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5G Training Course

NR Physical Channel and Signal Design

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HUAWEI TECHNOLOGIES CO., LTD.

Contents

1. Overview

2. Downlink Physical Channels and Signals

3. Uplink Physical Channels and Signals

Huawei Confidential
Overview Downlink Physical Channel/Signal Function
Used for time-frequency synchronization and cell
SS Synchronization Signal
search.
PBCH Physical Broadcast Channel Carries system information to be broadcast.
Transmits control signaling, such as signaling for
PDCCH Physical Downlink Control Channel
uplink and downlink scheduling and power control.
Downlink Uplink
PDSCH Physical Downlink Shared Channel Carries downlink user data.
Used for downlink data demodulation and time-
DMRS Demodulation Reference Signal
Physical Physical Physical Physical frequency synchronization.
Channel Signal Channel Signal PT-RS Phase Tracking Reference Signal Tracks and compensates downlink phase noise.
Used for downlink channel measurement, beam
Channel State Information
CSI-RS management, RRM/RLM measurement, and refined
Reference Signal
PBCH PSS/SSS PRACH DMRS time-frequency tracking.

Uplink Physical Channel/Signal Function

PRACH Physical Random Access Channel Carries random access request information.
PDCCH DMRS PUCCH PT-RS
Transmits L1/L2 control signaling, such as signaling
PUCCH Physical Uplink Control Channel for HARQ feedback, CQI feedback, and scheduling
request indicator.
PUSCH Physical Uplink Shared Channel Carries uplink user data.
PDSCH PT-RS PUSCH SRS
Used for uplink data demodulation and time-frequency
DMRS Demodulation Reference Signal
synchronization.
PT-RS Phase Tracking Reference Signal Tracks and compensates uplink phase noise.
CSI-RS
Used for uplink channel measurement, time-frequency
SRS Sounding Reference Signal
synchronization, and beam management.

Compared with LTE, NR removes the PHICH, PCFICH, and CRS, adds the PT-RS, and enhances the DMRS and CSI-RS.
Huawei Confidential
NR Physical Channels: Application
Scenarios & Processes
gNodeB
 Physical channels involved in cell search Preamble Msg3
(PRACH) (PUSCH)
– PSS/SSS -> PBCH -> PDCCH -> PDSCH RMSI ... RAR Msg4
PSS/SSS MIB (PDCCH, (PDCCH, (PDCCH,
(PBCH) PDSCH) PDSCH) PDSCH)
UE
 Physical channels involved in random access HARQ excluded HARQ included
from RAR in Msg4
– PRACH -> PDCCH -> PDSCH -> PUSCH
Cell search Random access
 Physical channels involved in downlink data transmission gNodeB
CSI ACK/NACK
– PDCCH -> PDSCH -> PUCCH/PUSCH (PUCCH/ (PUCCH/
... PUSCH) Data PUSCH) Data ... Paging
CSI-RS (PDCCH, (PDCCH, (PDCCH,
PDSCH) PDSCH) PDSCH)
 Physical channels involved in uplink data transmission UE
– PUCCH -> PDCCH -> PUSCH Downlink data transmission

gNodeB
SRS SR BSR/Data BSR/Data
(PUCCH) (PUSCH) (PUSCH)
... UL Grant ACK/NACK
(PDCCH) (PDCCH)
UE
Uplink data transmission

Physical channels in NR and LTE are used almost in the same way.
Huawei Confidential
RS Design
LTE RS Function NR RS
 LTE RS design: Focus on the CRS
Coarse Timing/Frequency
SS SS (PSS/SSS) SS (PSS/SSS) SS – All RSs are bound to the cell IDs.
Tracking
– CSI-RS was introduced in 3GPP Release 10 but few UEs
Fine Timing/Frequency
CSI-RS (TRS) support the CSI-RS.
Tracking
CRS Demodulation for PBCH DMRS for PBCH  NR RS design: CRS free, RS function reassembly
CRS
Demodulation for PDCCH DMRS for PDCCH
– All RSs except for the PSS/SSS/PBCH are decoupled from
the cell ID.
CRS, DMRS Demodulation for PDSCH DMRS for PDSCH DMRS – Beamformed PSSs/SSSs are transmitted in a narrow
DMRS for Demodulation for DMRS for beam.
DMRS PUCCH/PUSCH PUCCH/PUSCH PUCCH/PUSCH – DMRS demodulation applies to both PDCCH and PDSCH.
CRS RRM CSI-RS, SSB – Enhancements are made to the DMRS type, port quantity,
CSI-RS CSI-RS and configuration.
CRS, CSI-RS, SRS Channel State Information
– CSI-RS pattern and configurations are enhanced for RRM,
SRS CSI-RS, SRS
Beam Management (NR new CSI acquisition, beam management, and refined time-
\ SRS
function) frequency tracking.
Phase Noise Tracking (NR new – PT-RS is added for phase noise tracking on high frequency
\ PT-RS
function) PT-RS bands.

Compared with LTE, NR removes the CRS and reassembles and enhances RS functions.
Huawei Confidential
Contents

1. Overview

2. Downlink Physical Channels and Signals

3. Uplink Physical Channels and Signals

Huawei Confidential
Time-Frequency Domain Distribution
 Schedulable and configurable resources through flexible physical channel and signal design
– PDCCH: Occupies the first 1 to 3 symbols in a slot in the time domain. Frequency resources can be configured. PDCCH and PDSCH can share resources in the
same symbol through FDM.
– DMRS for PDSCH: Time-domain positions as well as frequency densities and resources can be configured. DMRS and PDSCH can share resources in the same
symbol through FDM.
– SS/PBCH: Occupies 20 RBs in the frequency domain with a fixed time-domain position and a configurable frequency-domain position. SSB and PDSCH can share
resources in the same symbol through FDM.
– CSI-RS: Time-domain positions, frequency-domain positions and bandwidths, as well as periods can be configured. CSI-RS and PDSCH can share resources in the
same symbol through FDM.
– PT-RS: Located in the scheduled PDSCH resource. Its frequency-domain density can be configured (with a sparse time-domain density).
Subrame 0 Subrame 1
Slot 0: DL Slot 1: DL Slot 2: DL Slot 3: Mixed Slot

