Radio Propagation Measurement and Channel Modelling

Chapter 6

Radio Link Performance Prediction

Link channel performance can be estimated either from: (i) analytical predictions based on theoretical models or (ii) software simulators or hardware emulators using stochastic or deterministic channel models. Another possibility is to generate the channel parameters or to test the performance of the radio system from measurements in typical environments or in a reverberation chamber that is capable of emulating a multipath environment.

Channel models can be realized either in the time domain or in the frequency domain. A deterministic channel model has constant model parameters whereas a stochastic channel model has some or all of the model parameters being characterized by a stochastic distribution that is either ergodic or nonergodic [1]. An ergodic channel model requires only a single sample function or a single trial to characterize its stochastic properties whereas a nonergodic model requires several realizations where the average over a large number of trials is used to represent the performance of the channel. Further, channel models can be classified as narrowband versus wideband where the wideband channel can be considered as the sum of several narrowband channels with different delays.

In this chapter we start by studying narrowband and wideband channel simulators both in the time domain and in the frequency domain. We explain briefly software and hardware realization methods using analogue and digital techniques. This is followed ...