MIMO laboratory to be rolled out this week at IIT-D

A massive multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) radio laboratory is being rolled out this week at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi. Research to standardize the fifth generation cellular communication technology (5G) where the base station towers can have few hundreds of antennas, also known as MIMO technology, is going to be undertaken at this lab. According to IIT Delhi, this will be the first such lab in India.

The lab has been setup in Bharti School of Telecommunication Technology and Management, IIT Delhi where Saif Khan Mohammed and his team have been conducting research on physical layer algorithms for Massive MIMO systems for the last five years. Mohammed is an associate professor in the Electrical Engineering department at IIT Delhi. “This 5G base station prototype will be used to test and verify algorithms and also for developing a complete 5G base station which can possibly lead to the manufacturing of 5G base stations in India with support/collaboration from industry,'' Mohammed said.

“The large antenna in array (in massive MIMO) also improves system power efficiency, as the mobile terminals will now be required to radiate ten times lesser power than in 3G/4G systems. This in turn reduces interference to other radio systems and also reduces possible effects of exposure to radiation on our health.''


Institute director V Ramgopal Rao, who is a member of the High Level Forum for 5G India 2020, reaffirmed IIT Delhi’s commitment to contribute towards national goals for establishing India as a major player in 5G technologies.