DMRS PDSCH UL
for w/wo (SRS)
PDSCH PT-RS
GP
BWP

SS/PBCH

PDCCH CSI-RS
with
DMRS

Huawei Confidential
 SSB PDCCH PDSCH CSI-RS

PSS/SSS: Differences Between NR and LTE

 Differences
– There are 1008 cell IDs in NR (numbered from 0 to 1007) while only 504 cell IDs in LTE.
– A PSS/SSS in NR can be flexibly positioned in the frequency domain while must be at the center frequency in LTE. In addition, multiple
PSSs/SSSs can be configured in the frequency domain in NR.
– Subcarrier spacings for the PSS/SSS vary with the operating frequency bands. RAN4 has defined a default subcarrier spacing for each
frequency band.

Flexible SS/PBCH Initial

position BWP

Carrier
center

LTE NR

In NR, the PSS/SSS can be flexibly positioned in the frequency domain to facilitate forward compatibility.
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 SSB PDCCH PDSCH CSI-RS

PSS/SSS: Time-domain and Frequency-domain Resources

 One or more beams are used to repeatedly receive synchronization signals and signals on the
broadcast channel. This contributes a lot in making NR different from LTE.
 To support beam scanning, the PSS/SSS and the PBCH in NR together form an SS/PBCH block
which occupies 4 consecutive symbols in the time domain and 20 RBs in the frequency domain.
Within an SS/PBCH block, the PBCH is mapped to symbols 1 and 3 and occupies some REs in
symbol 2, and the PSS and SSS are mapped to symbols 0 and 2, respectively.

PSS SSS
Note: v = Cell ID%4.
This aims to stagger
DMRS pilot positions
to avoid interference.

 Within an SS/PBCH block, the PSS/SSS and the PBCH use the same beam transmission mode.
PBCH

To support beam scanning, the PBCH is combined with the PSS/SSS in NR to occupy 4 consecutive symbols in the time
domain and 20 RBs in the frequency domain.
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 SSB PDCCH PDSCH CSI-RS

PBCH: Introduction
 Contents transmitted on the PBCH: Master Information Block (MIB). See 3GPP
TS38.331 6.2.2 for detailed information. PBCH

 Main functions: Obtains necessary information for a UE to access the network.

– System frame number (SFN)
– Subcarrier spacing for the remaining minimum system information (RMSI, also known as
SIB1 that is mandatory during the UE access procedure)
– Deviation between the SS/PBCH RB boundary and the CRB boundary
– PDSCH DMRS symbol position
– Information about the initial BWP where the RMSI is located, such as time-frequency domain
position and bandwidth
– Indication information specifying whether the UE can camp on the cell
– …
Note: MIB has not been determined yet and is subject to changes.
MIBs are transmitted on the PBCH, which are used to obtain the necessary information for UE access, such as the SFN and
RMSI configurations.
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 DMRS for PBCH
Each RB contains 3 REs for DMRS pilot transmission on the PBCH. To avoid inter-cell PBCH DMRS interference,
PBCH DMRSs are staggered in the frequency domain on a cell ID basis.

Cell ID%4 = 0 Cell ID% 4 = 1 Cell ID%4 = 2 Cell ID%4 = 3

PBCH DMRS

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 SSB PDCCH PDSCH CSI-RS

SS/PBCH Block: Maximum (Beam) Quantity L and Time

Domain Pattern
 Maximum (beam) quantity L
– At most, 4 SS/PBCH blocks, 8 SS/PBCH blocks, and 64 SS/PBCH blocks can be defined for sub-3 GHz, sub-3 GHz to sub-6
GHz, and above-6 GHz, respectively.
– Each SS/PBCH block has a unique number (SSB index). For low frequencies, this number is directly obtained from the PBCH
pilot. For high frequencies, the 3 least significant bits and the 3 most significant bits of this number are obtained from the PBCH
pilot and the MIB, respectively.
– When the actual number of beams transmitted in a cell is less than the maximum number of SS/PBCH blocks specified by
3GPP, SIB1 or RRC signaling can be used to indicate which positions in the radio frame are not occupied by SS/PBCH blocks
and can be used for PDSCH data transmission.
– SS/PBCH block broadcast period is sent to UEs through SIB1 and can be 5 ms, 10 ms, 20 ms, 40 ms, 80 ms, or 160 ms.
 SS/PBCH pattern and position within the slot
Subcarrier First Slot Second Slot Third Slot Fourth Slot
Spacing
15 kHz
30 kHz

120 kHz
240 kHz
When a 30 kHz subcarrier spacing is used, CASE C is primary.

3GPP has defined the SS/PBCH block position in the time domain. The maximum number of SS/PBCH blocks and the time-
domain pattern varies with the subcarrier spacing.
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 SSB PDCCH PDSCH CSI-RS

SS/PBCH: Transmission Mechanism

n = 0, 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10, 11, 12, 13, 15, 16, 17, 18

