256-QAM Uplink Low/Mid-Band

Feature Description

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Copyright

© Ericsson AB 2020-2022. All rights reserved. No part of this document may be

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 Contents

Contents

1 Overview 1

2 Dependencies 2

3 Feature Operation 4
3.1 Operational Process for NR SA 5
3.2 Operational Process for NR NSA 7

4 Network Impact 9

5 Parameters 10

6 Performance 11

7 Activate 13

8 Deactivate 14

9 Engineering Guidelines 15
9.1 Enable 256-QAM Uplink Low/Mid-Band 15
9.2 Disable 256-QAM Uplink Low/Mid-Band 15
9.3 Configure 256-QAM Uplink Low/Mid-Band 15

10 Feature Change History 16

10.1 21.Q1: Enhanced NR Uplink 256-QAM Support 16

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256-QAM Uplink Low/Mid-Band

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1 256-QAM Uplink Low/Mid-Band Overview

The feature increases uplink throughput and spectral efficiency by adding a

higher signal modulation scheme.

Access Type: NR
Feature Identity: FAJ 121 5233
Value Package Name: Peak Rate Evolution
Value Package Identity: FAJ 801 4005
Node Type: Baseband Radio Node
Licensing: License-controlled feature. One license is required
for each node.

Summary
The 256-QAM Uplink Low/Mid-Band feature introduces the uplink 256-QAM
signal modulation scheme.

The operation of the feature is triggered automatically when both the UE and the
cell are confirmed to support the 256-QAM capability.

This signal modulation scheme achieves the following benefits:

— Increased uplink spectral efficiency.

— Increased average uplink throughput.

— Increased peak uplink throughput.

Additional Information
For more information and related topics, see the following documentation:
— RAN Parameter Recommendations Lists

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 256-QAM Uplink Low/Mid-Band

2 Dependencies of 256-QAM Uplink Low/Mid-

Band

In the NR NSA deployment, the feature requires the LTE-NR Dual

Connectivity feature to be active.

Table 1     Feature Dependencies

Feature Relationship Description
High Speed UE Low/Mid- Conflicting The 256-QAM Uplink Low/
Band (FAJ 121 5268) Mid-Band feature is not
supported when the High
Speed UE Low/Mid-Band
feature is active.
LTE-NR Dual Connectivity Related The LTE-NR Dual Connectivity
(FAJ 121 4908) feature must be active for
the 256-QAM Uplink Low/
Mid-Band feature to operate
in the NR NSA deployment.
DFTS-OFDM Waveform in Related In case of single-layer
Uplink (FAJ 121 5089) transmissions in poor radio
conditions, the simultaneous
use of the DFTS-OFDM
Waveform in Uplink feature
and the 256-QAM Uplink
Low/Mid-Band feature can
increase the average uplink
UE throughput.
Uplink Multi-User MIMO Mid- Related The simultaneous use of the
Band (FAJ 121 5011) Uplink Multi-User MIMO Mid-
Band feature and the 256-
QAM Uplink Low/Mid-Band
feature increases UE and cell
throughput.
Massive MIMO Mid-Band (FAJ Related The simultaneous use of
121 4911) the Massive MIMO Mid-
Band feature and the 256-
QAM Uplink Low/Mid-Band
feature increases UE and cell
throughput.

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 Hardware
The feature is supported over the following radio units:

— AAS AIR eCPRI radio units

— Non-AAS CPRI FDD and TDD units

Limitations
The feature is not supported over AAS CPRI FDD radio units.

Network Requirements
No specific network requirements.

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 256-QAM Uplink Low/Mid-Band

3 Feature Operation of 256-QAM Uplink Low/

Mid-Band

To use the feature, both the RAN and the UE need to be 256-QAM capable.

The feature can be enabled by setting the NRCellDU.ul256QamEnabled attribute

to true. If this attribute is set to false, the feature is disabled.

The operation of the feature is triggered automatically when both the UE and the
cell are confirmed to support the 256-QAM capability.

 RELATED INFORMATION 

Enable 256-QAM Uplink Low/Mid-Band

Disable 256-QAM Uplink Low/Mid-Band

Configure 256-QAM Uplink Low/Mid-Band

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3.1 Operational Process for NR SA
In NR SA, the feature begins to operate during the Initial Context Setup
Process.

