Evolution beyond LTE-advanced with Full Dimension MIMO

In this paper, we study the overall development of Full Dimension MIMO (FD-MIMO) technology in the context of next generation evolution towards B4G and 5G cellular systems. FD-MIMO relies on a large number of antennas placed in a 2-dimensional antenna array panel at base stations (BSs). Utilizing the 2-dimensional antenna array, FD-MIMO simultaneously transmits to a large number of mobile stations (MSs) effectively realizing high order multi-user MIMO (MU-MIMO) well beyond what is possible today. This paper discusses the research and standardization effort in 3GPP to incorporate the features and performance benefits of FD-MIMO in the next evolution of LTE standards. In order to demonstrate the potential performance benefits of FD-MIMO, system level evaluation results are provided using the 3GPP evaluation methodology. Evaluation results show that FD-MIMO can provide vast improvement over conventional LTE networks.