Orbital angular momentum multiplexing using multiple modes in antenna arrays

Abstract

Methods, systems, and devices for wireless communication are described. In some systems, a first device may generate a plurality of signals via a first circular antenna array including a first number of antenna elements in a circular arrangement. The first device may transmit a first signal of the plurality of signals using a first orbital angular momentum (OAM) mode and a first subset of the first number of antenna elements. Additionally, the first device may transmit a second signal of the plurality of signals using a second OAM mode and a second subset of the first number of antenna elements, where the second subset may not include the first subset.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The following relates to wireless communications involving orbital angular momentum multiplexing using multiple modes in an antenna array. Background Art

[0002] Wireless communication systems are widely deployed to provide various types of communication content, such as voice, video, packet data, messaging, broadcast, etc. These systems may be able to support communication with multiple users by sharing available system resources (e.g., time, frequency, and power). Examples of such multiple access systems include fourth generation (4G) systems (such as long term evolution (LTE) systems, advanced LTE (LTE-A) systems, or LTE-A Pro systems) and fifth generation (5G) systems (which may be referred to as new radio (NR) systems). These systems may employ techniques such as code division multiple access (CDMA), time division multiple access (TDMA), frequency division multiple access (FDMA), orthogonal FDMA (OFDMA), or discrete Fourier transform spread orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (DFT-S-OFDM). A wireless multiple access communication system may include one or more base stations, each of which supports wireless communication for a communication device, which may be referred to as a user equipment (UE).

[0003] Some devices of wireless communication systems may support orbital angular momentum (OAM) multiplexing to increase throughput and reduce latency. Devices supporting OAM multiplexing may use circular antenna arrays to send and receive communications via an OAM multiplexing scheme. Summary of the invention

[0004] The described techniques relate to improved methods, systems, devices, and apparatuses that support orbital angular momentum (OAM) multiplexing using multiple modes in antenna arrays. For example, the described techniques enable a first device (e.g., a transmitting network node) including a first number of antenna elements to support OAM communications with a second device (e.g., a receiving network node including a second number of antenna elements). The transmitting network node and the receiving network node may each include a respective number of antenna elements arranged in respective circular antenna arrays. For example, the transmitting network node may include a first circular antenna array that includes a first number of antenna elements, which may be referred to as a transmitter circle, and the receiving network node may include a second circular antenna array that includes a second number of antenna elements, which may be referred to as a receiver circle.

[0005] A network node may support OAM communication by communicating multiple signals in the form of multiple coaxially propagating, spatially overlapping waves, wherein each of these waves may be associated with an OAM mode. For example, a sending network node may generate multiple signals for transmission from a sending network node to a receiving network node by using a first circular antenna array. The sending network node may transmit a first signal of the multiple signals via a first OAM mode by utilizing a first subset of a first number of antenna elements in the first circular antenna array. Additionally, the sending network node may transmit a second signal of the multiple signals via a second OAM mode by utilizing a second subset of the first number of antenna elements in the first circular antenna array that is different from the first subset. In some aspects, the sending network node may use a first OAM mode to transmit the first signal and a second OAM mode to transmit the second signal based on a capability message that sends a specified multi-mode transmission mode and a feedback message that receives from a receiving network node indicating that the sending network node can use the multi-mode transmission mode specified in the capability message.

[0006] A method for wireless communication at a first device is described. The method may include generating a set of multiple signals to be transmitted from the first device via a first circular antenna array, the first circular antenna array including a first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle; transmitting a first signal in the set of multiple signals using a first orbital angular momentum pattern and a first subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in the circle; and transmitting a second signal in the set of multiple signals using a second orbital angular momentum pattern and a second subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in the circle, wherein the second subset does not include the first subset.

[0007] An apparatus for wireless communication at a first device is described. The apparatus may include a processor, a memory coupled to the processor, and instructions stored in the memory. The instructions may be executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to: generate a set of multiple signals to be sent from the first device via a first circular antenna array, the first circular antenna array including a first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle; send a first signal in the set of multiple signals using a first orbital angular momentum pattern and a first subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in the circle; and send a second signal in the set of multiple signals using a second orbital angular momentum pattern and a second subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in the circle, wherein the second subset does not include the first subset.

[0008] Another apparatus for wireless communication at a first device is described. The apparatus may include: means for generating a set of multiple signals for transmission from the first device via a first circular antenna array, the first circular antenna array including a first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle; means for transmitting a first signal of the set of multiple signals using a first orbital angular momentum pattern and a first subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in the circle; and means for transmitting a second signal of the set of multiple signals using a second orbital angular momentum pattern and a second subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in the circle, wherein the second subset does not include the first subset.

[0009] A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing code for wireless communication at a first device is described. The code may include instructions executable by a processor to: generate a set of multiple signals to be transmitted from the first device via a first circular antenna array, the first circular antenna array including a first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle; transmit a first signal in the set of multiple signals using a first orbital angular momentum pattern and a first subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in the circle; and transmit a second signal in the set of multiple signals using a second orbital angular momentum pattern and a second subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in the circle, wherein the second subset does not include the first subset.

[0010] Some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein may also include operations, features, components, or instructions for the following actions: sending a capability message specifying that the first device may be able to send a signal using a multi-mode transmission mode, the multi-mode transmission mode including the first orbital angular momentum mode using the first subset of antenna elements arranged in the circle and the second orbital angular momentum mode using the second subset of antenna elements arranged in the circle.

[0011] In some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein, sending the capability message may include operations, features, means, or instructions for sending the capability message using a radio resource control signal or a system broadcast signal.

[0012] Some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein may also include operations, features, components, or instructions for the following actions: receiving a feedback message from a second device, the feedback message indicating that the first device may want to use the multi-mode transmission mode among the single-mode transmission mode and the multi-mode transmission mode.

[0013] Some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein may also include operations, features, components, or instructions for the following actions: sending an indication of a topology of the first circular antenna array, wherein the topology includes the number of circles of the first circular antenna array, the number of antenna elements in one or more circles of the first circular antenna array, the number of power amplifiers used for the one or more circles, the number of digital beamformers used for the one or more circles, or a combination thereof.

[0014] Some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein may also include operations, features, components, or instructions for receiving, from a second device, an indication of a topology of a second circular antenna array of the second device, wherein the topology includes the number of circles of the second circular antenna array, the number of antenna elements in one or more circles of the second circular antenna array, the number of power amplifiers used for the one or more circles, the number of digital beamformers used for the one or more circles, or a combination thereof.

[0015] In some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein, sending the first signal and sending the second signal may include operations, features, components, or instructions for the following actions: using the first orbital angular momentum pattern to send the first signal and using the second orbital angular momentum pattern to send the second signal based on the topology of the first circular antenna array, the topology of the second circular antenna array of the second device, or a combination thereof.

[0016] In some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein, sending the first signal and sending the second signal may include operations, features, components, or instructions for the following actions: sending the first signal including the first set of reference signals, and sending the second signal including the second set of reference signals.

[0017] Some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein may also include operations, features, components, or instructions for the following actions: receiving a feedback message from a second device based on sending the first set of reference signals and the second set of reference signals, the feedback message indicating one or more channel quality indicators corresponding to each antenna element in the first number of antenna elements, each mode in the first orbital angular momentum mode and the second orbital angular momentum mode, or a combination thereof.

[0018] Some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein may also include operations, features, means, or instructions for sending one or more subsequent signals using the first orbital angular momentum mode, the second orbital angular momentum mode, or both based on the one or more channel quality indications.

[0019] In some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein, each antenna element in the first subset and each antenna element in the second subset can be arranged in an alternating pattern in the circle.

[0020] In some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein, sending the first signal and sending the second signal may include operations, features, components, or instructions for the following actions: sending the first signal using a first power applied by a first power amplifier corresponding to the first subset of antenna elements and the first orbital angular momentum mode, and sending the second signal using a second power applied by a second power amplifier corresponding to the second subset of antenna elements and the second orbital angular momentum mode.

[0021] Some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein may also include operations, features, components, or instructions for applying a set of beamforming weights to transmit the first signal and the second signal using a first number of phasors, wherein each phasor in the first number of phasors corresponds to a respective antenna element in the first number of antenna elements.

[0022] Some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein may also include operations, features, components, or instructions for: generating a second plurality of signals to be sent from the first device via the first circular antenna array, the first circular antenna array comprising a second number of antenna elements arranged in a second circle; sending a first signal of the second plurality of signals using a third orbital angular momentum pattern and a first subset of the second number of antenna elements arranged in the second circle; and sending a second signal of the second plurality of signals using a fourth orbital angular momentum pattern and a second subset of the second number of antenna elements arranged in the second circle, wherein the second subset of the second number of antenna elements may not include the first subset of the second number of antenna elements, and wherein the circle and the second circle may be concentric.

