A Multi-Antenna Framework for Spectrum Reuse Based on Primary-Secondary Cooperation

This paper proposes a new framework for spectrum reuse. Existing architectures have centered on secondary users (cognitive radios) that can reliably sense primary users and opportunistically transmit, without directly interacting with the primary system. We present a paradigm in which the primary and secondary systems cooperate, to minimize interference to primary users and provide predictable access for secondary users. Because this architecture gives the primary system full control over spectrum sharing, it could be more favorable in the current economic and political environment. We illustrate a concrete instance of our framework by showing how secondary radios can reuse the entire uplink channel of a cellular network, with only modest changes to the primary infrastructure.