Multi-cell Massive MIMO Network Optimization towards power consumption in Suburban Scenarios

In this paper, we propose a simulation-based method to design low power multi-cell multi-user massive MIMO network by optimizing the positions of the base stations. Two realistic outdoor suburban areas have been considered in Ghent, Belgium (Europe) and Kinshasa, the Democratic Republic of Congo (Africa), in which the power consumption, the energy efficiency, the network capacity and the multiplexing gain are investigated and compared with LTE networks. The results of the simulations demonstrated that massive MIMO networks provide better performance in the crowded scenario where user’s mobility is relatively low. A massive MIMO BS consumes 5–8 times less power than the LTE networks, with a pilot reuse pattern of 3 that helps obtaining a good tradeoff between the higher bit rate requested and the low power requirements in cellular environment.