[0023] In some examples of the methods, devices, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein, the first number of antenna elements may be positioned at a first set of radial lines of the circle, and the second number of antenna elements may be positioned at a second set of radial lines in the second circle, and the second set of radial lines may be offset between the first set of radial lines.

[0024] In some examples of the methods, devices, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein, the first number of antenna elements may be positioned at a first set of radial lines of the circle, and the second number of antenna elements may be positioned at a second set of radial lines in the second circle, and the second set of radial lines may be parallel to the first set of radial lines.

[0025] In some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein, sending the first signal and sending the second signal may include operations, features, components, or instructions for the following actions: using the first number of antenna elements to send the first signal and the second signal to a second device, and the first number of antenna elements may be radially offset from the second number of antenna elements of the second device.

[0026] A method for wireless communication at a first device is described. The method may include: receiving a first signal from a set of multiple signals at a first circular antenna array including a first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle using a first orbital angular momentum pattern and a first subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in the circle; receiving a second signal from the set of multiple signals using a second orbital angular momentum pattern and a second subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in the circle, wherein the second subset does not include the first subset; and decoding the first signal received using the first orbital angular momentum pattern and the first subset and the second signal received using the second orbital angular momentum pattern and the second subset.

[0027] An apparatus for wireless communication at a first device is described. The apparatus may include a processor, a memory coupled to the processor, and instructions stored in the memory. The instructions may be executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to: receive a first signal from a set of multiple signals using a first orbital angular momentum pattern and a first subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle at a first circular antenna array including a first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle; receive a second signal from the set of multiple signals using a second orbital angular momentum pattern and a second subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in the circle, wherein the second subset does not include the first subset; and decode the first signal received using the first orbital angular momentum pattern and the first subset and the second signal received using the second orbital angular momentum pattern and the second subset.

[0028] Another apparatus for wireless communication at a first device is described. The apparatus may include: means for receiving a first signal of a set of multiple signals at a first circular antenna array including a first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle using a first orbital angular momentum pattern and a first subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in the circle; means for receiving a second signal of the set of multiple signals using a second orbital angular momentum pattern and a second subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in the circle, wherein the second subset does not include the first subset; and means for decoding the first signal received using the first orbital angular momentum pattern and the first subset and the second signal received using the second orbital angular momentum pattern and the second subset.

[0029] A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing code for wireless communication at a first device is described. The code may include instructions executable by a processor to: receive a first signal from a set of multiple signals using a first orbital angular momentum pattern and a first subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle at a first circular antenna array including a first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle; receive a second signal from the set of multiple signals using a second orbital angular momentum pattern and a second subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in the circle, wherein the second subset does not include the first subset; and decode the first signal received using the first orbital angular momentum pattern and the first subset and the second signal received using the second orbital angular momentum pattern and the second subset.

[0030] Some examples of the methods, apparatuses, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein may also include operations, features, means, or instructions for receiving a capability message from a second device specifying that the first device may be capable of transmitting a signal using a multi-mode transmission mode.

[0031] In some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein, receiving the capability message may include operations, features, means, or instructions for receiving the capability message using a radio resource control signal or a system broadcast signal.

[0032] Some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein may also include operations, features, modules, or instructions for the following actions: sending a feedback message to the second device, the feedback message indicating that the first device may want to use the multi-mode transmission mode among the single-mode transmission mode and the multi-mode transmission mode.

[0033] Some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein may also include operations, features, components, or instructions for receiving, from a second device, an indication of a topology of a second circular antenna array of the second device, wherein the topology includes the number of circles of the second circular antenna array, the number of antenna elements in one or more circles of the second circular antenna array, the number of power amplifiers used for the one or more circles, the number of digital beamformers used for the one or more circles, or a combination thereof.

[0034] Some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein may also include operations, features, components, or instructions for sending an indication of a topology of the first circular antenna array to a second device, wherein the topology includes the number of circles of the first circular antenna array, the number of antenna elements in one or more circles of the first circular antenna array, the number of power amplifiers used for the one or more circles, the number of digital beamformers used for the one or more circles, or a combination thereof.

[0035] In some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein, receiving the first signal and the second signal may include operations, features, components, or instructions for the following actions: using the first orbital angular momentum pattern to receive the first signal and using the second orbital angular momentum pattern to receive the second signal based on the topology of the first circular antenna array, the topology of the second circular antenna array of the second device, or a combination thereof.

[0036] In some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein, receiving the first signal and the second signal may include operations, features, components, or instructions for the following actions: receiving the first signal including a first set of reference signals, and receiving the second signal including a second set of reference signals.

[0037] Some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein may also include operations, features, components, or instructions for the following actions: based on receiving the first set of reference signals and the second set of reference signals, sending a feedback message to the second device, the feedback message indicating one or more channel quality indicators corresponding to each antenna element of the second number of antenna elements of the second device, each orbital angular momentum mode used by the second device, or a combination thereof.

[0038] In some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein, each antenna element in the first subset and each antenna element in the second subset can be arranged in an alternating pattern in the circle.

[0039] Some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein may also include operations, features, components, or instructions for: receiving a third signal using a third orbital angular momentum pattern and a first subset of a second number of antenna elements arranged in a second circle; receiving a fourth signal using a fourth orbital angular momentum pattern and a second subset of the second number of antenna elements arranged in the second circle; and decoding the third signal received using the third orbital angular momentum pattern and the first subset of the second number of antenna elements and the fourth signal received using the fourth orbital angular momentum pattern and the second subset of the second number of antenna elements.

[0040] In some examples of the methods, devices, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein, the first number of antenna elements may be positioned at a first set of radial lines of the circle, and the second number of antenna elements may be positioned at a second set of radial lines in the second circle, and the second set of radial lines may be offset between the first set of radial lines.

[0041] In some examples of the methods, devices, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein, the first number of antenna elements may be positioned at a first set of radial lines of the circle, and the second number of antenna elements may be positioned at a second set of radial lines in the second circle, and the second set of radial lines may be parallel to the first set of radial lines.

[0042] Some examples of the methods, apparatus, and non-transitory computer-readable media described herein may also include operations, features, components, or instructions for receiving the first signal and the second signal from a second device using the first number of antenna elements, the first number of antenna elements being radially offset from a second number of antenna elements of the second device. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0043] Figure 1 An example of a wireless communication system supporting orbital angular momentum (OAM) multiplexing using multiple modes in an antenna array according to one or more aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated.

[0044] Figure 2 An example of a wireless communication system supporting OAM multiplexing using multiple modes in an antenna array according to one or more aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated.

[0045] Figure 3 An example of an OAM antenna array configuration supporting OAM multiplexing using multiple modes in an antenna array according to one or more aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated.

[0046] Figure 4A and Figure 4B An example of an OAM antenna array configuration supporting OAM multiplexing using multiple modes in an antenna array according to one or more aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated.

[0047] Figure 5A and Figure 5B An example of an OAM antenna array configuration supporting OAM multiplexing using multiple modes in an antenna array according to one or more aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated.

[0048] Figure 6 An example of an OAM antenna array system supporting OAM multiplexing using multiple modes in an antenna array according to one or more aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated.

[0049] Figure 7 An example of a process flow to support OAM multiplexing using multiple modes in an antenna array in accordance with one or more aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated.

[0050] Figure 8 and Fig. 9 A block diagram of a device supporting OAM using multiple modes in an antenna array according to one or more aspects of the present disclosure is shown.

[0051] Fig.10 A block diagram of a communication manager supporting OAM multiplexing using multiple modes in an antenna array is shown in accordance with one or more aspects of the present disclosure.

[0052] Fig.11 A diagram of a system including a UE supporting OAM multiplexing using multiple modes in an antenna array is shown in accordance with one or more aspects of the present disclosure.

[0053] Fig.12 A diagram of a system including a network entity supporting OAM multiplexing using multiple modes in an antenna array in accordance with one or more aspects of the present disclosure is shown.

[0054] Figures 13 to 16 A flow chart illustrating a method of supporting OAM multiplexing using multiple modes in an antenna array according to one or more aspects of the present disclosure is shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0055] In some wireless communication systems, wireless devices such as base stations, user equipment (UE), network nodes, or any combination thereof may communicate directionally, for example, using beams, to direct communication signals in one or more directions. Various wireless communication schemes such as line-of-site multiple input multiple output (LoS-MIMO) are being considered for advanced wireless communication systems (e.g., sixth generation (6G) wireless communication systems) to, for example, support high throughput over short distances. In such environments, two network nodes or other devices may communicate using one or more antenna arrays. For example, a device may support orbital angular momentum (OAM) multiplexing, wherein a first device, which may be referred to as a transmitting device, and a second device, which may be referred to as a receiving device, may each be equipped with an antenna array arranged in a circle (e.g., a transmitter circle and a receiver circle, respectively). As used herein, a transmitter circle or a receiver circle may refer to a circular arrangement of antenna elements configured to support OAM multiplexing, and the antenna elements of a transmitter circle or a receiver circle may, but need not, be arranged in a perfect circle. A transmitter circle, a receiver circle, or both may alternatively be referred to as a circular antenna array.

