Path loss, beamforming gain and time dynamics measurements at 28 GHz for 90% indoor coverage

Achieving adequate coverage with high gain antennas is key to realizing the full promise of the wide bandwidth available at mm/cm bands. We report extensive indoor measurements at 28 GHz, with over 1000 links with and without Line-of-Sight (LOS) using a specialized narrowband channel sounder, capable of reliable measurements up to 171 dB path loss to characterize 90% coverage. Azimuthal power spectra were captured with 1-deg granularity using a 10 receive horn spun at speeds up to 300 rpm. Measured path gain–distance dependence in LOS and NLOS are well represented by power-law models, with 3.1 dB standard deviation in NLOS, and by a modediffusion model with 3.5 dB RMS error. Excess loss at 28 GHz suffered in turning a corner or into a room was found to be 30 and 32 dB respectively, in contrast to 20 dB found previously at 2 GHz. Degradation of azimuthal gain by scattering was within 4 dB in the hallway and 7 dB inside a room with 90% probability. System simulations in a canonical building indicate that every hallway needs an access point to provide 1 Gbps rate in 90% of locations using 1 GHz of bandwidth. For stationary terminals, with temporal fading caused by pedestrians, long term average-power-based aiming was within 3.7 dB of rapid beam switching in 90% of high traffic locations.