5G NR
3GPP Releases 15, 16, and beyond
What is 5G NR?
5G is the fifth-generation cellular network technology. The industry organization for standardization 3GPP defines any radio using the 5G NR (5G New Radio) software as 5G. 5G NR follows 2G, 3G, 4G, and their respective associated technologies GSM, UMTS, LTE, and LTE Advanced.
A 5G Base Station uses New Radio (NR) technology is referred to as gNodeB (gNB). gNodeB radios feature Software Defined Radio (SDR) with various MIMO options including 2x2, 4x4, 8x8, and Massive MIMO options for higher capacities. 5G NR can support up to million devices per square kilometer while 4G LTE supports only up to 100,000 devices per square kilometer
5G NR Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
Minimum 10 Gb / s peak data rates for the enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB)
Minimum 1 Million / Km2 Connections for massive Machine Type Communications (MMTC)
Less than 1ms Latency for Ultra-Reliable Low-Latency Communication (URLLC)
5G NR Phases
NR Phase 1 - Non-Standalone Version (NSA) - LTE Core - 3GPP Release 15
NR Phase 2 - Standalone Version (SA) - NR Core - 3GPP Release 16
5G NR New Supported Applications
V2X: Vehicle to Anything (Platooning, Extended Sensors, Automated Driving, Remote Driving)
IIoT: Industrial IoT
NR-U: NR access to unlicensed spectrum
Basic Differences between 4G LTE & 5G NR
Full Name
Long Term Evolution
New Radio
3GPP Release
R 8 - R 14 (LTE, LTE-A, LTE Pro)
R 15 Onward
Frequency Range
Sub 6 GHz
Up to 6 GHz, mm Wave Bands 28 GHz, 39 GHz, Others
Services
Voice, MBB, IoT
Voice, eMBB, IIOT, V2X
Carrier BW
Max 20 MHz
Max 100 MHz (Sub 6 GHz)
Max 1 GHz (mmWave Bands)
Number of Sub-Carriers
1200
3300
Sub-Carrier Spacing
15 kHz
15, 30, 60, 120, and 240 kHz
Latency
10 ~ 50 ms
~ 1 ms
Spectrum Efficiency
DL: 6 bits/Hz
UL: 4 bits/Hz
DL: 30 bits/Hz
UL: 15 bits/Hz
Beamforming
Digital up to 8 Layers
Analog & Digital up to 12 layers
Channel Coding
Date: Turbo Coding
Control: Convolutional Coding
Data: LDPC Coding
Control: Polar Coding
Carrier Aggregation (CA)
Up to 16
Up to 32
Spectrum Occupancy
Up to 90% of Ch BW
Up to 98% of Ch BW