[0056] The transmitter and receiver circles may support communication between devices according to one or more OAM modes. Each OAM mode may correspond to a corresponding vector of OAM weights (e.g., an OAM weighting vector) that will be applied to the antenna elements of the transmitter circle and the receiver circle, respectively, to generate and decode the signal. In some cases, the transmitter circle and the receiver circle may communicate signals according to a single OAM mode between the corresponding circular antenna arrays. However, using a single OAM mode for communication between the corresponding circular antenna arrays may limit the total throughput of data in the wireless communication network. In other cases, the transmitter circle and the receiver circle may communicate signals according to multiple OAM modes by utilizing all antenna elements of the corresponding circular antenna array to support multiple OAM modes. However, utilizing all antenna elements of the corresponding circular antenna array to support multiple OAM modes may result in unequal power distribution, and therefore requires the use of multiple power amplifiers at one or two network nodes.

[0057] The technology described herein provides a configuration for OAM communication between a first device and a second device that supports multiple OAM modes in a single circular antenna array at one or two devices. The first circular antenna array at the first device may include multiple subsets of a first number of equally spaced antenna elements in a circle, wherein each subset may be associated with one of the multiple OAM modes. For example, the first device may generate multiple signals to be sent from the first device to the second device via the first circular antenna array. The first device may use the first OAM mode and the first subset of the first circular antenna array to send the first signal of the multiple signals. Additionally, the first device may use the second OAM mode and the second subset of the first circular antenna array to send the second signal of the multiple signals, wherein the first subset and the second subset are different. In some cases, the first subset and the second subset do not include each other.

[0058] In some examples, the first circular antenna array may be composed of a first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle (e.g., 8 antenna elements arranged in a circle). The first number of antenna elements may be divided into a first subset of the first number of antenna elements (e.g., such that one of every two antenna elements of the first number of elements belongs to the first subset) and a second subset of the first number of antenna elements (e.g., such that the remaining antenna elements of the first number of elements belong to the second subset), wherein the first subset may be associated with a first OAM azimuth pattern and the second subset may be associated with a second OAM azimuth pattern. After receiving the first signal and the second signal sent by the first device, the second device may decode the first signal and the second signal using the corresponding set of antenna elements.

[0059] In some aspects, these devices (e.g., network nodes) may apply these multiplexing schemes to multiple circles of antenna elements such that each circle supports multiple OAM modes based on dividing the antenna elements into two or more subsets. The multiple circles of antenna elements arranged in an antenna array may be concentric. For example, a first circular antenna array may include a first number of antenna elements in a first circle, and a second number of antenna elements in a second circle concentric with the first circle. Additionally or alternatively, the first device may use a first subset of the first number of antenna elements to send a first signal, use a second subset of the first number of antenna elements to send a second signal, use a first subset of the second number of antenna elements to send a third signal, and use a second subset of the second number of antenna elements to send a fourth signal, such that each subset supports a different OAM mode.

[0060] Specific implementations of the subject matter described in the present disclosure may be implemented to achieve one or more of the following potential advantages. For example, a device that supports OAM multiplexing by utilizing multiple OAM modes in a single circular antenna array provides a higher degree of freedom gain at the expense of lower array gain, resulting in a throughput gain at a high signal-to-noise ratio (SNR). As a result, such a device can increase the total throughput in a wireless communication network, thereby achieving low-latency wireless communication. Moreover, a device that utilizes multiple OAM modes in a single circular antenna array can help improve resource utilization and therefore contribute to resource conservation in wireless communications. In addition, the techniques described herein can reduce power consumption by reducing the amount of power amplifiers at the device. For example, if each subset of multiple antenna elements arranged in a circular antenna array can be associated with a single OAM mode, each OAM mode may require a power amplifier instead of one power amplifier per antenna element. In addition, if multiple OAM modes in a single circular antenna array have the same power, a single power amplifier may be sufficient for a circular antenna array containing multiple OAM modes.

[0061] Aspects of the present disclosure are first described in the context of wireless communication systems. Additional aspects of the present disclosure are described with reference to OAM antenna array configurations and process flows. Aspects of the present disclosure are further illustrated and described by and with reference to apparatus diagrams, system diagrams, and flow diagrams related to orbital angular momentum multiplexing using multiple modes in an antenna array.

[0062] Figure 1An example of a wireless communication system 100 that supports OAM multiplexing using multiple modes in an antenna array according to one or more aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated. The wireless communication system 100 may include one or more network entities 105, one or more UEs 115, and a core network 130. In some examples, the wireless communication system 100 may be a long term evolution (LTE) network, an advanced LTE (LTE-A) network, an LTE-A Pro network, a new radio (NR) network, or a network operating according to other systems and radio technologies (including future systems and radio technologies not explicitly mentioned herein).

[0063] The network entities 105 may be dispersed throughout a geographic area to form the wireless communication system 100, and may include devices in different forms or with different capabilities. In various examples, the network entities 105 may be referred to as network elements, mobility elements, radio access network (RAN) nodes, or network equipment, among other names. In some examples, the network entities 105 and the UE 115 may communicate wirelessly via one or more communication links 125 (e.g., radio frequency (RF) access links). For example, the network entity 105 may support a coverage area 110 (e.g., a geographic coverage area), and the UE 115 and the network entity 105 may establish one or more communication links 125 over the coverage area. The coverage area 110 may be an example of a geographic area, and the network entity 105 and the UE 115 may support signal communications over the geographic area according to one or more radio access technologies (RATs).

[0064] The UEs 115 may be dispersed throughout the coverage area 110 of the wireless communication system 100, and each UE 115 may be stationary or mobile, or stationary and mobile at different times. The UEs 115 may be devices in different forms or with different capabilities. Figure 1 Some example UEs 115 are illustrated in FIG. 1 . The UEs 115 described herein can communicate with various types of devices, such as Figure 1 Communicate with other UEs 115 or network entities 105) as shown.

[0065] As described herein, a node of the wireless communication system 100 (which may be referred to as a network node or a wireless node) may be a network entity 105 (e.g., any network entity described herein), a UE 115 (e.g., any UE described herein), a network controller, an apparatus, a device, a computing system, one or more components, or another suitable processing entity configured to perform any of the techniques described herein. For example, the node may be a UE 115. As another example, the node may be a network entity 105. As another example, a first node may be configured to communicate with a second node or a third node. In one aspect of this example, the first node may be a UE 115, the second node may be a network entity 105, and the third node may be a UE 115. In another aspect of this example, the first node may be a UE 115, the second node may be a network entity 105, and the third node may be a network entity 105. In other aspects of this example, the first node, the second node, and the third node may be different relative to these examples. Similarly, references to UE 115, network entity 105, apparatus, device, computing system, etc. may include disclosure of UE 115, network entity 105, apparatus, device, computing system, etc. as nodes. For example, a disclosure that UE 115 is configured to receive information from network entity 105 also discloses that the first node is configured to receive information from a second node.

[0066] In some examples, the network entities 105 may communicate with the core network 130, or with each other, or both. For example, the network entities 105 may communicate with the core network 130 via one or more backhaul links 120 (e.g., according to S1, N2, N3, or other interface protocols). In some examples, the network entities 105 may communicate with each other directly (e.g., directly between the network entities 105) or indirectly (e.g., via the core network 130) via the backhaul communication link 120 (e.g., according to X2, Xn, or other interface protocols). In some examples, the network entities 105 may communicate with each other via the midhaul communication link 162 (e.g., according to the midhaul interface protocol) or the fronthaul communication link 168 (e.g., according to the fronthaul interface protocol) or any combination thereof. The backhaul communication link 120, the midhaul communication link 162, or the fronthaul communication link 168 may be or include one or more wired links (e.g., electrical links, optical fiber links), one or more wireless links (e.g., radio links, wireless optical links), or other examples or various combinations thereof. UE 115 may communicate with core network 130 via communication link 155 .

[0067] One or more of the network entities 105 described herein may include or may be referred to as a base station 140 (e.g., a transceiver base station, a radio base station, an NR base station, an access point, a radio transceiver, a Node B, an evolved Node B (eNB), a next generation Node B, or a Gigabit Node B (any of which may be referred to as a gNB), a 5G NB, a next generation eNB (ng-eNB), a Home Node B, a Home Evolved Node B, or other suitable terms). In some examples, the network entity 105 (e.g., a base station 140) may be implemented in an aggregated (e.g., monolithic, standalone) base station architecture, which may be configured to utilize a protocol stack that is physically or logically integrated within a single network entity 105 (e.g., a single RAN node, such as a base station 140).

