LTE Advanced UE Categories: Cat6 to Cat12 Explained
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This page delves into the parameters of LTE Advanced User Equipment (UE) categories, specifically focusing on downlink (DL) and uplink (UL) characteristics such as DL-SCH, UL-SCH, and data rates.
We’ll cover LTE Advanced UE categories including:
- Category 6 (Cat6)
- Category 7 (Cat7)
- Category 8 (Cat8)
- Category 9 (Cat9)
- Category 10 (Cat10)
- Category 11 (Cat11)
- Category 12 (Cat12)
Here’s a quick look at the earlier LTE UE categories:
LTE Advanced UE Categories: Cat6, Cat7, and Cat8
The following table outlines the specifications for LTE Advanced UE Categories 6, 7, and 8. Remember, DL refers to Downlink (eNB to UE) and UL to Uplink (UE to eNB).
Feature | LTE-A UE Category 6 | LTE-A UE Cat-7 | LTE-A UE Cat-8 |
---|---|---|---|
Maximum Data Rate (DL/UL) | DL: 300 Mbps UL: 50 Mbps | DL: 300 Mbps UL: 100 Mbps | DL: 3000 Mbps UL: 1500 Mbps |
Maximum Number of DL-SCH TB bits per TTI (DL) | 301504 | 301504 | 2998560 |
Maximum Number of DL-SCH bits per TB per TTI (DL) | 149776 (4 layers) 75376 (2 layers) | 149776 (4 layers) 75376 (2 layers) | 299856 (8 layers) |
Total number of Soft Channel Bits (DL) | 3667200 | 3667200 | 35982720 |
Maximum Number of UL-SCH TB bits per TTI (UL) | 51024 | 102048 | 1497760 |
Maximum Number of UL-SCH bits per TB per TTI (UL) | 51024 | 51024 | 1497760 |
Support for 64-QAM | No | No | Yes |
LTE Advanced UE Categories: Cat9, Cat10, Cat11, and Cat12
Now, let’s look at LTE-A categories 9, 10, 11, and 12.
Feature | LTE-A UE Category 9 | LTE-A UE Cat-10 | LTE-A UE Cat-11 | LTE-A UE Cat-12 |
---|---|---|---|---|
Max. number of DL-SCH TB (transport block) bits within a TTI (DL) | 452256 | 452256 | 603008 | 603008 |
Max. number of bits of a DL-SCH TB in a TTI | 149776 (4 layers, 64 QAM) 75376 (2 layers, 64 QAM) | 149776 (4 layers, 64 QAM) 75376 (2 layers, 64 QAM) | 149776 (4 layers, 64 QAM) 195816 (4 layers, 256QAM) 75376 (2 layers, 64QAM) 97896 ( 2 layers, 256QAM) | 149776 (4 layers, 64QAM) 195816 (4 layers, 256QAM) 75376 (2 layers, 64QAM) 97896 (2 layers, 256QAM) |
Total number of soft channel bits (DL) | 5481216 | 5481216 | 7308288 | 7308288 |
Max. number of supported layers for spatial multiplexing (SM) in DL | 2 or 4 | 2 or 4 | 2 or 4 | 2 or 4 |
Max. number of UL-SCH TB bits transmitted in a TTI | 51024 | 102048 | 51024 | 102048 |
Max. number of bits of UL-SCH TB transmitted in a TTI | 51024 | 51024 | 51024 | 51024 |
64QAM modulation support in UL | No | No | No | No |