Multi‐path separation and parameter estimation by single DMA in fading channel

Abstract

Abstract The propagation of electromagnetic waves will produce multi‐path fading of wireless channel, which degrades communication performance substantially. If multi‐path can be separated, better signal transmission and reception strategies can be designed to weaken or eliminate fading and improve signal transmission performance. However, it is challenging for communication nodes with limited number of antennas. A general multi‐path separation and measurement framework based on single dynamic metasurface antenna is established which rapidly changes patterns within a single pilot symbol period so that equivalent multi‐dimensional received signals can be obtained. Based on the framework, a multi‐path channel estimation scheme is proposed. Specifically, the parameter estimation problem is formulated and present the algorithm based on atomic norm minimisation to estimate parameters including angle of arrival and complex gain of each propagation path. Simulation results illustrate that single dynamic metasurface antenna can approach the capability of a conventional multi‐antenna array, and even using single dynamic metasurface antenna with 1‐bit coding can estimate angle of arrivals and complex gains of multi‐path components accurately.