NYU Tandon School of Engineering
Abstract:The ever-growing demand for mobile data necessitates a transport network architecture that can withstand the 5G-and-beyond multi-Gbps traffic requirements. To cater for such unprecedented demand, studies are being conducted to incorporate TeraHertz (THz) communications in future mobile networks. In this paper, we consider an urban environment and evaluate the feasibility of THz wireless midhaul links for the transport networks between the Central Units (CU) and Distributed Units (DU) in a disaggregated 5G network architecture with functional splits. Our goal is to study the feasibility of midhaul links at 140 GHz by minimizing the number of required CUs to serve all the DUs. To this end, we define several policies for selecting CU and DU nodes in order to determine the peak data rate that can be supported over each link between a CU and DU. Our numerical results based on ray-tracing suggest that wireless links at 140 GHz with 3GPP option 2 as High Layer Split (HLS) represents a promising technology for midhaul transport networks.
Abstract:Long-term beamforming substantially reduces the channel estimation and inversion overhead of conventional massive MU-MIMO receivers; yet, its construction still hinges on the inversion of a large Hermitian matrix, whose condition number deteriorates with the per-user SNR dynamic range. When this inversion is approximated in hardware via the conjugate gradient (CG) algorithm, the deterioration directly inflates the iteration count and, consequently, the energy and latency budget. We propose a hardware-friendly low-rank preconditioning framework that targets exactly this bottleneck. The preconditioner is constructed from the top eigenpairs of the long-term covariance matrix through a randomized complex eigenvalue decomposition (RC-EVD), whose inner QR factorizations are realized via a Cholesky-based scheme (QRC), confining the dominant cost to generalized matrix multiplication (GEMM) and small triangular solves that map naturally onto systolic arrays. We further show that performing the preconditioned CG inversion in the beamspace domain induces sparsification of the system matrix and provides additional convergence acceleration at negligible transformation cost. Ray-tracing simulations confirm that the joint scheme reduces the required CG iteration count by two to three while matching the post-equalization SINR of the exact inversion.
Abstract:The integration of accurate and reproducible wireless network simulations is a key enabler for research on open, virtualized, and intelligent communication systems. Network Digital Twins (NDTs) provide a scalable alternative to costly and time-consuming measurement campaigns, while enabling controlled experimentation and data generation for data-driven network design. In this paper, we present an open and user-friendly NDT framework that integrates controllable vehicular mobility with the site-specific ray tracer Sionna and the discrete-event ns-3 network simulator, enabling virtualized end-to-end modeling of wireless networks across the radio, network, and application layers. The proposed framework is particularly well-suited for dynamic vehicular networks and urban deployments, supporting realistic mobility, traffic dynamics, and the extraction of cross-layer metrics. To promote open-source initiatives, we release both the NDT implementation and a representative dataset generated from realistic vehicular and urban scenarios. The framework and dataset facilitate reproducible experimentation and benchmarking of machine learning-based quality of service prediction, network optimization, and intelligent network management algorithms, lowering the entry barrier for research on virtual and open wireless network services.
Abstract:Long-term beamforming (LTBF) is a widely-used scalable alternative to instantaneous multi-user MIMO processing that leverages slowly varying spatial channel statistics. VLSI implementations require matrix inversion that become computationally challenging for massive MIMO systems with large number of antennas. In this work, we show that dominant interferers significantly degrade the numerical conditioning of the LTBF covariance matrix, leading to severe performance loss in finite-precision implementations of polynomial and conjugate gradient (CG) based inversion methods. To address this issue, we propose a subspace nulling approach that operates solely on long-term channel statistics and acts as an implicit preconditioning step for LTBF. By projecting the received signal onto the orthogonal complement of the dominant interference subspace, the proposed method reduces the eigenvalue spread of the covariance matrix and improves numerical stability. Through ray-tracing simulations in a realistic 5G scenario, we demonstrate that the proposed method substantially reduces the number of CG iterations required to achieve near-optimal performance across floating-point and fixed-point implementations while preserving the low-overhead nature of LTBF.
Abstract:Null forming is increasingly essential in modern wireless systems for spectrum-sharing, anti-jamming, and covert communications in contested and congested environments. Achieving deep nulls, however, is far more demanding than conventional beam steering: nulls are intrinsically narrow, and even small phase, timing, or gain mismatches across RF chains can significantly degrade suppression. This work develops and validates a self-calibrating SDR architecture tailored for high-fidelity null forming using a compact reference transmitter directionally coupled to the antenna feeds. We demonstrate the effectiveness of the approach through simulation and experimental measurements on an SDR platform operating from 3.0 to 3.5GHz, a band of growing importance for Department of Defense spectrum-sharing initiatives.
