An overview of research topics and challenges for 5G massive MIMO antennas

An overview of the main research topics for massive multiple input multiple output (MIMO) antenna arrays is presented. Massive MIMO is expected to be one of the pillars of fifth generation (5G) and beyond cellular systems. In fact, with millimeter wave (mmWave) communications, a large number of antenna elements can be used to form large arrays of reasonable sizes. This entails significant challenges that need to be overcome in practical implementations. In this paper, we present an overview of important research topics related to massive MIMIO, and discuss their associated challenges. Furthermore, we present several application areas where massive MIMO antenna arrays could lead to significant performance enhancements.