Understanding LTE with MATLAB

Chapter 9

Simulation

So far we have provided a functional description of the LTE (Long Term Evolution) PHY (Physical Layer) standard and its implementation in MATLAB®. To verify whether this functional model will meet the requirements of the standardization process, we need to perform large-scale simulations. Like many other standards, the LTE standard has a mode-based specification. This means we need to perform a series of simulations in order to ensure that all possible combinations of modes, including modulation, coding, and MIMO (Multiple Input Multiple Output) modes, are exercised. The combined effects of using large simulation data sets and the computationally complex nature of the LTE standard will inevitably result in a familiar challenge: exceedingly long simulation times and the necessity to accelerate the speed of simulations.

The simulations can be performed on a software model or on a physical hardware prototype. Most designers find it useful to first run a computer model of the standard to verify various technical aspects related to the system performance before proceeding to a hardware prototype. When talking about accelerating the execution of a software model, it is natural to start with a baseline or initial version. The optimizations that lead to acceleration of the simulation speed of the baseline algorithm may or may not alter the functional accuracy of the model. To be true to a standard implementation, in this book we only highlight optimizations that preserve ...