Analysis of Multipath Component Parameter Estimation Accuracy in Directional Scanning Measurement

To resolve the crowded radio spectrum problem observed in conventional microwave bands (below 6 GHz), new frequency bands higher than 6 GHz are being considered to facilitate the use of a much wider bandwidth for next-generation wireless systems. Various channel sounding measurements have been conducted to elucidate the radio propagation properties at such new frequency bands. For a high-frequency channel sounding measurement, directional scanning with high-gain antennas is a popular method adopted to save the development cost of a full antenna array. This letter presents the analysis of the maximum likelihood multipath component parameter estimation accuracy where a Gaussian beam antenna pattern obtained by the scaled von Mises distribution function is used for the ease of analysis. The numerical analysis shows that the angle estimation error is approximately proportional to the square of the antenna half-power beamwidth (HPBW) and the square root of the angular sampling interval (ASI), respectively, and the amplitude and phase estimation error is approximately proportional to the HPBW and the square root of the ASI, respectively. The intrinsic performance of the used antenna is also discussed.