. The bootstrap Anderson–Darling (AD) goodness-of-fit (GoF) test verifies that the data align with Rician or Rayleigh distributions. Analysis of total received power, stirred and unstirred power, and frequency-dependent modeling reveals that power variables are inversely related to frequency, while the K-factor remains frequency-independent. The hybrid RC–CATR system achieves a wide range of frequency-averaged K-factors from −9.2 to 40.8 dB, with an average granularity of 1.3 dB. Notably, configurations using co-polarized CATR signals yield large K-factors, reduced system losses, and improved frequency stability, underscoring the system’s efficacy for millimeter-wave over-the-air (OTA) testing. This research offers a cost-efficient and repeatable method for generating complex Rician fading channels at mmWave frequencies, crucial for the effective OTA testing of advanced wireless devices.