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 SSB PDCCH PDSCH CSI-RS

SS/PBCH Subcarrier Spacing

 The PBCH and the PSS/SSS use the same subcarrier spacing. Each frequency band has a defined subcarrier spacing by default.
NR Operating Band SS Block SCS SS Block Pattern NR Operating SS Block SCS SS Block Pattern1
n1 15 kHz Case A Band
n2 15 kHz Case A 120 kHz Case D
n3 15 kHz Case A n257
240 kHz Case E
15 kHz Case A 120 kHz Case D
800 MHz n5 n258
30 kHz Case B 240 kHz Case E
n7 15 kHz Case A 120 kHz Case D
n8 15 kHz Case A n260
240 kHz Case E
n20 15 kHz Case A
n28 15 kHz Case A
Note: If a frequency band supports two subcarrier spacings,
n38 15 kHz Case A
2.6 GHz n41 15 kHz Case A the UE needs to alternate blind detection between the two
30 kHz Case C subcarrier spacings.
n50 15 kHz Case A
n51 15 kHz Case A
15 kHz Case A
n66
30 kHz Case B
n70 15 kHz Case A
n71 15 kHz Case A
n74 15 kHz Case A
n75 15 kHz Case A
n76 15 kHz Case A
n77 30 kHz Case C
3.5 GHz n78 30 kHz Case C
 The 30 KHz subcarrier spacing
n79 30 kHz Case C is used for the C-band.
The PBCH and the PSS/SSS use the same subcarrier spacing, with a default one specified by RAN4 for each frequency
band. 30 kHz is used by default for the C-band.
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 SSB PDCCH PDSCH CSI-RS

PDCCH: Differences Between NR and LTE

 Major differences
– NR has only one downlink control channel (PDCCH) while LTE has the PCFICH and the PHICH.
– The PCFICH (indicates the number of PDCCH symbols in LTE) is no longer used. In NR, the number of PDCCH symbols
in the time domain is notified to the UE through higher layer signaling and DCI.
– The PHICH (transmits the ACK/NACK messages on the PUSCH in LTE) is no longer used. In NR, the ACK/NACK
messages on the PUSCH are directly carried on the PDCCH and notified to the UE.
– NR supports resource sharing between the PDCCH and the PDSCH through FDM.
– Available PDCCH symbol resources can be used by the PDSCH, improving resource usage.
– On the PDCCH, BF transmission is supported to enhance control channel coverage.

Compared with LTE, NR simplifies the control channel and allows the PDCCH and the PDSCH to share resources through FDM.

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 SSB PDCCH PDSCH CSI-RS

PDCCH: Time-Frequency Resource Configuration

 Control Channel Element (CCE) Aggregation Level Number of CCEs
– The CCE is the minimum resource unit for PDCCH transmission. One CCE contains six 1 1
REGs, with each REG corresponding an RB. 2 2
– The aggregation level indicates the number of consecutive CCEs occupied by a PDCCH. 4 4
3GPP Release 15 supports CCE aggregation level {1, 2, 4, 8, 16}. The gNodeB determines 8 8
the aggregation level used by a PDCCH based on factors such as the channel quality. 16 16

 Control-resource set (CORESET)

– The CORESET indicates the number of symbols and RBs occupied by a PDCCH. A
CORESET consists of {1, 2, 3} symbols in the time domain and RBs in the frequency
domain. The specific number of symbols and RBs are configured by higher layer
parameters. RE

– The REG in the CORESET is numbered from 0 according to the time domain priority. The
REG in the first OFDM symbol with the smallest RB number is numbered 0. CORESET 2

 Search space Search space 2 REG

DMRS

– The UE listens to the PDCCH candidates set in the non-DRX timeslot, and the set is
referred to as the search space of the UE. The PDCCH search space on which the UE
CCE
performs blind detection is associated with a specific CORESET to indicate the period and CORESET 1
resource information of the CORESET.
Search space 1

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 SSB PDCCH PDSCH CSI-RS

PDCCH Type
 PDCCHs fall into 3 types according to the application scenarios and functions.
– Common PDCCH: Used for transmitting common messages (such as system and paging messages) and scheduling data (Msg2/Msg4) before RRC
connection to the UE is established.
– Group Common PDCCH: Used for scheduling the SFI (slot format) and the PI (resource pre-emption) for a UE group.
– UE-specific PDCCH: Used for scheduling the UE-level data and power control information.

Type Common PDCCH Group Common PDCCH UE-specific PDCCH

Function Schedules common messages Indicates the SFI and the PI. Schedules the UE-level data and power control information.
(RMSI/OSI, paging, Msg2/4).
Time domain 1 to 3 symbols

Frequency domain Initial DL BWP (24/48/96 RBs) Active BWP (full bandwidth at most)

CCE aggregation level 4/8/16 1/2/4/8/16

Mapping Time domain preferred interleaving mapping Time domain preferred interleaving mapping/Non-
interleaving mapping
CORESET configuration MIB or RRC configuration RRC signaling configuration RRC signaling configuration and DCI signaling configuration
Blind detection space Common Search Space (CSS) UE-Specific Search Space (USS)
Number of blind detections Total: 44/36/22/20 for 15/30/60/120 kHz (RRC)

PDCCHs fall into: Common PDCCH, Group Common PDCCH, and UE-specific PDCCH.

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 SSB PDCCH PDSCH CSI-RS

PDSCH: Physical Layer Processing

 PDSCH physical layer processing
– Scrambling: Scrambling code IDs are configured on a UE basis by using the higher layer parameter dataScramblingIdentityPDSCH. When this
parameter is not configured, they are the same as cell IDs.
– Modulation: The modulation and coding scheme table is configured on a UE basis by using the higher layer parameter mcs-Table to indicate the
highest order QAM (64QAM or 256QAM).
– Layer mapping: Codewords are mapped onto multiple layers for transmission. Single-codeword is mapped 1 to 4 layers and dual-codeword is mapped
to 5 to 8 layers.
– Precoding/Weighting: Multi-layer data is mapped to each transmit antenna. Weighting can be implemented through SRS reciprocity-based dynamic
rights, feedback-based PMI rights, and open-loop static rights. Only one transmission mode is available, in which weights are transparent to UEs. To be
specific, DMRS and data are processed using the same weighting method.
– Resource mapping: In the DCI, the "Time domain resource assignment" field indicates the starting symbol and the number of consecutive symbols. Two
methods, Type0 and Type1, are available for frequency domain resource assignment. In the DCI, the "Frequency domain resource assignment" field
indicates the method. During resource mapping, positions configured by using the higher layer parameter rate-match-PDSCH-resource-set indicated
by the "Rate matching indicator" field in the DCI are not mapped to any resources.
– Waveform: CP-OFDM waveforms are supported.

