In what the trio claim is the world's first test of Three Components Carrier Aggregation (3CCA) technology, three component carriers were combined across the 5G FDD spectrum (30MHz of 700MHz/n28 band) and 5G TDD spectrum (100+60MHz of 2.6GHz/n41 band) to reach 190Mhz bandwidth for the first time ever.
Carrier aggregation uses primary cell switch functionality which works by combining frequency bands to offer superior network capacity by maximising the spectral efficiency of 5G networks. The trial saw increased performance under a 700MHz/2.6GHz converged network to reach a peak downlink speed rate of 2.94Gbps.
Last year, Ericsson teamed up with Telstra and Qualcomm to achieve the highest uplink peak rate ever recorded using 5G dual connectivity and carrier aggregation.
According to Nokia, the combination of 5G FDD and TDD bands, supplemented by carrier aggregation, can give “full play to the advantages of spectrum synergy”, to reduce the cost of network construction while improving network coverage.
Ding Haiyu, vice president of the research institute of the world’s largest mobile operator, China Mobile Communications, said the company was looking to further build out its network with the convergence of the 700MHz and 2.6GHz band. He added that the trial formed “a technical cornerstone for future network planning”.
Alongside a pledge of further CA testing in China, Mark Atkinson, senior vice president for radio access networks at Nokia, said: “This new speed record, using commercially available hardware and software, highlights how Nokia’s pioneering approach continues to drive important innovation in the market.
“5G CA is a critical technology for mobile operators around the world to maximise the impact of their spectrum holdings and deliver enhanced coverage and capacity to subscribers. Nokia will keep pushing the boundaries of 5G to deliver industry-leading performance.”