[0068] In some examples, the network entity 105 may be implemented in a disaggregated architecture (e.g., a disaggregated base station architecture, a disaggregated RAN architecture) that may be configured to utilize a protocol stack that is physically or logically distributed between two or more network entities 105, such as an integrated access backhaul (IAB) network, an open RAN (O-RAN) (e.g., a network configuration sponsored by the O-RAN Alliance), or a virtualized RAN (vRAN) (e.g., a cloud RAN (C-RAN)). For example, the network entity 105 may include one or more of the following: a central unit (CU) 160, a distributed unit (DU) 165, a radio unit (RU) 170, a RAN intelligent controller (RIC) 175 (e.g., a near real-time RIC (near RT RIC), a non-real-time RIC (non-RT RIC)), a service management and orchestration (SMO) 180 system, or any combination thereof. The RU 170 may also be referred to as a radio head, a smart radio head, a remote radio head (RRH), a remote radio unit (RRU), or a transmit receive point (TRP). One or more components of the network entity 105 in the decomposed RAN architecture may be co-located, or one or more components of the network entity 105 may be located in distributed locations (e.g., separate physical locations). In some examples, one or more network entities 105 of the decomposed RAN architecture may be implemented as virtual units (e.g., virtual CU (VCU), virtual DU (VDU), virtual RU (VRU)).

[0069] The functional split between CU 160, DU 165, and RU 175 is flexible and may support different functionalities depending on which functions (e.g., network layer functions, protocol layer functions, baseband functions, RF functions, and any combination thereof) are performed at CU 160, DU 165, and RU 175. For example, a functional split of a protocol stack may be employed between CU 160 and DU 165 such that CU 160 may support one or more layers of a protocol stack and DU 165 may support one or more different layers of a protocol stack. In some examples, CU 160 may host higher protocol layer (e.g., layer 3 (L3), layer 2 (L2)) functionality and signaling (e.g., radio resource control (RRC), service data adaptation protocol (SDAP), packet data convergence protocol (PDCP)). The CU 160 may be connected to one or more DUs 165 or RUs 170, and the one or more DUs 165 or RUs 170 may host lower protocol layers, such as layer 1 (L1) (e.g., physical (PHY) layer) or L2 (e.g., radio link control (RLC) layer, medium access control (MAC) layer) functionality and signaling, and may each be at least partially controlled by the CU 160. Additionally or alternatively, a functional split of the protocol stack may be employed between the DU 165 and the RU 170, such that the DU 165 may support one or more layers of the protocol stack, and the RU 170 may support one or more different layers of the protocol stack. The DU 165 may support one or more different cells (e.g., via one or more RUs 170). In some cases, the functional split between CU 160 and DU 165 or between DU 165 and RU 170 may be within the protocol layer (e.g., some functions of the protocol layer may be performed by one of CU 160, DU 165, or RU 170, while other functions of the protocol layer are performed by the other of CU 160, DU 165, or RU 170). CU 160 may be further functionally split into CU control plane (CU-CP) functions and CU user plane (CU-UP) functions. CU 160 may be connected to one or more DUs 165 via midhaul communication links 162 (e.g., F1, F1-c, F1-u), and DU 165 may be connected to one or more RUs 170 via fronthaul communication links 168 (e.g., open fronthaul (FH) interface). In some examples, midhaul communication link 162 or fronthaul communication link 168 may be implemented based on interfaces (eg, channels) between layers of a protocol stack supported by respective network entities 105 communicating over those communication links.

[0070] In some wireless communication systems (e.g., wireless communication system 100), infrastructure and spectrum resources for radio access may support wireless backhaul link capabilities to supplement wired backhaul connections, thereby providing an IAB network architecture (e.g., to the core network 130). In some cases, in an IAB network, one or more network entities 105 (e.g., IAB nodes 104) may be partially controlled by each other. One or more IAB nodes 104 may be referred to as host entities or IAB hosts. One or more DUs 165 or one or more RUs 170 may be partially controlled by one or more CUs 160 associated with a host network entity 105 (e.g., a host base station 140). One or more host network entities 105 (e.g., IAB hosts) may communicate with one or more additional network entities 105 (e.g., IAB nodes 104) via supported access and backhaul links (e.g., backhaul communication links 120). The IAB node 104 may include an IAB mobile terminal (IAB-MT) controlled (e.g., scheduled) by a DU 165 of a coupled IAB host. The IAB-MT may include an independent set of antennas for relaying communications with the UE 115, or may share the same antennas of the IAB node 104 (e.g., of the RU 170) for access via the DU 165 of the IAB node 104 (e.g., referred to as a virtual IAB-MT (vIAB-MT)). In some examples, the IAB node 104 may include a DU 165 that supports communication links with additional entities (e.g., IAB node 104, UE 115) within a relay chain or configuration (e.g., downstream) of the access network. In such cases, one or more components of the decomposed RAN architecture (e.g., one or more IAB nodes 104 or components of the IAB node 104) may be configured to operate according to the techniques described herein.

[0071] For example, an access network (AN) or RAN may include an access node (e.g., an IAB host), communications between an IAB node 104 and one or more UEs 115. The IAB host may facilitate a connection between the core network 130 and the AN (e.g., via a wired or wireless connection to the core network 130). That is, the IAB host may refer to a RAN node having a wired or wireless connection to the core network 130. The IAB host may include a CU 160 and at least one DU 165 (e.g., and RU 170), wherein the CU 160 may communicate with the core network 130 via an interface (e.g., a backhaul link). The IAB host and the IAB node 104 may communicate via an F1 interface according to a protocol defining a signaling message (e.g., an F1 AP protocol). Additionally or alternatively, the CU 160 may communicate with the core network via an interface (which may be an example of a portion of a backhaul link), and may communicate with other CUs 160 (e.g., CUs 160 associated with an alternative IAB host) via an Xn-C interface (which may be an example of a portion of a backhaul link).

[0072] An IAB node 104 may refer to a RAN node that provides IAB functionality (e.g., access for UE 115, wireless self-backhaul capabilities, etc.). DU 165 may act as a distributed scheduling node toward child nodes associated with IAB node 104, and IAB-MT may act as a scheduled node toward a parent node associated with IAB node 104. That is, an IAB host may be referred to as a parent node that communicates with one or more child nodes (e.g., an IAB host may relay for UE transmissions through one or more other IAB nodes 104). Additionally or alternatively, depending on the relay chain or configuration of the AN, an IAB node 104 may also be referred to as a parent node or child node of other IAB nodes 104. Thus, the IAB-MT entity of the IAB node 104 may provide a Uu interface for the child IAB node 104 to receive signaling from the parent IAB node 104 , and a DU interface (eg, DU 165 ) may provide a Uu interface for the parent IAB node 104 to signal to the child IAB node 104 or the UE 115 .

[0073] For example, the IAB node 104 may be referred to as a parent node that supports child IAB node communications and as a child node associated with the IAB host. The IAB host may include a CU 160 having a wired or wireless connection to the core network 130 (e.g., a backhaul communication link 120), and may act as a parent node of the IAB node 104. For example, the DU 165 of the IAB host may relay transmissions to the UE 115 via the IAB node 104, and may directly signal the transmissions to the UE 115. The CU 160 of the IAB host may signal the establishment of a communication link to the IAB node 104 via the F1 interface, and the IAB node 104 may schedule transmissions (e.g., transmissions relayed from the IAB host to the UE 115) via the DU 165. That is, data may be relayed to and from the IAB node 104 via signaling on the NR Uu interface of the MT to the IAB node 104. Communications with the IAB node 104 may be scheduled by the DU 165 of the IAB host, and communications with the IAB node 104 may be scheduled by the DU 165 of the IAB node 104 .

[0074] Where the techniques described herein are applied to the context of a disaggregated RAN architecture, one or more components of the disaggregated RAN architecture may be configured to support OAM multiplexing using multiple modes in an antenna array as described herein. For example, some operations described as being performed by a UE 115 or a network entity 105 (e.g., a base station 140) may additionally or alternatively be performed by one or more components of the disaggregated RAN architecture (e.g., an IAB node 104, a DU 165, a CU 160, a RU 170, a RIC 175, a SMO 180).

[0075] UE 115 may include or may be referred to as a mobile device, a wireless device, a remote device, a handheld device, or a subscriber device, or some other suitable term, where "device" may also be referred to as other examples such as a unit, a station, a terminal, or a client. UE 115 may also include or may be referred to as a personal electronic device such as a cellular phone, a personal digital assistant (PDA), a tablet computer, a laptop computer, or a personal computer. In some examples, UE 115 may include or may be referred to as other examples such as a wireless local loop (WLL) station, an Internet of Things (IoT) device, an Internet of Everything (IoE) device, or a machine type communication (MTC) device, which may be implemented in various objects such as appliances or vehicles, meters, and other examples.

[0076] The UE 115 described herein may be capable of communicating with various types of devices, such as other UEs 115, which may sometimes act as relays, as well as network entities 105 and network equipment including macro eNBs or gNBs, small cell eNBs or gNBs, relay base stations, and other examples, such as Figure 1 shown.