Codewords Layers Antenna ports

Modulation Resource Element OFDM signal
Scrambling
mapper Precoding & mapper generation
Layer
Antenna Port
mapper
Modulation mapper Resource Element OFDM signal
Scrambling
mapper mapper generation

Different from LTE, NR only uses TS1 for PDSCH transmission. DMRS and data are processed with the same weighting
method. Precoding or BF weighting is transparent to UEs.
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 SSB PDCCH PDSCH CSI-RS

DMRS for PDSCH: Introduction

　 Slot
k l 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13
SCn11 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　
 Function: Channel estimation during PDSCH demodulation SCn10 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　
SCn9 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 FL DMRS
 DMRS category: Different in low-speed and high-speed scenarios SCn8 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　
SCn7 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　
– Front Loaded (FL) DMRS: Occupies 1 to 2 symbols and needs to be configured by SCn6 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 Add DMRS
default. SCn5 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　
SCn4 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　
– Additional (Add) DMRS: Occupies 1 to 3 symbols. Additional DMRS and its symbol SCn3 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　
SCn2 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　
position are configured by using the higher layer parameter UL-DMRS-add-pos in high- SCn1 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　
speed scenarios. SCn0 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 1000/1001/1006/1007
 DMRS type: Different DMRS types allow different maximum numbers of ports. 1000/1001/1004/1005 1002/1003/1008/1009
– Type1: Single-symbol: 4, dual-symbol: 8 1002/1003/1006/1007 1004/1005/1010/1011
– Type2: Single-symbol: 6, dual-symbol: 12 Slot
　 Slot 　
– The DMRS type is configured using the higher layer parameter DL-DMRS-Config-Type. k l 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 k l 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13
SCn11 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　
 DMRS time-frequency mapping position SCn11 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　
SCn10 　
SCn10 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　
– Mapping type A: Staring from the third or fourth symbol in the slot. Specific mapping SCn9 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 SCn9 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　
SCn8 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 SCn8 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　
positions are indicated by the higher layer parameter UL-DMRS-typeA-pos. SCn7 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 SCn7 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　
SCn6 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 SCn6 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　
– Mapping type B: Staring from the first symbol on the scheduled PDSCH. SCn5 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 SCn5 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　
SCn4 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 SCn4 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　
SCn3 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 SCn3 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　
SCn2 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 SCn2 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　
SCn1 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 SCn1 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　
SCn0 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 SCn0 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　 　

Type1, dual-symbol Type2, dual-symbol

There are two DMRS types. Type1 and Type2 respectively allow 8 ports and 12 ports at most. Additional DMRSs are required
in high-speed scenarios.
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 SSB PDCCH PDSCH CSI-RS

PT-RS for PDSCH: Background Phase rotation of demodulation constellation diagram

 PT-RS: Phase-tracking reference signal

This is a reference signal newly introduced in NR, which is used to trace
the changes of phase noise and is mainly used in high frequency bands.
 Phase noise
– Generation: A random change of the phase of the system output signal caused
by the noise (random white noise, flicker noise) of the radio-frequency
components.
– Impact: The SNR or EVM in the receive segment deteriorates, causing a large
number of bit errors. As a result, the use of high-order constellation modulation is
restricted and the system capacity is severely affected.
– Frequency band difference: There is little impact on the sub-6 GHz band. In the 20 dB
deterioration
above-6 GHz frequency band, the phase noise response greatly increases due

PSD: dBC/Hz
to the increase of frequency multiplication times of the reference clock and the
technical manufacturing and power consumption of the component.
 Solutions
– The PT-RS and the phase estimation compensation algorithm are introduced.
– Increase the subcarrier spacing to reduce the ICI and ISI caused by phase noise. Frequency (Unit: MHz)
– Improve the quality of the local oscillator to reduce the phase noise.
The phase noise causes the demodulation constellation diagram to rotate, limits the use of high-order constellation
modulation, and has even greater impacts in high-frequency band scenarios.
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 SSB PDCCH PDSCH CSI-RS

CSI-RS: Main Functions

 The main functions and types of the CSI-RS are as follows:
Function CSI-RS Type Description
NZP-CSI-RS
(Non-Zero Power CSI-RS) Used for channel state information (CSI) measurement. The UE reports
CSI obtaining the following contents: CQI, PMI, rank indicator (RI), and layer indicator
CSI-IM (LI).
(CSI-RS Interference Measurement)
Used for beam measurement. The UE reports the following contents: L1-
Beam management NZP-CSI-RS
RSRP and CSI-RS resource indicator (CRI).
Time-frequency offset
TRS (Tracking RS) Used for precise time-frequency offset tracing.
tracing
Used for RRM/RLM. The UE reports the following contents: CSI-RSRP,
RRM/RLM NZP-CSI-RS
CSI-RSRQ, and CSI-SINR.

 Design principles and features of the CSI-RS:

– Sparsity: The density of the time and frequency domains is low and the domain resource consumption is low. The maximum
number of ports is 32.
– Sequence generation and cell ID decoupling: The scrambling code ID is configured by higher layer parameters. UCNC is
supported.
– Flexible resource configuration: UE-specific configurations for time-frequency resources are supported.

