Hybrid Beamforming for Secured mmWave MIMO Communication

Abstract

AbstractIn a non-directional downlink wireless communication system, an eavesdropper can intercept the information easily. To prevent interception up to some extent, high-direction beamforming (HDB) can be used. HDB enhances the physical layer security by steering the signal towards the desired user only. A system such as millimeter-wave (mmWave) communication can provide HDB with a high data rate. Though the amalgamation of a high-dimensional multi-input multi-output (MIMO) and mmWave frequencies can provide directional beamforming in the wireless networks, the implementation of high dimensional MIMO is difficult due to some hardware constraints. Nevertheless, high-dimensional MIMO is implemented using two types of architectures—digital and analog. Digital architecture requires a dedicated radio frequency (RF) chain for each antenna element; hence this architecture dissipates a huge power. On the other hand, analog architecture requires one RF chain connected to each antenna element, but this architecture is capable of transmitting data in one stream. To overcome these disadvantages, hybrid architecture is introduced in the literature. Using hybrid architecture, multiple data streams can be transmitted using a lesser number of RF chains than the number of antenna elements. In hybrid architecture, analog architecture is deployed in the RF domain to provide directionality towards the desired user, while digital architecture is deployed in the baseband domain to nullify the multi-user interference (MUI) at the user’s side. In this chapter, we will present a study on hybrid architecture and its functionalities in detail.KeywordsPhysical layer securityEavesdropperMillimeterMIMOBeamforming