Cognitive radio as a mechanism to manage front-end linearity and dynamic range

Most of the consideration of the benefits and applicability of dynamic spectrum access has been focused on opportunities associated with spectrum availability. This article describes the use of DSA to resolve challenges in achieving wireless and cognitive radio operation in dense or energetic spectrum. It also demonstrates that the use of DSA can significantly reduce requirements for linearity and dynamic range in the radio front-end, and reduce the intermodulation induced noise floor through integration of DSA with the selection of front-end filter settings. This approach could enable DSA and cognitive radios to be more affordable than conventional radios, and addresses spectrum issues that are not practically manageable through manual approaches.