CSI-RS functions in NR: channel quality measurement, beam management, time-frequency offset tracing, and RRM/RLM
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 SSB PDCCH PDSCH CSI-RS

CSI-RS: Pattern
Row Ports Density CDM Type CDM type indicates the number of ports that can be multiplexed by each colored resource.
1 1 3 No CDM
2 1 1, 0.5 No CDM CSI-IM
3 2 1, 0.5 FD-CDM 2
1 port 12 ports Pattern 0
4 4 1 FD-CDM 2
5 4 1 FD-CDM 2
6 8 1 FD-CDM 2
7 8 1 FD-CDM 2
CDM 4
8 8 1 (FD 2, TD 2)
2 ports 16 ports
9 12 1 FD-CDM 2
CDM 4
10 12 1 (FD 2, TD 2)
11 16 1, 0.5 FD-CDM 2 CSI-IM
12 16 1, 0.5
CDM 4 Pattern 1
(FD 2, TD 2)
13 24 1, 0.5 FD-CDM 2 4 ports 24 ports
CDM 4
14 24 1, 0.5 (FD 2, TD 2)
CDM 8
15 24 1, 0.5 (FD 2, TD 4)
16 32 1, 0.5 FD-CDM 2
CDM 4 32 ports
17 32 1, 0.5
(FD 2, TD 2)
8 ports
CDM 8
18 32 1, 0.5
(FD 2, TD 4)

– The row 1 pattern is used only for TRS.

– The row 2–18 patterns can be used for CSI measurement.
– The CSI-RS used for beam management and RRM measurement can only use patterns of 1 port and 2 ports (row 2–3).

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 SSB PDCCH PDSCH CSI-RS

CSI-RS: Resource Configuration

 The CSI-RS of the channel quality measurement and frequency offset measurement is configured by using RRC signaling:
CSI-RS pattern (frequency domain position, time domain position)
CDM-Type
ResourceSetId Density

ResourceSetId Frequency band

Power offset
NZP-Resourcesets Resourcese
Scrambling code

ResourceConfig ResourceSets IM-Resourcesets Resourcese TRS information

(32 sets at most) (64 sets at most)
Repetition (Whether to send repeatedly)
SSB resource Period (supporting periodic, semi-static, and UCI on PUSCH reporting)

Period attribute Non-periodic mode (supporting UCI on PUSCH reporting)

Semi-static mode (supporting semi-static and UCI on PUSCH reporting)

 Each UE can be configured with multiple sets of CSI-RS resources (a maximum of 64 sets) and multiple sets of ZP-CSI-RS resources (a
maximum of 3 sets) through RRC signaling.

CSI-RS resources, including the CSI-RS pattern, CDM type, density, and period, are configured by using RRC signaling.
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 Summary: Downlink Channels and Signal
Resource Sharing
 Resource sharing between the PDSCH and other downlink channels and signals
 Other downlink channels and signals include: PDCCH, DMRS for PDSCH, SSB, and CSI-RS. Available RE resources on symbols where they are located can
be used by the PDSCH.
 Purpose: Effectively maximize PDSCH resources, reduce overheads, and improve the efficiency of the NR protocol.
 Method
 By default, all RE/RB resources are mapped to the PDSCH. The RRC+DCI signaling is used to notify the UE of which RE resources are occupied by other
channels and signals. The PDSCH requires rate matching. Because the number of DCI bits is limited, the precision of such resource sharing is constrained.

The PDSCH and other downlink channels and signals can share resources to increase the resources available for the
PDSCH and reduce overheads.
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 Contents

1. Overview

2. Downlink Physical Channels and Signals

3. Uplink Physical Channels and Signals

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 Distribution of Time and Frequency Domains of the NR
Uplink Physical Channel
 The following figure shows the time-frequency domain distribution of uplink physical channels and signals. Physical channels and signal design are
flexible, and all resources are schedulable and configurable.
• Long PUCCH: Occupies 4 to 14 symbols in the time domain. The positions of the time and frequency domains and resources are configurable.
• Short PUCCH: Occupies 1 to 2 symbols in the time domain. The positions of the time and frequency domains and resources are configurable.
• DMRS for PUSCH: The time domain position, frequency domain density, and resources are configurable. The DMRS and the PUSCH can share resources in the same
symbol through FDM.
• PRACH: The positions of the time and frequency domains and the resources are configurable.
• SRS: The positions of the time and frequency domains and the bandwidth are configurable.
• PT-RS: Located in the scheduled PUSCH resource. Its frequency-domain density can be configured (with a sparse time-domain density).
Subrame 1 Subrame 2
Slot 2: DL Slot 3: Mixed Slot Slot 4: UL Slot 5: DL

SRS PUSCH
GP
DMRS
for
PUSCH
BWP

Short PUCCH
PRACH

Long PUCCH
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 PRACH PUCCH PUSCH SRS

PRACH: Overview
 After a cell search, the UE establishes a connection with the cell through a random access
procedure and obtains uplink synchronization.
 PRACH: Used to transmit preamble sequences.
The gNodeB measures the preamble to obtain the transmission delay between the gNodeB and the UE, and informs the
UE of the uplink timing information through the timing advance command.

 PRACH resources
– Time domain: Time domain position (system frame, subframe, slot, and symbol), duration, and period.
– Frequency domain: Start RB and the number of occupied RBs.
– Code domain: Preamble sequence (root sequence u and cyclic shift parameter v). Each cell has 64 preamble
sequences, which are generated based on the values of u and v.

 The UE is informed of the PRACH resources in the RMSI (SIB1).