Abstract:Ray tracing is increasingly utilized in wireless system simulations to estimate channel paths. In large-scale simulations with complex environments, ray tracing at high resolution can be computationally demanding. To reduce the computation, this paper presents a novel method for conducting ray tracing at a coarse set of reference points and interpolating the channels at other locations. The key insight is to interpolate the images of reflected points. In addition to the computational savings, the method directly captures the spherical nature of each wavefront enabling fast and accurate computation of channels using line-of-sight MIMO and other wide aperture techniques. Through empirical validation and comparison with exhaustive ray tracing, we demonstrate the efficacy and practicality of our approach in achieving high-fidelity channel predictions with reduced computational resources.
Abstract:Upper Mid-Band (FR3, 7-24 GHz) receivers for 6G must operate over wide bandwidths in dense spectral environments, making them particularly vulnerable to strong adjacent-band interference and front-end nonlinearities. While conventional linear receivers can suppress spectrally separated interferers under ideal hardware assumptions, receiver saturation and finite-resolution quantization cause nonlinear spectral leakage that severely degrades performance in practical wideband radios. We study the recovery of a desired signal from nonlinear receiver observations corrupted by a high-power out-of-band interferer. The receiver front-end is modeled as a smooth, memoryless nonlinearity followed by additive noise and optional quantization. To mitigate these nonlinear and quantization-induced distortions, we propose a learned multi-layer Vector Approximate Message Passing (LMLVAMP) algorithm that incorporates spectral priors with neural network based denoising. Simulation results demonstrate significant performance gains over conventional methods, particularly in high-interference regimes representative of FR3 coexistence scenarios.
Abstract:Low-Earth-Orbit (LEO) satellite constellations have become vital in emerging commercial and defense Non-Terrestrial Networks (NTNs). However, their predictable orbital dynamics and exposed geometries make them highly susceptible to ground-based jamming. Traditional single-satellite interference mitigation techniques struggle to spatially separate desired uplink signals from nearby jammers, even with large antenna arrays. This paper explores a distributed multi-satellite anti-jamming strategy leveraging the dense connectivity and high-speed inter-satellite links of modern LEO mega-constellations. We model the uplink interference scenario as a convex-concave game between a desired terrestrial transmitter and a jammer, each optimizing their spatial covariance matrices to maximize or minimize achievable rate. We propose an efficient min-max solver combining alternating best-response updates with projected gradient descent, achieving fast convergence of the beamforming strategy to the Nash equilibrium. Using realistic Starlink orbital geometries and Sionna ray-tracing simulations, we demonstrate that while close-proximity jammers can cripple single-satellite links, distributed satellite cooperation significantly enhances resilience, shifting the capacity distribution upward under strong interference.
Abstract:Fully digital massive MIMO systems with large numbers (1000+) of antennas offer dramatically increased capacity gains from spatial multiplexing and beamforming. Designing digital receivers that can scale to these array dimensions presents significant challenges regarding both channel estimation overhead and digital computation. This paper presents a computationally efficient and low-overhead receiver design based on long-term beamforming. The method combines finding a low-rank projection from the spatial covariance estimate with a fast polynomial matrix inverse. Ray tracing simulations show minimal loss relative to complete instantaneous beamforming while offering significant overhead and computational gains.




Abstract:This paper presents the Traffic Adaptive Moving-window Patrolling Algorithm (TAMPA), designed to improve real-time incident management during major events like sports tournaments and concerts. Such events significantly stress transportation networks, requiring efficient and adaptive patrol solutions. TAMPA integrates predictive traffic modeling and real-time complaint estimation, dynamically optimizing patrol deployment. Using dynamic programming, the algorithm continuously adjusts patrol strategies within short planning windows, effectively balancing immediate response and efficient routing. Leveraging the Dvoretzky-Kiefer-Wolfowitz inequality, TAMPA detects significant shifts in complaint patterns, triggering proactive adjustments in patrol routes. Theoretical analyses ensure performance remains closely aligned with optimal solutions. Simulation results from an urban traffic network demonstrate TAMPA's superior performance, showing improvements of approximately 87.5\% over stationary methods and 114.2\% over random strategies. Future work includes enhancing adaptability and incorporating digital twin technology for improved predictive accuracy, particularly relevant for events like the 2026 FIFA World Cup at MetLife Stadium.