Ericsson has made a breakthrough in 5G Carrier Aggregation by successfully conducting the world’s first downlink 6CC data call, which combines six frequency bands for higher peak rates and increased cell coverage. 5G Carrier Aggregation is a technology that allows multiple frequency bands to be aggregated for higher performance and efficiency.
The data call was achieved using three FDD (frequency division duplex) bands combined with three TDD (time division duplex) bands in sub-6GHz, enabled by Ericsson RAN Compute hardware, state-of the-art carrier aggregation software, and innovative Advanced RAN Coordination functionality. The 3FDD + 3TDD carrier aggregation testing was carried out in an Ericsson lab with a user equipment (UE) simulator.
By combining FDD spectrum with TDD spectrum, more users can benefit from carrier aggregation gains. FDD spectrum uses separate frequency bands for uplink and downlink, while TDD spectrum uses the same frequency band for both directions. In total, 400MHz of bandwidth was aggregated with FDD bandwidths ranging from 20MHz to 50MHz to achieve the 5.7Gbps throughput.
With six-component carrier capability, communications service providers can optimize use of network and spectrum assets to deliver higher data speeds and capacity that improve the experience of downlink-heavy applications. This can mean better audio and video quality for streaming users, faster file downloads, and a better working environment for digital nomads.
Sibel Tombaz, Head of Product Line 5G RAN at Ericsson Networks, says: “We are keeping the momentum on carrier aggregation by continuously stretching its potential to boost capacity and speed. Our successful 6CC data call shows how versatile our solution is and that we are poised to work with ecosystem partners to make this new band combination a reality. Our goal, as always, is to help customers meet end users’ growing appetite for high-capacity, ultrahigh-speed 5G.”
“Carrier Aggregation is crucial to getting the best possible 5G performance out of scattered spectrum assets,” Tombaz adds. “And with 6CC, service providers will be able to maximize use of allocated spectrum and optimize the combined bandwidth for superior mobile experience.”
This achievement demonstrates Ericsson’s leadership and innovation in 5G Carrier Aggregation, which is a key feature for delivering enhanced network performance and user experience. Ericsson offers an industry-leading portfolio of Carrier Aggregation features for both 4G and 5G, supporting various combinations of FDD and TDD bands across sub-6GHz and millimeter wave frequencies.
In February 2021, Ericsson teamed up with Qualcomm Technologies and UScellular to achieve a world record extended range over mmWave of more than 7 km on a commercial network. This milestone was achieved by applying extended-range software delivered over the air to Ericsson’s AIR5121 mmWave antenna-integrated radio unit on UScellular’s network in Grand Island, Nebraska. The extended-range software enables robust performance on mmWave frequencies through advanced beamforming techniques that track and compensate for changes in signal quality.
In March 2021, Ericsson published a report on carrier aggregation and 5G market success, which highlighted how carrier aggregation can help operators leverage their existing spectrum assets to deliver higher performance and efficiency for 5G networks. The report also provided insights on how operators can use carrier aggregation to extend the reach of high-capacity applications on mid-band frequencies by using low-band LTE spectrum.
In July 2023, Ericsson partnered with T-Mobile to rev up 5G with four-carrier aggregation, which combines four sub-6GHz frequency bands for higher peak rates and wider coverage. The Un-carrier is now merging two channels of 2.5 GHz Ultra Capacity 5G, one channel of 1900 MHz and one channel of 600 MHz spectrum.
About the Author
Joshua Makuru Nomwesigwa is a seasoned Telecommunications Engineer with vast experience in IP Technologies; he eats, drinks, and dreams IP packets. He is a passionate evangelist of the forth industrial revolution (4IR) a.k.a Industry 4.0 and all the technologies that it brings; 5G, Cloud Computing, BigData, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Machine Learning (ML), Internet of Things (IoT), Quantum Computing, etc. Basically, anything techie because a normal life is boring.