[0077] The UE 115 and the network entity 105 may wirelessly communicate with each other via one or more communication links 125 (e.g., access links) on one or more carriers. The term "carrier" may refer to a collection of RF spectrum resources having a defined physical layer structure for supporting the communication link 125. For example, a carrier for the communication link 125 may include a portion of an RF spectrum band (e.g., a bandwidth portion (BWP)) that operates according to one or more physical layer channels for a given radio access technology (e.g., LTE, LTE-A, LTE-A Pro, NR). Each physical layer channel may carry acquisition signaling (e.g., synchronization signals, system information), control signaling for coordinating carrier operations, user data, or other signaling. The wireless communication system 100 may support communications with the UE 115 using carrier aggregation or multi-carrier operation. Depending on the carrier aggregation configuration, the UE 115 may be configured to have multiple downlink component carriers and one or more uplink component carriers. Carrier aggregation may be used for both frequency division duplex (FDD) component carriers and time division duplex (TDD) component carriers. Communication between the network entity 105 and other devices may refer to communication between a device and any portion (e.g., entity, sub-entity) of the network entity 105. For example, the terms "send," "receive," or "communicate" when referring to the network entity 105 may refer to any portion of the network entity 105 (e.g., base station 140, CU 160, DU 165, RU 170) of the RAN communicating with another device (e.g., directly or via one or more other network entities 105).

[0078] In some examples, such as in a carrier aggregation configuration, a carrier may also have acquisition signaling or control signaling that coordinates the operation of other carriers. A carrier may be associated with a frequency channel (e.g., an Evolved Universal Mobile Telecommunications System Terrestrial Radio Access (E-UTRA) Absolute RF Channel Number (EARFCN)) and may be located according to a channel raster for discovery by UE 115. A carrier may operate in a standalone mode, in which case initial acquisition and connection may be performed by UE 115 via the carrier, or a carrier may operate in a non-standalone mode, in which case the connection is anchored using a different carrier (e.g., a different carrier of the same or different radio access technology).

[0079] The communication link 125 shown in the wireless communication system 100 may include downlink transmissions (e.g., forward link transmissions) from the network entity 105 to the UE 115, uplink transmissions (e.g., return link transmissions) from the UE 115 to the network entity 105, or both, among other transmission configurations. A carrier may carry either downlink communications or uplink communications (e.g., in FDD mode), or may be configured to carry both downlink communications and uplink communications (e.g., in TDD mode).

[0080] A carrier may be associated with a particular bandwidth of the RF spectrum, and in some examples, the carrier bandwidth may be referred to as a "system bandwidth" of the carrier or wireless communication system 100. For example, the carrier bandwidth may be one of a set of bandwidths (e.g., 1.4 megahertz (MHz), 3 MHz, 5 MHz, 10 MHz, 15 MHz, 20 MHz, 40 MHz, or 80 MHz) of a carrier of a particular radio access technology. A device (e.g., a network entity 105, a UE 115, or both) of the wireless communication system 100 may have a hardware configuration that supports communication on a particular carrier bandwidth or may be configurable to support communication on one of a set of carrier bandwidths. In some examples, the wireless communication system 100 may include a network entity 105 or a UE 115 that supports concurrent communication via carriers associated with multiple carrier bandwidths. In some examples, each served UE 115 may be configured to operate on a portion (e.g., a subband, a BWP) or all of a carrier bandwidth.

[0081] The signal waveform sent on the carrier may be composed of multiple subcarriers (e.g., using multi-carrier modulation (MCM) techniques, such as orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) or discrete Fourier transform spread OFDM (DFT-S-OFDM)). In a system using MCM technology, a resource element may refer to a resource of one symbol period (e.g., the duration of one modulation symbol) and one subcarrier, in which case the symbol period and the subcarrier spacing may be inversely related. The amount of bits carried by each resource element may depend on the modulation scheme (e.g., the order of the modulation scheme, the coding rate of the modulation scheme, or both), so that the more resource elements a device receives and the higher the order of the modulation scheme, the higher the data rate for the device may be. Wireless communication resources may refer to a combination of RF spectrum resources, time resources, and spatial resources (e.g., spatial layers, beams), and the use of multiple spatial resources may increase the data rate or data integrity of communications with UE 115.

[0082] The time interval for the network entity 105 or the UE 115 may be expressed as a multiple of a basic time unit, which may be, for example, a sampling period T s =1 / (Δf max ·N f) seconds, where Δf max It can represent the maximum supported subcarrier spacing, and N f The maximum supported discrete Fourier transform (DFT) size may be indicated. Time intervals of communication resources may be organized according to radio frames, each having a specified duration (e.g., 10 milliseconds (ms)). Each radio frame may be identified by a system frame number (SFN) (e.g., ranging from 0 to 1023).

[0083] Each frame may include multiple consecutively numbered subframes or time slots, and each subframe or time slot may have the same duration. In some examples, the frame may be divided into subframes (e.g., in the time domain), and each subframe may be further divided into multiple time slots. Alternatively, each frame may include a variable number of time slots, and the number of time slots may depend on the subcarrier spacing. Each time slot may include multiple symbol periods (e.g., depending on the length of the cyclic prefix added before each symbol period). In some wireless communication systems 100, the time slot may also be divided into multiple mini-time slots containing one or more symbols. Excluding the cyclic prefix, each symbol period may include one or more (e.g., N f The duration of a symbol period may depend on the subcarrier spacing or the operating frequency band.

[0084] A subframe, a slot, a mini-slot, or a symbol may be the smallest scheduling unit (e.g., in the time domain) of the wireless communication system 100 and may be referred to as a transmit time interval (TTI). In some examples, the TTI duration (e.g., the number of symbol periods in a TTI) may be variable. Additionally or alternatively, the smallest scheduling unit of the wireless communication system 100 may be dynamically selected (e.g., in bursts of shortened TTIs (sTTIs)).

[0085] Physical channels may be multiplexed on a carrier according to various techniques. For example, physical control channels and physical data channels may be multiplexed on a downlink carrier using one or more of a time division multiplexing (TDM) technique, a frequency division multiplexing (FDM) technique, or a hybrid TDM-FDM technique. A control region (e.g., a control resource set (CORESET)) for a physical control channel may be defined by a set of symbol periods and may extend across a system bandwidth or a subset of a system bandwidth of a carrier. One or more control regions (e.g., CORESETs) may be configured for a group of UEs 115. For example, one or more of the UEs 115 may monitor or search the control region for control information according to one or more search space sets, and each search space set may include one or more control channel candidates in one or more aggregation levels arranged in a cascaded manner. The aggregation level of the control channel candidate may refer to the amount of control channel resources (e.g., control channel elements (CCEs)) associated with the coded information for a control information format having a given payload size. The search space sets may include a common search space set configured for transmitting control information to a plurality of UEs 115 , and a UE-specific search space set for transmitting control information to a specific UE 115 .

[0086] The network entity 105 may provide communication coverage via one or more cells (e.g., macro cells, small cells, hot spots, or other types of cells, or any combination thereof). The term "cell" may refer to a logical communication entity used to communicate with the network entity 105 (e.g., via a carrier), and may be associated with an identifier used to distinguish adjacent cells (e.g., a physical cell identifier (PCID), a virtual cell identifier (VCID), or other cell identifier). In some examples, a cell may also refer to a coverage area 110 or a portion of a coverage area 110 (e.g., a sector) within which the logical communication entity operates. Depending on various factors such as the capabilities of the network entity 105, such cells may range from smaller areas (e.g., structures, subsets of structures) to larger areas. For example, a cell may be or may include a building, a subset of a building, or an external space between or overlapping coverage areas 110, and the like.

[0087] A macro cell generally covers a relatively large geographic area (e.g., several kilometers in radius) and may allow unrestricted access to UEs 115 that have service subscriptions with a network provider that supports the macro cell. Small cells may be associated with lower power network entities 105 (e.g., lower power base stations 140) than macro cells, and small cells may operate in the same or different (e.g., licensed, unlicensed) frequency bands as macro cells. Small cells may provide unrestricted access to UEs 115 that have service subscriptions with a network provider, or may provide restricted access to UEs 115 associated with small cells (e.g., UEs 115 in a closed subscriber group (CSG), UEs 115 associated with users in a home or office). A network entity 105 may support one or more cells, and may also use one or more component carriers to support communications on one or more cells.

[0088] In some examples, a carrier may support multiple cells, and different cells may be configured according to different protocol types (e.g., MTC, narrowband IoT (NB-IoT), enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB)) that may provide access to different types of devices.

[0089] In some examples, the network entities 105 (e.g., base stations 140, RUs 170) may be mobile and thus provide communication coverage for mobile coverage areas 110. In some examples, different coverage areas 110 associated with different technologies may overlap, but the different coverage areas 110 may be supported by the same network entity 105. In some other examples, overlapping coverage areas 110 associated with different technologies may be supported by different network entities 105. The wireless communication system 100 may include, for example, a heterogeneous network in which different types of network entities 105 provide coverage for various coverage areas 110 using the same or different radio access technologies.