PRACH functions in NR (same as those in LTE): connection to cells and uplink synchronization
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 PRACH PUCCH PUSCH SRS

PRACH Preamble: Basic Format

 The preamble sequence is classified into the long sequence and short sequence according to the preamble sequence lengths.
• The long sequence uses the sequence design in LTE. There are four formats for the long sequence. The maximum cell radius and typical scenarios in
different formats are as follows:
Time Domain
Format Sequence Length Subcarrier Spacing Occupied Bandwidth Maximum Cell Radius Typical Scenarios
Duration
Low speed and high speed,
0 839 1.25 kHz 1.0 ms 1.08 MHz 14.5 km
normal radius
1 839 1.25 kHz 3.0 ms 1.08 MHz 100.1 km Ultra-wide coverage
2 839 1.25 kHz 3.5 ms 1.08 MHz 21.9 km Weak coverage
3 839 5 kHz 1.0 ms 4.32 MHz 14.5 km Ultra-high-speed

• The short sequence is a new format in NR. In 3GPP Release 15, the subcarrier spacing can be {15,30} kHz on the sub-6 GHz band, and can be {16,120}
kHz on the above 6 GHz band.
Time Domain
Format Sequence Length Subcarrier Spacing Occupied Bandwidth Maximum Cell Radius Typical Scenarios
Duration
A1 139 15·2μ (μ = 0/1/2/3) 0.14/2μ ms 2.16·2μ MHz 0.937/2μ km small cell
A2 139 15·2μ 0.29/2μ ms 2.16·2μ MHz 2.109/2μ km Normal cell
A3 139 15·2μ 0.43/2μ ms 2.16·2μ MHz 3.515/2μ km Normal cell
B1 139 15·2μ 0.14/2μ ms 2.16·2μ MHz 0.585/2μ km small cell
B2 139 15·2μ 0.29/2μ ms 2.16·2μ MHz 1.054/2μ km Normal cell
B3 139 15·2 μ
0.43/2 ms
μ
2.16·2 MHz
μ
1.757/2 km
μ
Normal cell
B4 139 15·2μ 0.86/2μ ms 2.16·2μ MHz 3.867/2μ km Normal cell
C0 139 15·2 μ
0.14/2 ms
μ
2.16·2 MHz
μ
5.351/2 km
μ
Normal Cell
C2 139 15·2μ 0.43/2μ ms 2.16·2μ MHz 9.297/2μ km Normal Cell

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 PRACH PUCCH PUSCH SRS

PRACH Preamble: Time Domain Structure

SCS supported by the short format: 5/30/60/120 kHz (5 kHz used as an example)

 The preamble consists of two A1, SCS 15 kHz

parts: A2, SCS 15 kHz

– Cyclic prefix (CP) A3, SCS 15 kHz
– Preamble sequence B1, SCS 15 kHz
 Differences in the time domain B2, SCS 15 kHz
of different preamble formats
B3, SCS 15 kHz
are as follows:
B4, SCS 15 kHz
– CP/GT length: Determines the
maximum coverage radius. C0, SCS 15 kHz

– Sequence length and number of C2, SCS 15 kHz

sequence repetitions: Determine 0, SCS 1.25 kHz CP Sequence GT

the preamble demodulation 3, SCS 5 kHz CP Sequence GT

performance.
PUSCH, SCS 15 kHz PUSCH

PUSCH, SCS 30 kHz

The preamble consists of two parts. Different preamble formats lead to different CP/GT lengths, sequence lengths, and sequence repetition
times in the time domain. This further produces different maximum coverage radiuses and preamble demodulation performance.
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 PRACH PUCCH PUSCH SRS

PRACH: Time Domain Position

 When a UE initiates the random access, the UE sends a preamble on the PRACH.
 The time domain position of the PRACH is determined by the frame number, subframe number, slot number, and
occasion number, as shown in the following figures.
Radio frame where the
PRACH period PRACH is located

… … … …
Subframe where the
PRACH is located
0 1 2 3 5 6 7 8

PRACH occasion

PRACH slot

The time domain position of the PRACH is determined by the frame number, subframe number, slot number, and occasion number.

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PRACH: Frequency Domain Position

 Frequency position (left) and number of occupied PRBs in frequency domain (right)
Sequence Length PRACH SCS PUSCH SCS PRACH PRBs (From the Perspective of PUSCH)
839 1.25 15 6
839 1.25 30 3
839 1.25 60 2
839 5 15 24
839 5 30 12
839 5 60 6
System 139 15 15 12
bandwidth
139 15 30 6
Initial BWP
139 15 60 3
139 30 15 24
PRACH 139 30 30 12
139 30 60 6
139 60 60 12
139 60 120 6
139 120 60 24
139 120 120 12

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PUCCH: Overview
 Main functions
– Transmits L1/L2 uplink control information (UCI)
for downlink and uplink data.
– The L1/L2 UCI includes:
– Scheduling request (SR): Used for UL-SCH
resource requests.
– HARQ ACK/NACK: Used for HARQ feedback of
data transmitted on the PDSCH.
– CSI: Including CQI, PMI, RI, LI, and CRI.
– Compared with downlink control information
(DCI), UCI has the following features:
– UCI carries a small amount of information (only
these unknown to the gNodeB).
– The DCI can be transmitted only in the PDCCH, and
the UCI can be transmitted in the PUCCH or the
PUSCH.
Compared with LTE, NR adds the short PUCCH for fast feedback in short delay scenario.
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PRACH PUCCH PUSCH SRS
 Features
– Compared with LTE, the short PUCCH (1 to 2 symbols) is
added in NR, which can be used for quick feedback in the
short delay scenario (self-contained transmission).
– The number of long PUCCH symbols is enhanced (4 to 14
symbols) to support PUCCH transmission in different slot
formats.
– In 3GPP Release 15, the concurrency of the PUCCH and
PUSCH of the same user is not supported. For example, if the
UCI and the UL data coexist, UCI is transmitted on the PUSCH
(the UCI is associated with the channel).
– The uplink HARQ supports asynchronous adaptation, and the
ACK/NACK transmission time can be flexibly determined by
the scheduler.
 PRACH PUCCH PUSCH SRS

PUCCH: Basic Format

 Five basic PUCCH formats are defined (by number of symbols and UCI bits):

