Differences and Similarities Between 4G And 5G Networks (2)

LTE-Advanced: the bridge between 4G and 5G

LTE-Advanced, or LTE-A for short, is an evolution of the original LTE technology toward higher bandwidth, promising three times the speed of basic LTE networks.

LTE-A is mainly composed of 5 parts, namely carrier aggregation, enhanced MIMO, coordinated multipoint (CoMP), relay station, heterogeneous network or HetNet.

Carrier Aggregation or New Prop Sum is a transmission scheme that allows up to 20 signals from different spectrums to be combined into a single data stream. Next, LTE-A will increase the MIMO antenna configuration to 8x8 to increase the amount of radio current using beam steering technology.

Then, coordinated multipoint technology allows mobile devices to send and receive radio signals from multiple cells (Cell, which refers to the geographic area covered by the signal) to reduce crosstalk from other cells and ensure optimal performance at the cell edge as well. South Korean operator SK Telecom pioneered the world's first LTE-A network in the summer of 2012, using an early form of CoMP.

A relay in an LTE-A setup is a base station that uses multi-hop communication at the cell edge. It will pick up the weaker signal, then boost its quality and retransmit.

The last and most critical link is HetNet, a multi-layer system of large and small units stacked to generate cheap bandwidth. As a gradual evolution of the cellular architecture, HetNet is much more complex. Under this network, small cells add hundreds or even thousands of access points to the cellular system.

It's worth noting that while the LTE-A standard bridges the gap between 4G and 5G, in many ways the HetNet concept can be said to be the glue between LTE-A and 5G networks. That's why so many wireless industry watchers refer to 5G networks as an enhanced form of LTE-A.