Spatial and polarization characterization of MIMO channels in rural environment

An extensive campaign to characterize the multi-antenna radio propagation channel between two ground based platforms was conducted in a rural area of Lakehurst, NJ. Dozens of links with ground level transmitter and receiver arrays were characterized in mixed wooded/open terrain over ranges of up to 4 km. MIMO capacity was computed for an 8×10 MIMO system using the measured H-matrices. It was found that median 8×10 MIMO capacity supported by the channel was about 8 times the corresponding 1×1 capacity, and 3.2 times the corresponding 1×10 capacity. It was found that using arrays containing antennas of both horizontal and vertical polarizations improves capacity for short range LOS channels by almost fifty percent.