PUCCH Format Length in OFDM Symbols Number of Bits Description

0 1–2 ≤2 Short PUCCH for small UCI payloads

1 4–14 ≤2 Long PUCCH for small UCI payloads
2 1–2 >2 Short PUCCH for large UCI payloads
3 4–14 >2 Long PUCCH for large UCI payloads
4 4–14 >2 Long PUCCH for moderate UCI payloads

Short PUCCH duration, 1/2 symbols Long duration PUCCH, 4–14 symbols
1 slot
1 symbol 2 symbols
RS PUCCH RS
PUCCH

PDSCH PDSCH PUSCH

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PUCCH: Frequency Hopping (FH) and Code Division

Multiplexing (CDM)
 Frequency-domain FH
– Definition: The two parts of the PUCCH time
domain are located at two ends of the available
spectrum resources, respectively.
– Purpose: Obtain frequency domain diversity.
– The formats 0–4 support frequency-domain
frequency hopping (formats 0 and 2 are configured
only for the format of 2 symbols).
dt h
d wi
ba
n bs
P su
12
BW
1 slot
 CDM in the PUCCH
– Definition: Multiple UEs in the same cell can share the
same RB pair to send the PUCCH, separately. This can be
implemented by using the cyclic shift or the orthogonal
sequence.
– Purpose: Utilize resources effectively and save overheads.
– CDM technologies used in different PUCCH formats
PUCCH Format CDM
0 Cyclic Shift (0–11)
e rs Cyclic Shift (0–11)+time-domain orthogonal
c rib 1
sequence (0–6)
2 CDM is not supported.
3 CDM is not supported.
4 Frequency-domain orthogonal sequence (0–3)

PUCCH formats 0–4 support frequency hopping in the frequency domain. Format 0/1/4 supports CMD for multiple UEs in the same cell.

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 PRACH PUCCH PUSCH SRS

DMRS for PUCCH Formats 0–2

Format 1: TDM of DMRS and UCI
Freq.
 Format 0: Short PUCCH
– ZC sequence-based identification information
of different cyclic shifts; with no DMRS

DMRS

UCI
 Format 1: Long PUCCH
Time
– DMRS uses the ZC sequence, resides on the Format 2: FDM of DMRS and UCI
even symbols of the PUCCH, and is time- Freq.

multiplexed with UCI.

 Format 2: Short PUCCH

– DMRS uses the PN sequence and is
frequency multiplexed with UCI.

Time

For format 0, there is no DMRS. For format 1, the UCI and the DMRS are time multiplexed. For format 2, the UCI and the
DMRS are frequency multiplexed.
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 PRACH PUCCH PUSCH SRS

DMRS for PUCCH Format 3/4

 Format 3/4: Long PUCCH
– DMRS uses the ZC sequence, with the position
determined by the number of symbols of the
PUCCH, as depicted in the following table.

DMRS Position Within PUCCH Span

PUCCH No Additional DMRS Additional DMRS
Symbol
Length No Hopping Hopping No Hopping Hopping

4 1 0, 2 1 0, 2
5 0, 3 0, 3
6 1, 4 1, 4
7 1, 4 1, 4
8 1, 5 1, 5
9 1, 6 1, 6
10 2, 7 1, 3, 6, 8
1.1 2, 7 1, 3, 6, 9
12 2, 8 1, 4, 7, 10
1.3 2, 9 1, 4, 7, 11
14 3, 10 1, 5, 8, 12
The symbol position of the DMRS for PUCCH format 3/4 is determined by the number of PUCCH symbols.
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 PRACH PUCCH PUSCH SRS

PUSCH: Physical Layer

 Waveform: Unlike PDSCH, PUSCH supports two waveforms.
– CP-OFDM: a multi-carrier waveform (with transform precoding disabled) that supports MU-MIMO.
– DFT-S-OFDM: a single-carrier waveform (with transform precoding enabled) that supports only SU-MIMO and
improves the coverage performance.
– Configured by the higher layer parameter PUSCH-tp (value range: enabled, disabled)
 Physical layer procedures
Layers Antenna ports
Resource Element OFDM signal
Codeword mapper generation
CP-OFDM Modulation Layer
Scrambling Precoding
mapper mapper
Resource Element OFDM signal
mapper generation

DFT-S-OFDM
Modulation Transform Resource SC-FDMA
Scrambling
mapper precoder element mapper signal gen.

Waveform Modulation Mode Codeword Number of Layers RB Resource Allocation PAPR Application Scenario
QPSK, 16QAM,
CP-OFDM 1 1–4 Contiguous/non-contiguous High At/near the cell center
64QAM, 256QAM
π /2-BPSK, QPSK, At the cell edge
DFT-S-OFDM 16QAM, 64QAM, 1 1 Contiguous Low (achieving gain by using a
256QAM low PAPR)

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 PRACH PUCCH PUSCH SRS

PUSCH: Mapping Type

 PUSCH mapping type
– type A: Start symbol: 0; Length (including DMRS): Y–14 symbols (Y is the start position of the data symbol and
determined by the actual channel configuration.)
– type B: Start symbol: 0–12; Length (including DMRS): 2–14 symbols
– Indicated by the "Time domain resource assignment" field in the DCI for uplink scheduling

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 PRACH PUCCH PUSCH SRS

DMRS for PUSCH: Overview

 Category
– Front-loaded DMRS
– Additional DMRS
Configured by the higher layer parameter UL-DMRS-add-pos (value
range: 0, 1, 2, 3)
 Number of symbols
– Single-symbol DMRS
– Double-symbol DMRS
Configured by the higher layer parameter UL-DMRS-max-len (value range:
1, 2)
When UL-DMRS-max-len is 2, the number of DMRS symbols is
determined according to the "Antenna port" field in UL DCI.
Front-loaded DMRS and additional DMRS have the same number of
symbols.
 Time domain start point
– Mapping type A: l0 is configured by the higher layer parameter UL-
DMRS-typeA-pos (value range: 2, 3)
– Mapping type B: l0 = 0
l0: specifies the start position of DMRS symbols
Similar to DMRS for PDSCH, there are two types of DMRS for PUSCH. In high-speed scenarios, the additional DMRS needs
to be configured.
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DMRS for PUSCH: Type Configuration

 PUSCH DMRS Configuration
– Configured by the higher layer parameter UL-DMRS-config-type (value range: type 1, type 2).
– DFT-S-OFDM must use type 1 (to retain the single-carrier feature of pilot symbols).
– With a larger pilot density (3 vs. 2 RE/port/RB), type 1 has better channel estimation performance than type 2.
– In the NR system, data and pilot signals can share symbols in the uplink. Therefore, type 2 requires less overhead.

