AetherWave is deploying a 4x4 MIMO wireless link for fixed wireless access. The receiver uses a learned channel estimator to predict the channel matrix from pilot symbols, and the downstream detector relies on that estimate for equalization. Field tests show that small estimation errors are causing a noticeable drop in link quality, especially at lower SNR and higher user mobility.
| Metric | Lab Validation | Field Trial | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Channel estimation NMSE | 0.032 | 0.118 | +268.8% |
| BER @ 15 dB SNR | 1.1% | 4.8% | +3.7 pts |
| Throughput | 92 Mbps | 71 Mbps | -22.8% |
| EVM | 6.4% | 11.9% | +5.5 pts |
| Outage rate | 1.8% | 7.6% | +5.8 pts |
| Spectral efficiency | 5.6 b/s/Hz | 4.1 b/s/Hz | -26.8% |
The communications team believes channel estimation error is the main driver of degraded MIMO performance, but they need a rigorous evaluation of how strongly the estimator quality explains BER, throughput loss, and outage under real deployment conditions.