Feasibility of Dynamic Spectrum Access in Underutilized Television Bands

This paper presents the preliminary results from a feasibility study regarding the operation of secondary spectrum users within unused television spectrum. Television spectrum is known within the wireless communications community as being underutilized, making it a prime candidate for dynamic spectrum access. Nevertheless, the quality of this spectrum for enabling secondary transmissions has never been assessed. Two unique scenarios are examined:(i) the possibility of unlicensed devices interfering with digital TV reception, and (ii) the possibility of secondary users experiencing interference when operating within close proximity to television towers. With respect to the former, we investigate the critical operating parameters for developing the technical rules for device operation in bands adjacent to a digital television transmission. Regarding the latter, we examine, via measurement campaign, how non-ideal transmission properties of television broadcasts, including intermodulation and saturation effects, can potentially impair the performance of secondary transmissions.