Satellite System Design Examples for Maximum MIMO Spectral Efficiency in LOS Channels

MIMO satellite links have recently attracted a high interest with respect to possible link capacity enhancements. In it has been shown that especially in Line-of-Sight (LOS) satellite channels maximum multiplexing gain can be achieved via the construction of orthogonal channels by means of the geometrical arrangement of the ground terminal antennae in relation to the antennae in orbit. Based on these theoretical results, we present practically relevant design and configuration examples for satellite communication systems, involving transparent pay loads for the first time. Thus, we significantly extend the results, that have been limited to regenerative payloads. The examples cover multiple-satellite and single-satellite MIMO scenarios. The assets and drawbacks of the applications are investigated, especially highlighting system-inherent design uncertainties.