LTE Macro Cell Evolution

This chapter covers the long‐term evolution (LTE) in Release 12 and Release 13 for the macro cell layer, which is important from an operator point of view as it basically addresses how to get most of the gains out of the existing cell sites. It first looks into system evolution solutions at both the eNodeB and user equipment (UE) sides. The chapter then addresses the latest receiver improvement technology, on the UE side, as has been specified in third generation partnership project (3GPP) in terms of network‐assisted interference cancellation and suppression (NAICS) as well as common reference signal interference cancellation (CRS‐IC) in homogeneous scenarios. Next, the chapter discusses eNodeB solutions such as 3D‐beamforming, also including vertical sectorization, UE‐specific beamforming and. It finally elaborates on the Release 13 study on the use of non‐orthogonal multiple access (NOMA) with LTE.