Operational Sequence Diagram

UE gNodeB-DU gNodeB-CU-CP

F1AP: UE Context Setup Request

UE Capability Check for uplink

256-QAM support

F1AP: UE Context Setup Response

Uplink 256-QAM MCS table sent

F1AP: Downlink RRC Message transfer

RRCReconfiguration

RRCReconfigurationComplete

F1AP: Uplink RRC Message transfer

F1AP: UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION REQUEST

Uplink 256-QAM MCS table takes effect

F1AP: UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION

RESPONSE

L0002890A

Figure 1    Initial Context Setup

Process Steps

1. The gNodeB-CU-CP sends the UE Context Setup Request message to the

gNodeB-DU.

UE capability is checked for uplink 256-QAM support.

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 256-QAM Uplink Low/Mid-Band

If the UE is capable of uplink 256-QAM support, the 256-QAM MCS Table is

sent from the gNodeB-DU to the gNodeB-CU-CP in the UE Context Setup
Response message.

2. The gNodeB-CU-CP sends the downlink RRC message to the gNodeB-DU.

3. The gNodeB-DU sends the RRCReconfiguration message to the UE.

4. The UE sends the RRCReconfigurationComplete message to the gNodeB-

DU.

5. The gNodeB-DU sends the uplink RRC message to the gNodeB-CU-CP.

6. The gNodeB-CU-CP sends the UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION REQUEST

message to the gNodeB-DU.

The UE starts using the uplink 256-QAM MCS table.

7. The gNodeB-DU sends the UE CONTEXT MODIFICATION RESPONSE message

to the gNodeB-CU-CP.

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3.2 Operational Process for NR NSA
In NR NSA, the feature begins to operate during the Secondary Node
Addition Process.

Operational Sequence Diagram

Master Secondary
UE
Node Node

LTE RRC Connected Mode

UE NR Capability

X2AP: SGNB ADDITION REQUEST

X2AP: SGNB ADDITION REQUEST

ACKNOWLEDGE
CellGroupConfig IE including gNodeB
ulMcsTable
RRCConnectionReconfiguration
CellGroupConfig IE including gNodeB
ulMcsTable

RRCConnectionReconfigurationComplete

X2AP: SGNB RECONFIGURATION

COMPLETE

Random Access

L0002745A

Figure 2    Secondary Node Addition

Process Steps

1. RRC connection is established between the UE and the Master node.

2. The Master Node forwards a Secondary Node Addition Request to the

Secondary Node over the X2AP interface.

UE capability is checked for uplink 256-QAM support.

If the UE is capable of uplink 256-QAM support, the Secondary Node

forwards the 256-QAM MCS Table to the UE in the CellGroupConfig
Information Element.

3. The Secondary Node acknowledges the Secondary Node Addition Request.

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 256-QAM Uplink Low/Mid-Band

4. The Master Node initiates the RRC Connection Reconfiguration towards the
UE.

5. The UE completes the RRC Connection Reconfiguration.

The UE starts using the Secondary Node 256-QAM MCS table.

6. The Master Node completes the Secondary Node Reconfiguration. The UE

attaches to the NR cell.

Additional Information
More information about the operation of this feature in EN-DC can be found in
the following documentation:

— LTE-NR Dual Connectivity

— NR Mobility

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4 Network Impact of 256-QAM Uplink Low/
Mid-Band

The feature increases uplink throughput and spectral efficiency.

Capacity and Performance

The feature increases spectral efficiency and the average uplink throughput for
256-QAM capable UEs.

In optimal radio conditions, the 256-QAM signal modulation scheme can also
significantly increase peak throughput in the uplink.

Interfaces
No impact.

Other Network Elements

The NRCellDU.pZeroUePuschOffset256Qam parameter can increase uplink
interference for UEs connected to the neighbor cell. This can result in
performance degradation for these UEs.

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 256-QAM Uplink Low/Mid-Band

5 Parameters for 256-QAM Uplink Low/Mid-

Band

The feature introduces parameters supporting 256-QAM in the uplink. The

parameters take effect at new connection.

Table 2     Parameters
Parameter Type Description
NRCellDU.ul256QamEna Introduced See MOM description.
bled
NRCellDU.pZeroUePusc Introduced See MOM description.
hOffset256Qam

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6 Performance of 256-QAM Uplink Low/Mid-
Band

The feature introduces performance indicators to monitor uplink

transmission for 256-QAM. PM counters are introduced to modify the value
of these Performance Indicators.

PIs

Table 3     Performance Indicators

PI Description
Uplink BLER per Modulation for All This indicator can decrease for 256-
HARQ Transmissions QAM when the UE achieves peak
throughput.
Uplink BLER per Modulation for Initial This indicator can decrease for 256-
HARQ Transmissions QAM when the UE achieves peak
throughput.
Uplink Transmission Percentage per This indicator is expected to rise as the
Modulation UE achieves higher throughput.
Uplink DTX Percentage per This indicator decreases as coverage
Modulation improves.

