On the Multihop Relays with Multiple Antennas for LTE-A

Abstract

In this paper we analyze cooperative communications for broadcast/multicast wireless communication systems based on the LTE-A standard. Multihop relays utilizing the same frequency bands as the base station are considered. These relays are equipped with multiples antennas (MIMO), at least the double of those employed at the base station side. The simulation results show that multihop relays achieve an improvement of power efficiency, while keeping the average coverage and the overall network throughput unchanged. This can be viewed as an energy-efficient wireless transmission technique, which contributes to the implementation of the green cell networks concept, as it allows a reduction in the carbon emission footprint.