[0090] The wireless communication system 100 may be configured to support ultra-reliable communication or low-latency communication or various combinations thereof. For example, the wireless communication system 100 may be configured to support ultra-reliable low-latency communication (URLLC). The UE 115 may be designed to support ultra-reliable or low-latency or critical functions. Ultra-reliable communication may include private communication or group communication, and may be supported by one or more services (such as push-to-talk, video, or data). Support for ultra-reliable, low-latency functions may include prioritization of services, and such services may be used for public safety applications or general commercial applications. The terms ultra-reliable, low-latency, and ultra-reliable low-latency are used interchangeably herein.

[0091] In some examples, a UE 115 may be able to communicate directly with other UEs 115 via a device-to-device (D2D) communication link 135 (e.g., according to a peer-to-peer (P2P), D2D, or sidelink protocol). In some examples, one or more UEs 115 in a group that are performing D2D communication may be within a coverage area 110 of a network entity 105 (e.g., a base station 140, a RU 170), which may support aspects of such D2D communication configured or scheduled by the network entity 105. In some examples, one or more UEs 115 in such a group may be outside of the coverage area 110 of the network entity 105, or may otherwise be unable or not configured to receive transmissions from the network entity 105. In some examples, a group of UEs 115 communicating via D2D communication may support a one-to-many (1:M) system, in which each UE 115 transmits to each of the other UEs 115 in the group. In some examples, the network entity 105 may facilitate scheduling of resources for D2D communication. In some other examples, D2D communications may occur between UEs 115 without involving network entity 105 .

[0092] The core network 130 may provide user authentication, access authorization, tracking, Internet Protocol (IP) connectivity, and other access, routing, or mobility functions. The core network 130 may be an evolved packet core (EPC) or a 5G core (5GC), which may include at least one control plane entity for managing access and mobility (e.g., a mobility management entity (MME), an access and mobility management function (AMF)) and at least one user plane entity for routing packets or interconnecting to an external network (e.g., a serving gateway (S-GW)), a packet data network (PDN) gateway (P-GW), or a user plane function (UPF)). The control plane entity may manage non-access stratum (NAS) functions, such as mobility, authentication, and bearer management for UE 115 served by a network entity 105 (e.g., a base station 140) associated with the core network 130. User IP packets may be delivered via the user plane entity, which may provide IP address allocation and other functions. The user plane entity may be connected to an IP service 150 for one or more network operators. IP services 150 may include access to the Internet, an intranet, an IP Multimedia Subsystem (IMS), or packet-switched streaming services.

[0093] The wireless communication system 100 may operate using one or more frequency bands that may be in the range of 300 megahertz (MHz) to 300 gigahertz (GHz). Typically, the region from 300 MHz to 3 GHz is referred to as the ultra-high frequency (UHF) region or decimeter band because the wavelength range is approximately one decimeter to one meter. UHF waves may be blocked or redirected by buildings and environmental features (which may be referred to as clusters), but these waves may be sufficient to penetrate structures so that macro cells provide service to UEs 115 located indoors. Transmission of UHF waves may be associated with smaller antennas and shorter ranges (e.g., less than 100 kilometers) compared to transmission using smaller frequencies and longer wavelengths in the high frequency (HF) or very high frequency (VHF) portions of the spectrum below 300 MHz.

[0094] The wireless communication system 100 may also operate in a super high frequency (SHF) region using a frequency band from 3 GHz to 30 GHz (also known as a centimeter band) or in an extremely high frequency (EHF) region of the spectrum (e.g., from 30 GHz to 300 GHz) (also known as a millimeter band). In some examples, the wireless communication system 100 may support millimeter wave (mmW) communications between UE 115 and network entity 105 (e.g., base station 140, RU 170), and the EHF antenna of the corresponding device may be smaller and closer than the UHF antenna. In some examples, this may facilitate the use of antenna arrays within the device. However, there may be even greater atmospheric attenuation and a shorter range for the propagation of EHF transmissions than SHF or UHF transmissions. The technology disclosed herein may be adopted across transmissions using one or more different frequency regions, and the use of frequency bands specified across these frequency regions may vary by country or regulatory agency.

[0095] The wireless communication system 100 may utilize both licensed RF spectrum bands and unlicensed RF spectrum bands. For example, the wireless communication system 100 may use licensed assisted access (LAA), LTE unlicensed (LTE-U) radio access technology, or NR technology in unlicensed bands such as the 5 GHz industrial, scientific, and medical (ISM) band. When operating in an unlicensed RF spectrum band, devices such as the network entity 105 and the UE 115 may employ carrier sensing for conflict detection and avoidance. In some examples, operations in an unlicensed band may be based on a carrier aggregation configuration (e.g., LAA) in conjunction with component carriers operating in a licensed band. Operations in an unlicensed spectrum may include other examples such as downlink transmissions, uplink transmissions, P2P transmissions, or D2D transmissions.

[0096] The network entity 105 (e.g., base station 140, RU 170) or UE 115 may be equipped with multiple antennas that can be used to employ technologies such as transmit diversity, receive diversity, multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) communication, or beamforming. The antennas of the network entity 105 or UE 115 may be located in one or more antenna arrays or antenna panels that can support MIMO operations or transmit or receive beamforming. For example, one or more base station antennas or antenna arrays may be co-located at an antenna assembly, such as an antenna tower. In some examples, antennas or antenna arrays associated with the network entity 105 may be located at different geographical locations. The network entity 105 may have an antenna array having a set of rows and columns of antenna ports that the network entity 105 can use to support beamforming for communications with the UE 115. Similarly, the UE 115 may have one or more antenna arrays that can support various MIMO or beamforming operations. Additionally or alternatively, the antenna panel may support RF beamforming for signals transmitted via the antenna ports.

[0097] The network entity 105 or UE 115 may use MIMO communication to utilize multipath signal propagation and improve spectral efficiency by sending or receiving multiple signals via different spatial layers. Such technology may be referred to as spatial multiplexing. Multiple signals may be, for example, sent by a transmitting device via different antennas or different combinations of antennas. Similarly, multiple signals may be received by a receiving device via different antennas or different combinations of antennas. Each of the multiple signals may be referred to as a separate spatial stream and may carry information associated with the same data stream (e.g., the same codeword) or different data streams (e.g., different codewords). Different spatial layers may be associated with different antenna ports for channel measurement and reporting. MIMO technology includes single-user MIMO (SU-MIMO), in which multiple spatial layers are sent to the same receiving device; and multi-user MIMO (MU-MIMO), in which multiple spatial layers are sent to multiple devices.

[0098] Beamforming (which may also be referred to as spatial filtering, directional transmission, or directional reception) is a signal processing technique that may be used at a transmitting device or a receiving device (e.g., a network entity 105, a UE 115) to shape or steer an antenna beam (e.g., a transmit beam, a receive beam) along a spatial path between the transmitting device and the receiving device. Beamforming may be achieved by combining signals conveyed via antenna elements of an antenna array so that some signals propagating at a particular orientation relative to the antenna array experience constructive interference, while other signals experience destructive interference. Adjustments to signals conveyed via antenna elements may include the transmitting device or the receiving device applying an amplitude offset, a phase offset, or both to signals carried via antenna elements associated with the device. Adjustments associated with each of the antenna elements may be defined by a set of beamforming weights associated with a particular orientation (e.g., relative to the antenna array of the transmitting device or the receiving device or relative to some other orientation).

[0099] The network entity 105 or UE 115 may use beam scanning techniques as part of a beamforming operation. For example, the network entity 105 (e.g., base station 140, RU 170) may use multiple antennas or antenna arrays (e.g., antenna panels) to perform beamforming operations for directional communication with UE 115. Some signals (e.g., synchronization signals, reference signals, beam selection signals, or other control signals) may be sent multiple times by the network entity 105 along different directions. For example, the network entity 105 may send signals according to different sets of beamforming weights associated with different transmission directions. Transmissions along different beam directions may be used to identify (e.g., by a transmitting device (such as network entity 105), or by a receiving device (such as UE 115)) beam directions for later transmission or reception by the network entity 105.

[0100] Some signals, such as data signals associated with a particular receiving device, may be sent by a transmitting device (e.g., transmitting network entity 105, transmitting UE 115) along a single beam direction (e.g., a direction associated with a receiving device (such as receiving network entity 105 or receiving UE 115)). In some examples, a beam direction associated with transmission along a single beam direction may be determined based on signals sent along one or more beam directions. For example, UE 115 may receive one or more of the signals sent by network entity 105 along different directions, and may report to network entity 105 an indication of the signal received by UE 115 with the highest signal quality or other acceptable signal quality.

