5G Wireless Backhaul Networks: Challenges and Research Advance

TL;DR

This paper analyzes the challenges of 5G wireless backhaul networks, compares energy efficiency across architectures and frequency bands, and offers guidelines for economical and energy-efficient deployment.

Contribution

It provides a comparative analysis of wireless backhaul traffic and energy efficiency in different 5G network architectures using small cells and millimeter wave technologies.

Findings

Energy efficiency varies across architectures and frequency bands.

Numerical results offer deployment guidelines for 5G backhaul networks.

Analysis aids in designing cost-effective and energy-efficient 5G infrastructure.

Abstract

5G networks are expected to achieve gigabit-level throughput in future cellular networks. However, it is a great challenge to treat 5G wireless backhaul traffic in an effective way. In this article, we analyze the wireless backhaul traffic in two typical network architectures adopting small cell and millimeter wave commmunication technologies. Furthermore, the energy efficiency of wireless backhaul networks is compared for different network architectures and frequency bands. Numerical comparison results provide some guidelines for deploying future 5G wireless backhaul networks in economical and highly energy-efficient ways.