Analysis of Propagation Characteristics for Various Subway Tunnel Scenarios at 28 GHz

In order to meet the higher data transmission rate requirements of subway communication services, the millimeter wave (mmWave) broadband communication is considered as a potential solution in 5G technology. Based on the channel measurement data in subway tunnels, this paper uses ray-tracing (RT) simulation to predict the propagation characteristics of the 28 GHz millimeter wave frequency band in different tunnel scenarios. A large number of simulations based on ray-tracing software have been carried out for tunnel models with different bending radiuses and different slopes, and we further compared the simulation results with the real time measurement data of various subway tunnels. The large-scale and small-scale propagation characteristics of the channel, such as path loss (PL), root mean square delay spread (RMS-DS), and angle spread (AS), for different tunnel scenarios are analyzed, and it was found that the tunnel with a greater slope causes larger path loss and root mean square delay spread. Furthermore, in the curved tunnel, the angle spread of the azimuth angle is larger than that in a straight tunnel. The proposed results can provide a reference for the design of future 5G communication systems in subway tunnels.