Energy efficiency in 5G NR networks: Performance assessment of standardised cell switch-off and MIMO muting energy-saving features in actual field environments
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School of Electrical Engineering |
Master's thesis
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Mcode
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en
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107
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Abstract
The global emphasis on sustainable development, rising energy costs, and the environmental impact of information and communication technologies have made energy efficiency a growing priority. In line with the United Nations 2030 Sustainable Development Goals, improving the energy performance of mobile networks is a recognised step towards more sustainable digital infrastructure. In this context, this MSc thesis investigates two 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) standardised energy-saving features for Fifth Generation New Radio (5G NR) networks, namely Cell Switch-Off with Deep Sleep Mode and Multiple-Input Multiple-Output (MIMO) Muting. These features are evaluated in representative laboratory and field setups using actual hardware, aiming to lower the energy consumption of the Radio Unit (RU) in the Next Generation Radio Access Network (NG-RAN) by switching off or muting transmission ports during low traffic demand. Experiments were conducted on three RU types, including two Remote Radio Head (RRH) units and one massive MIMO (mMIMO) RU, in static and mobility conditions. The features were evaluated using three data traffic patterns, namely idle, downlink (DL), and uplink (UL). The evaluation assessed energy demand, throughput, signal quality, and Carrier Aggregation Efficiency. All tests used a consistent setup with commercial User Equipment (UE) and traffic profiles on the N1 (2.1 GHz, 20 MHz) and N78 (3.6 GHz, 60 and 100 MHz) bands, which are widely used in most 4G Long Term Evolution (LTE) and 5G NR deployments worldwide. The experimental results show that Cell Switch-Off with Deep Sleep Mode can reduce RU energy consumption by over 50%, with no performance loss after RU restart. MIMO Muting provides the highest energy savings during DL transmission, with around 30% reduction depending on RU type, achieved by disabling half of the spatial streams. When MIMO Muting is active, the DL throughput across all carriers is affected, while UL performance remains stable. Both features perform well, although trade-offs in performance metrics depend on RU type, traffic conditions, and test setup. These findings confirm that energy-saving features can bring real value to 5G NR cell sites and support more efficient real-world NG-RAN deployment planning aligned with 3GPP standards and sustainable network design.Description
Supervisor
Hämäläinen, JyriThesis advisor
Dowhuszko, AlexisKruus, Jesse