Stream Maximization Transmission for MIMO Systems with Limited Feedback Unitary Precoding

Limited feedback precoding (LFP) significantly improves multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) spatial multiplexing link reliability with a small amount of feedback from the receiver back to the transmitter. One of the key problems linked to LFP is how to select an optimal precoder from a pre- determined unitary codebook. We find that the conventional precoder selection criteria are not applicable to the stream maximization transmission (SMT) mode with linear receivers, including zero forcing (ZF) and minimum mean square error (MMSE) decoders. To solve this issue, a novel singular value decomposition (SVD) based precoder selection criterion is proposed in this paper. This criterion features a unified structure for all the linear receivers such as ZF and MMSE decoders, and is shown by simulation to provide significant coding gains in various SMT systems. With the same complexity as the conventional one, the proposed criterion could find its applications in next generation systems employing SMT spatial multiplexing, significantly improving system performance with affordable feedback requirement.