[0101] In some examples, transmission by a device (e.g., by network entity 105 or UE 115) may be performed using multiple beam directions, and the device may use a combination of digital precoding or beamforming to generate a combined beam for transmission (e.g., from network entity 105 to UE 115). UE 115 may report feedback indicating precoding weights for one or more beam directions, and the feedback may correspond to a configured set of beams across a system bandwidth or one or more subbands. Network entity 105 may send a reference signal (e.g., a cell-specific reference signal (CRS), a channel state information reference signal (CSI-RS)), which may be precoded or non-precoded. UE 115 may provide feedback for beam selection, which may be a precoding matrix indicator (PMI) or codebook-based feedback (e.g., a multi-panel codebook, a linear combination codebook, a port selection codebook). Although these techniques are described with reference to signals sent along one or more directions by a network entity 105 (e.g., base station 140, RU 170), UE 115 may use similar techniques to send signals multiple times along different directions (e.g., to identify a beam direction for subsequent transmission or reception by UE 115), or to send signals along a single direction (e.g., to send data to a receiving device).

[0102] A receiving device (e.g., UE 115) may perform receiving operations according to multiple receiving configurations (e.g., directional listening) when receiving various signals (such as synchronization signals, reference signals, beam selection signals, or other control signals) from a receiving device (e.g., network entity 105). For example, the receiving device may perform reception according to multiple receiving directions by: receiving via different antenna subarrays, processing received signals according to different antenna subarrays, receiving according to different receiving beamforming weight sets (e.g., different directional listening weight sets) applied to signals received at multiple antenna elements of an antenna array, or processing received signals according to different receiving beamforming weight sets applied to signals received at multiple antenna elements of an antenna array, any of which may be referred to as "listening" according to different receiving configurations or receiving directions. In some examples, the receiving device may use a single receiving configuration to receive along a single beam direction (e.g., when receiving a data signal). A single receive configuration may be aligned along a beam direction determined based on listening according to different receive configuration directions (e.g., a beam direction determined to have the highest signal strength, highest signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), or other acceptable signal quality based on listening according to multiple beam directions).

[0103] The wireless communication system 100 may be a packet-based network that operates according to a layered protocol stack. In the user plane, the communication at the bearer or PDCP layer may be IP-based. The RLC layer may perform packet segmentation and reassembly to communicate on a logical channel. The MAC layer may perform priority processing and multiplexing of logical channels to transport channels. The MAC layer may also use error detection technology, error correction technology, or both to support retransmission at the MAC layer to improve link efficiency. In the control plane, the RRC protocol layer may provide the establishment, configuration, and maintenance of an RRC connection that supports a radio bearer for user plane data between a UE 115 and a network entity 105 or a core network 130. At the PHY layer, a transport channel may be mapped to a physical channel.

[0104] UE 115 and network entity 105 may support retransmission of data to increase the likelihood that the data is successfully received. Hybrid automatic repeat request (HARQ) feedback is a technique for increasing the likelihood of correctly receiving data through a communication link (e.g., communication link 125, D2D communication link 135). HARQ may include a combination of error detection (e.g., using a cyclic redundancy check (CRC)), forward error correction (FEC), and retransmission (e.g., automatic repeat request (ARQ)). HARQ may improve throughput at the MAC layer under poor radio conditions (e.g., low signal-to-noise ratio conditions). In some examples, a device may support simultaneous slot HARQ feedback, wherein the device may provide HARQ feedback in a specific time slot for data received in a previous symbol in the time slot. In some other examples, the device may provide HARQ feedback in a subsequent time slot or according to some other time interval.

[0105] In some aspects, one or more devices in the wireless communication system 100 (such as UE 115, base station 105, IAB node 104, RU 170, DU 165, CU 160, or any combination thereof) may support OAM communication. A device supporting OAM communication may include a circular array having multiple antenna elements, which may be referred to as a transmitter circle and / or a receiver circle. Additionally or alternatively, the device may include a circular array, which includes multiple antenna subarrays, each of which may include one or more antenna elements. These devices may include a certain number of antenna elements arranged in a circle, which may be referred to as a transmitter circle and / or a receiver circle, respectively. In some examples, a transmitting device may generate one or more OAM signals for transmission to a receiving device via a transmitter circle. Additionally, a transmitting device may use a transmitter circle and one or more OAM modes to send one or more OAM signals to a receiving device, so that the generated signals may be orthogonally received and decoded at the receiving device.

[0106] In some examples, a device may support beamforming for OAM communications by utilizing a phase-only modulator at each antenna element in a transmitter circle and in a receiver circle in order to limit the number of power amplifiers at either device, since power amplifiers may be more expensive than phase-only modulators. Thus, such devices may be limited to supporting a single OAM mode per circle of antenna elements, resulting in constraints on throughput, capacity, and spectral efficiency of wireless communications between devices. In some examples, a device may support beamforming for OAM communications according to multiple OAM modes by utilizing all antenna elements in a transmitter circle and / or a receiver circle for all of the multiple OAM modes in the circle. However, such devices may experience unequal power levels between antenna elements in either circle, and therefore may require multiple power amplifiers (e.g., one power amplifier per antenna element) for either circle.

[0107] The technology described herein provides a node that supports the use of multiple modes of transmission and reception in a single circle of antenna elements. In this example, a first device (UE 115, base station 105, IAB node 104, RU 170, DU165, CU 160, or any combination thereof) that may be referred to as a transmitting device can generate multiple signals for transmission by utilizing a first circular antenna array containing a first number of antennas arranged in a circle. The first device can transmit a first signal in the generated signal by using a first OAM mode, and the first OAM mode can be associated with a first subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle. Additionally, the first device can transmit a second signal in the generated signal by using a second OAM mode, and the second OAM mode can be associated with a second subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle. The first number of antenna elements can be divided into a first subset and a second subset of antenna elements in an alternating pattern. The first subset and the second subset may not include each other. Therefore, using these techniques, each OAM mode can be configured with a power amplifier instead of configuring a power amplifier for each antenna element. Furthermore, if multiple OAM modes in a single circular antenna array have the same power, a single power amplifier may be sufficient for a circular antenna array containing multiple OAM modes. Thus, these techniques can support increased throughput using multiple OAM modes per antenna circle while reducing power consumption via fewer power amplifiers.

[0108] Figure 2An example of a wireless communication system 200 that supports OAM multiplexing using multiple modes in an antenna array according to one or more aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated. The wireless communication system 200 may implement aspects of the wireless communication system 100 or be implemented by these aspects. The wireless communication system may include one or more devices 205 and UE 115. The device 205 may each be an example of a UE 115, a base station 105, an IAB node, a CU, a DU, a RU, or any other wired or wireless device. In some aspects, the devices 205-a, 205-b, 205-c, 205-d, and 205-e may form a network device architecture 210 that may be used to relay signals from a radio access network (RAN) (e.g., using intelligent coordination) to a UE 115 or other wireless access device. The wireless communication system 200 (which may be an example of a 6G system, a 5G system, or another generation system) may support OAM-based communications, and therefore, the device 205, one or more UEs 115, or both may send or receive OAM beams or OAM-related signals on corresponding communication links.

[0109] Device 205-a may represent an example of a core unit of a network device architecture 210, such as a base station 105, a RAN CU, a RAN DU, or some other network node. In some cases, device 205-a may be connected to other devices 205 via a wired fronthaul / backhaul communication link 220 (e.g., a fiber-based fronthaul). Additionally or alternatively, device 205-a may communicate with one or more other devices 205 of the network device architecture 210 via a wireless fronthaul / backhaul communication link 215. The wireless fronthaul / backhaul communication link 215 may reduce costs and deployment complexity compared to the wired fronthaul / backhaul communication link 220. Other devices 205 may represent aspects of distributed network nodes (such as IAB nodes, repeaters, RUs, or any combination thereof) that may relay signals from the RAN to one or more UEs 115 or other wireless devices via a wireless access communication link 225.

[0110] The wireless communication system 200 can support various communication schemes, such as LoS-MIMO. In such an environment, there can be a direct link (e.g., no physical barriers) between two or more devices 205. For example, the network device architecture 210 can occupy a relatively small area so that the distance between the devices 205 is relatively short. The device 205 can communicate according to one or more LoS-MIMO communication schemes using one or more antenna subarrays based on the relatively small distance between the devices. Such LoS-MIMO communication schemes can support relatively high throughput and data capacity over a relatively short distance. Therefore, LoS-MIMO can provide a wireless fronthaul / backhaul communication link 215 to support sufficient data capacity between the devices 205 of the network device architecture 210 without deploying physical optical fiber or cable. For example, a device 205-a (e.g., a DU or core network node) can be deployed with an aperture array (e.g., instead of an optical fiber) connected to one or more other devices 205. In some aspects, the performance of the aperture array on device 205 - a may be improved between device 205 - a and other devices 205 - c , 205 - d , and 205 - e to support relatively high throughput and capacity of the wireless fronthaul / backhaul communication link 215 .