Single-Symbol (type 1) Dual-Symbol (type 1) Single-Symbol (type 2) Dual-Symbol (type 2)

≤ 4 ports ≤ 8 ports ≤ 6 ports ≤ 12 ports

Port 4/6 Port 4/5/10/11

Port 2/3 Port 2/3/6/7 Port 2/3 Port 2/3/8/9
Port 0/1 Port 0/1/4/5 Port 0/1 Port 0/1/6/7

Similar to that in the downlink, type 1 and type 2 allow for up to 8 ports and 12 ports, respectively.
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SRS: Overview Physical resource mapping SRS sending

 Sequence  Precoding
Freq. Intra BWP -LTE ZC -Precoded SRS and non-precoded SRS
Hopping  Frequency domain  Port
Max. 4
-Full-band SRS coverage available, 272 -1, 2, (maximum) 4 ports
SRS Symbol RBs at most  Triggering mode
-Bandwidth is an integer multiple of 4, and -Aperiodic, periodic, and semi-persistent
the minimum is 4 RBs.  SRS sending
-Comb 2/4 -Frequency hopping (FH) within the BWP
 Time domain -Intra-slot inter-symbol repeated sending
BWP -1/2/4 symbols in a slot
… -1T2R/1T4R/2T4R
-Last six symbols available
-SRS behind the PUSCH/DMRS in a slot

SRS resource configuration Others

 SRS function  Numerology

-DL/UL CSI acquisition -SRS cannot use other numerology
-Beam management within the BWP.
 Resource allocation  Conflict processing
-SRS resource set, with each set containing -SRS and short PUCCH TDM
Max. 4x Comb
SRS & Short
several Resources. Different groups  Power control
correspond to different functions. -Independent power control and
PUCCH TDM …
-SRS bandwidth is UE-level configuration. independent power headroom report
Time for the SRS
SRS Short PUCCH TDM

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SRS Physical Resource Mapping

RRC signaling configuration SRS (Comb)
Freq.
Resource Set Definition: In the frequency
 antennaSwitching domain, every K subcarriers
 Codebook At least 6 symbols are mapped to one RE for the
 nonCodebook SRS, forming a comb-like
 beamManagement
spectrum.
One resource with 4
symbols at most Benefits: SRSs for different
Resource users or different antennas
 Aperiodic serving the same user may be
 Periodic
sent in one RB set in the same
 Semi-persistent Max. 4x Comb
timeslot while can be
distinguished by comb teeth.

Resource Time
Mapping SRS PUSCH

SRS Resource Parameter Framework SRS Resource Mapping

 UE-Specific SRS Resource
 Two-level resource framework: Resource Set,
Resource
 Three triggering modes: periodic, aperiodic, semi-
persistent
 Four types of function division: antenna switching,
codebook, noncodebook, beam management
 ZC Sequence
Multiplexing of SRS and other channels
 Supporting full-band or narrowband SRS, UE-based
 In a slot, SRS is time-multiplexed with the
BWP
PUSCH/UL DMRS/UL PT-RS/PUCCH format 1/3/4.
 1/2/4 symbols configurable for a single SRS resource
 SRS symbols are mapped to symbols following the
 Mapped to the last six symbols in the slot
PUSCH/DMRS symbols.
 Hopping/Repetition available in SRS resources
 Comb 2/4

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 SRS Frequency Hopping
 In the frequency domain, SRS transmission needs to be on a frequency band that the scheduler is interested in.
This can be implemented using two methods:
– Send a wideband SRS to cover the entire frequency band for scheduling.
Advantages: Only one SRS (one symbol) is used, delivering a higher transmission efficiency.
Disadvantages: There may be a relatively low receive power spectral density.
– Send multiple narrowband SRSs, perform frequency hopping in the frequency domain, and combine sent SRSs to cover
the entire frequency band for scheduling.
 NR supports frequency hopping within a slot and between slots.
Non-frequency hopping SRS

cy
quen
Fre

Time

Frequency hopping SRS

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 PRACH PUCCH PUSCH SRS

SRS Transmission
Separate Posrs, αsrs, tpcsrs
can be configured for each
SRS Resource Set. SRS
0 1 2 3 0 1 2 3 power control can be
Data
performed independently and
Ants decoupled from the PUSCH.
RFs
SRS SRS
Time 0 Time 1
time
Periodic/semi-persistent SRS Aperiodic dynamic SRS The UE supports SRS antenna
transmission transmission switching to perform transmit
antenna polling and obtain full-
Three triggering types ensure
channel measurement.
higher SRS transmission flexibility
and increase the SRS capacity

SRS Transmission
Three triggering types SRS transmission mode SRS transmit power
 Aperiodic SRS  4 ports at most with each SRS  SRS power configurations vary with
 Periodic SRS Resource SRS resource sets.
 Semi-persistent SRS  SRS antenna selection:  Independent SRS power control,
1T2R/1T4R/2T4R decoupled from the PUSCH
 Precoded SRS and non-precoded SRS
 Inter-carrier SRS switching

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Copyright©2018 Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. All Rights Reserved.

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results, future product portfolio, new technology, etc. There are a number of factors that could cause actual results and developments to differ materially
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