Design and optimization aspects of wireless backhaul operated in the millimeter wave spectrum

In this article we discuss a case of a cellular network with backhaul operated wirelessly on millimeter waves (mmWaves). We perform extensive studies based on ray-tracing and system-level simulations to assess performance of such deployments. For the purpose of the evaluations we propose a backhaul topology optimization algorithm that allows assessment of the gateway (GW), i.e. nodes with wired backhaul, penetration required to provide a certain performance to the access network. Finally, we formulate recommendations about various aspects of such networks, e.g. inter-site distance or antenna configurations.