Uplink BLER per Modulation for all HARQ Transmissions

Uplink BLER per Modulation for Initial HARQ Transmissions

Uplink Transmission Percentage per Modulation

Uplink DTX Percentage per Modulation

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 256-QAM Uplink Low/Mid-Band

Counters
The feature introduces the following PM counters:

— NRCellDU.pmMacHarqUlAck256Qam

— NRCellDU.pmMacHarqUlNack256Qam

— NRCellDU.pmMacHarqUlDtx256Qam

— NRCellDU.pmMacHarqUlAck256QamInit

— NRCellDU.pmMacHarqUlNack256QamInit

— NRCellDU.pmMacHarqUlDtx256QamInit

— NRCellDU.pmRadioPuschTable2McsDistr

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7 Activate 256-QAM Uplink Low/Mid-Band

To use the feature, it must be activated following the usual feature

activation procedure.

Prerequisites

— The license key is installed in the node.

— CCTR is active for at least one week before this procedure to collect enough
troubleshooting data.

Steps

1. Lock the cell.

2. Set the featureState attribute to ACTIVATED in the

FeatureState=CXC4012492 MO instance.

3. Unlock the cell.

After This Task

Keep CCTR active for at least one week after this procedure for continued
collection of troubleshooting data.

 RELATED INFORMATION 

Enable 256-QAM Uplink Low/Mid-Band

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 256-QAM Uplink Low/Mid-Band

8 Deactivate 256-QAM Uplink Low/Mid-Band

If the feature is no longer needed, it can be deactivated following the

usual feature deactivation procedure. It must also be deactivated before the
activation of any conflicting feature.

Prerequisites

— CCTR is active for at least one week before this procedure to collect enough
troubleshooting data.

Steps

1. Lock the cell.

2. Set the ul256QamEnabled attribute to false in all NRCellDU instances.

Note: If the attribute is set to true while the feature is deactivated, the
cell will be disabled after the node is restarted or the cell is unlocked.

3. Set the featureState attribute to DEACTIVATED in the

FeatureState=CXC4012492 MO instance.

4. Unlock the cell.

After This Task

Keep CCTR active for at least one week after this procedure for continued
collection of troubleshooting data.

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9 Engineering Guidelines for 256-QAM Uplink
Low/Mid-Band

9.1 Enable 256-QAM Uplink Low/Mid-Band

The feature must be enabled on each cell where the feature needs to
operate.

Prerequisites
The 256-QAM Uplink Low/Mid-Band feature is activated.

Steps

1. Set the NRCellDU.ul256QamEnabled attribute to true.

9.2 Disable 256-QAM Uplink Low/Mid-Band

Prerequisites
The 256-QAM Uplink Low/Mid-Band feature is activated and enabled.

Steps

1. Set the NRCellDU.ul256QamEnabled attribute to false.

9.3 Configure 256-QAM Uplink Low/Mid-Band

Prerequisites
The 256-QAM Uplink Low/Mid-Band feature is activated and enabled.

Steps

1. Set the NRCellDU.pZeroUePuschOffset256Qam attribute to the required

value.

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 256-QAM Uplink Low/Mid-Band

10 Feature Change History

This section lists changes that affected this feature and the impact it had on
the network.

10.1 21.Q1: Enhanced NR Uplink 256-QAM Support

The enhancement enables the uplink 256-QAM signal modulation scheme
in Low-Band and Mid-Band, in all deployment modes.

Feature Name: 256-QAM Uplink Low/Mid-Band

Feature Identity: FAJ 121 5233
Value Package Name: Peak Rate Evolution
Value Package Identity: FAJ 801 4005
Node Type: Baseband Radio Node
Access Type: NR

Benefits
This feature enhancement introduces 256-QAM support in the following
deployment modes:

— Mid-Band TDD in NR SA

— Mid-Band TDD in NR NSA, for CPRI radio units

— Low-Band FDD in NR SA and NR NSA

Capacity and Performance

This enhancement improves the uplink average and peak throughput, and the
spectral efficiency.

Operation
No impact.

Interfaces
No impact.

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 Feature Change History

Hardware
This enhancement introduces uplink 256-QAM support to non-AAS CPRI FDD
and TDD radio units.

Other Network Elements

The UE is required to support the uplink 256-QAM capability.

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