Active, passive or both?

Finding the best antenna upgrade approach to 5G can be daunting.

By Colin Bryce

At CommScope, we understand network solutions aren’t one- Weighing out

size-fits-all. We are continuously rethinking solutions to help
you maximize results for today and into the future. Let’s look at
a few important considerations that can help you determine the
best approach for your 5G deployments.
cost vs performance vs space
Active antenna systems will play a part in 5G deployments as they
clearly deliver advantages in supporting multi-user MIMO and
beamforming to improve spectral efficiency and capacity within a
given area. However, in virtually all networks—certainly in developed
markets—5G will be layered on top of legacy 2G, 3G and 4G

Performance vs Cost
networks using infrastructures potentially over 10 years old that were
not designed to support the level of tower-top equipment being
deployed today. This consideration merits a closer look at cost-
effective solutions that meet the level of capacity truly needed.
The cost-capacity ratio for Massive MIMO in large
Keep in mind that only a small percentage of sites in most networks
scale deployments is expected to be very high. are nearing capacity limitations. Many regulators in Europe are
Passive MIMO and beamforming antenna solutions packaging 3.5 GHz into spectrum blocks of around 75 MHz, which
can provide capacity improvements needed at a is of a similar order of bandwidth to that currently used in downlink
legacy FDD. If an additional 15 to 20 percent of spectral efficiency
lower cost in many cases. Cost estimates assume improvement provided by 5G NR is considered, then operators can
radio and antenna/cable costs. Capacity benefits deploy 5G NR at much lower costs using a passive beamforming
from Massive MIMO depend on traffic distribution. antenna along with an 8T8R (or even 16T16R in future) radio unit (RU)
and still benefit from significant capacity increase as well as other
5G benefits.
9.0
8.0
Most operators want to initially deploy 5G onto their existing network,
7.0 which may already host several antennas on each site. Adding more
6.0 antennas is not always straightforward. When determining the best
5.0 upgrade approach for 5G, here are a few factors to consider:
4.0
3.0 ·· Are capacity gains justifiable in terms of the costs involved in
deploying active antennas?
2.0
1.0 ·· Will legacy infrastructure support the additional weight and
wind loading of active antennas?
0.0
8T8R
Twin Beam
Massive Massive ·· Will local municipalities permit an additional antenna?
4T4R MIMO Beamforming MIMO MIMO
4T4R MIMO
(Planar Array) (16T16R) (64T64R) ·· Will landlords leverage the opportunity to renegotiate
leasehold agreements?
Normalized Site Capacity Normalized Weighted Cost
(downlink estimates)
·· Is there a need to share the site with other operators? If so, will
the site support more than one active antenna per sector?
Massive Massive
4T4R 8T8R Twin Beam
MIMO MIMO ·· Can power be economically delivered to the tower top?
MIMO Beamforming 4T4R MIMO
(16T16R) (64T64R)
Capacity 1.0 1.2 1.8 2.0 3.0 If these are concerns, passive antenna solutions may offer the
Cost 1.0 1.19 2.02 3.21 8.56 best approach.
More bands, more antennas—
OOPs no more space.
At CommScope, we challenge ourselves to deliver technology and
solutions you deserve. Passive antenna technology has evolved
significantly over the past few years, and modern passive antennas can
support multiband, multi-RAT systems from within a single radome. In
2010, a typical high-end antenna would support perhaps six jumper
ports, but this has now increased to 26 and even 30 ports. In addition,
the linear array columns in the antenna are wide band, and only two
column types (low-band and high-band) can support all deployed
frequencies from the 700 MHz band through to 2.6 GHz plus 3.5 GHz
beamforming. This makes it possible to combine all existing cellular
technologies on a site into three passive antennas (one per sector), while
still supporting independent remote electrical tilt (RET) for each band.
These antennas also support 2T2R or 4T4R architectures, with some
varieties also supporting 8T8R to continue delivering diversity or MIMO
capability.
This is important as it can allow operators to deploy a separate
independent 3.5 GHz active antenna on sectors that have consolidated
all their legacy networks onto a single passive antenna or a single passive
antenna per sector to support both FDD and TDD. Two antennas per
sector are more likely to be permitted on a significant proportion of sites,
which limits the landlord’s leverage in negotiation of site fees as operators
are not requesting an increase in the number of antennas on the site.
CommScope has gone even one stage further—by designing a
complementary radome that seamlessly mounts on top of a standard
antenna to look like one unit. This additional radome can be used to
enable the operator to apply for site permission for a single antenna, but
the space can be used to upgrade the site with a massive MIMO active
unit or passive beamforming antenna as and when needed.
As 5G networks are rolled out, the market for large-port-count, passive
antennas will increase dramatically and, in addition, a significant portion
of 5G is likely to be deployed on sites using passive beamforming
antennas. CommScope developed and perfected the art of delivering
precise antenna patterns. Improving the signal-to-noise ratio is an
example of one of the many ways we seek to continuously enhance your
network performance.

Contact a CommScope representative to learn about

solutions for your 5G network deployments.
Does 5G = Massive MIMO? Today’s antenna choices will empower
tomorrow’s 5G networks

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CO-113589-EN (06/19)