On Low-Resolution ADCs in Practical 5G Millimeter-Wave Massive MIMO Systems

TL;DR

This paper explores the use of low-resolution ADCs in 5G mmWave massive MIMO systems, addressing design challenges and proposing mixed-ADC architectures to balance performance and power efficiency.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive discussion on the challenges and introduces mixed-ADC architectures as a novel approach to enhance system performance.

Findings

Low-resolution ADCs reduce power consumption in mmWave MIMO systems.

Mixed-ADC architectures improve overall system performance.

Discussion of practical implementation challenges for 5G systems.

Abstract

Nowadays, millimeter-wave (mmWave) massive multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) systems is a favorable candidate for the fifth generation (5G) cellular systems. However, a key challenge is the high power consumption imposed by its numerous radio frequency (RF) chains, which may be mitigated by opting for low-resolution analog-to-digital converters (ADCs), whilst tolerating a moderate performance loss. In this article, we discuss several important issues based on the most recent research on mmWave massive MIMO systems relying on low-resolution ADCs. We discuss the key transceiver design challenges including channel estimation, signal detector, channel information feedback and transmit precoding. Furthermore, we introduce a mixed-ADC architecture as an alternative technique of improving the overall system performance. Finally, the associated challenges and potential implementations of the practical 5G mmWave massive MIMO system {with ADC quantizers} are discussed.