[0111] OAM-based communication may be an example of a LoS-MIMO communication scheme supported by the wireless communication system 200. Each of the device 205, the UE 115, or both may support OAM communication, and may include an OAM antenna system having a plurality of antenna elements or antenna arrays arranged in one or more concentric arrays. The corresponding antenna subarrays of the device 205 may be installed or dynamically adjusted so that they are aligned along a first axis (e.g., a horizontal axis or a vertical axis) and rotationally, or so that they are offset by a configured rotation offset. OAM communication may support relatively high-order spatial multiplexing, and in some aspects, the offset between the antenna subarrays may be configured to improve orthogonality and data throughput between signals. OAM communication may support relatively high data rates between two or more devices 205 over relatively short distances. In some aspects, the device 205 may perform OAM communication in a relatively high frequency spectrum (e.g., below THz, THz, etc.). Although OAM communications are described in the context of fronthaul and backhaul, it should be understood that the communication techniques described herein may be applicable to any two wireless devices, including access devices (e.g., UE, CPE), network devices (e.g., base stations, DU, CU, RU, IAB nodes), or both.

[0112] Device 205 can use the OAM of electromagnetic waves to distinguish different signals to support OAM-based communications. For example, transmitting device 205 can radiate multiple coaxially propagating, spatially overlapping waves, each wave carrying a data stream through an aperture array. In some cases, the OAM of electromagnetic waves can be associated with the spatial distribution of the field of the electromagnetic waves, which can be in the form of a spiral or twisted wavefront shape. For example, the electromagnetic waves can correspond to the form The helical transverse phase can carry the OAM mode waveform, where may be the azimuth angle of the waveform, and l may be an unbounded integer, which may be referred to as an OAM order, a spiral mode, or an OAM mode.Each OAM mode (eg, OAM mode l=...,-2,-1,0,1,2,...) may be orthogonal.

[0113] Such OAM modes can be characterized by a wavefront shaped as a spiral with an optical vortex at the center (e.g., at the beam axis), wherein each OAM mode is associated with a different spiral wavefront structure. An OAM mode can be defined or referred to by a mode index l, wherein the sign of the mode index l corresponds to the "helicity" of the spiral (e.g., left-handed or right-handed), and the magnitude of the mode index l (e.g., |l|) corresponds to the number of distinct but intertwined spirals of the electromagnetic wave.

[0114] For example, for an electromagnetic wave associated with an OAM mode index of l=0, the electromagnetic wave is not spiral, and the wavefront of the electromagnetic wave is a plurality of disconnected surfaces (e.g., the electromagnetic wave is a sequence of parallel planes). For an electromagnetic wave associated with an OAM mode index of l=+1, the electromagnetic wave may propagate in a right-handed mode (e.g., having a right-handed circular polarization or may be understood as having a clockwise circular polarization), and the wavefront of the electromagnetic wave may be shaped as a single spiral surface having a step length equal to the wavelength λ of the electromagnetic wave. An example of such an electromagnetic wave is shown in Figure 2 Similarly, for an OAM mode index of l=-1, the electromagnetic wave may propagate in a left-handed mode (e.g., with left-handed circular polarization or may be understood as having counterclockwise circular polarization), and the wavefront of the electromagnetic wave may also be shaped as a single helical surface having a step length equal to the wavelength λ of the electromagnetic wave.

[0115] As another example, for an OAM mode index of l=±2, the electromagnetic wave may propagate in a right-handed mode (if +2) or a left-handed mode (if -2), and the wavefront of the electromagnetic wave may include two different but intertwined spiral surfaces. In such aspects, the step size of each spiral surface may be equal to λ / 2. Similarly, the phase delay over one revolution of the electromagnetic wave may be equal to ±4π. In general, a mode l electromagnetic wave may propagate in a right-handed mode or a left-handed mode (depending on the sign of l), and may include l different but intertwined spiral surfaces, wherein the step size of each spiral surface is equal to λ / |l|. In some aspects, the electromagnetic wave may extend indefinitely to provide an infinite number of degrees of freedom of the OAM of the electromagnetic wave (e.g., l=0, ±1, ±2, ., ±∞). Therefore, the OAM of the electromagnetic wave may be associated with infinite degrees of freedom.

[0116] In some aspects, the OAM mode index l of the electromagnetic wave may correspond to an additional dimension of signal or channel multiplexing, or otherwise be used as (e.g., defined as) an additional dimension of signal or channel multiplexing. For example, each OAM mode that may correspond to an OAM state (which may be infinite) may function similarly (e.g., or equivalently) to a communication channel (such as a subchannel). In other words, an OAM mode or state may correspond to a communication channel, and vice versa. For example, similar to how a device may send separate signals on different communication channels, the device 205 may use electromagnetic waves with different OAM modes or states to transmit separate signals 230. In some aspects, this use of OAM modes or states of electromagnetic waves to carry different signals 230 may be referred to as using an OAM beam.

[0117] Such OAM waveforms associated with different OAM modes may be orthogonally received at the same time and frequency radio resources, which may improve communication spectrum efficiency with relatively low processing complexity at the receiving device 205. For example, a transmitting device 205 (such as device 205-a) may send one or more signals 230 to a receiving device 205 (such as device 205-e) using multiple OAM modes. Each signal 230 may be sent according to a respective OAM mode so that the signals 230 do not overlap or interfere with each other. In some aspects, two or more signals 230 may be sent concurrently. Additionally or alternatively, two or more signals 230 may be sent simultaneously. If polarization is added to the OAM mode, the number of orthogonal OAM streams may increase.

[0118] To support such OAM communications, each device 205 may be configured with a set of antenna subarrays configured in a circular shape, such as a uniform circular array (UCA) antenna circle (e.g., an antenna circle, a transmitter circle, or a receiver circle). Each device 205 may be equipped with one or more UCA circles, which the device 205 may use to communicate signals 230 according to one or more OAM modes. OAM antenna array configurations are described elsewhere herein (including references to Figures 3 to 6 ) is described in further detail.

[0119] In some cases, the transmitting device 205-a and the receiving device 205-e may be configured with the same number of antenna subarrays or antenna elements at each device 205. The number of OAM modes that can be generated by each device 205 may correspond to the number of antenna subarrays. For example, if the device 205 has N antenna subarrays, the device 205 may be configured to generate N OAM modes. Each OAM mode may correspond to a set of OAM weights (e.g., OAM weighting vectors) to be applied to the antenna subarrays of the transmitting device 205-a when generating a transmission. The receiving device 205-e may utilize the OAM mode corresponding to the number of antenna subarrays to identify the weights applied to the OAM signal by the transmitting device 205-a. The receiving device 205-e may receive and decode the OAM signal based on the weights.

[0120] In some examples, device 205 may communicate signal 230 using multiple modes in a single transmitter circle or receiver circle, respectively, by utilizing antenna elements in the circle to support OAM communication according to multiple modes associated with signal 230. For example, transmitting device 205-a may transmit a first signal using a first OAM mode via antenna elements in the transmitter circle, and also transmit a second signal using a second OAM mode via antenna elements in the transmitter circle. However, if device 205-a transmits signal 230 by using all antenna elements in the transmitter circle to communicate in multiple OAM modes, device 205-a may experience unequal power distribution between antenna elements, resulting in the need for up to one power amplifier per antenna element.

[0121] As described herein, the device 205 may be configured with a method for supporting OAM communications using multiple modes in an antenna array. For example, the transmitting device 205-a may generate multiple signals (e.g., signal 230) by using a certain number of antenna elements arranged in a circle. The transmitting device 205-a may transmit a first signal in the signal 230 by using a first OAM mode and a first subset of the number of antenna elements in the circle. Additionally, the transmitting device 205-a may transmit a second signal in the signal 230 by using a second OAM mode and a second subset of the number of antenna elements in the same circle. The segmented subsets of the number of antenna elements in the circle may be mutually exclusive because the transmitting device 205-a may transmit the first signal using the first OAM mode by utilizing the antenna elements of the first subset, and transmit the second signal using the second OAM mode by utilizing the antenna elements of the second subset. In some aspects, the first signal may include a first set of reference signals, and the second signal may include a second set of reference signals.

[0122] The device 205 may be equipped with a phasor (e.g., phase shifter, phase modulator) at each antenna element in the transmitter circle and the receiver circle, respectively. Additionally or alternatively, the transmitter circle and the receiver circle at the device 205 may be equipped with a power amplifier for each OAM mode used to convey the signal 230. In some examples, a first power amplifier may be associated with a first OAM mode and a first subset of a certain number of antenna elements in the circle, and a second power amplifier may be associated with a second OAM mode and a second subset of a certain number of antenna elements in the same circle. Thus, the transmitting device 205-a may transmit a first signal via the first subset using a first power applied by the first power amplifier. Additionally or alternatively, the transmitting device 205-a may transmit a second signal via the second subset using a second power applied by the second power amplifier. In some aspects, if multiple OAM modes have the same amount of power, the device 205 may use a single power amplifier for the transmitter circle or the receiver circle to support OAM communication. Power amplifiers may be more expensive than phase shifters. Thus, device 205 may support cost-effective OAM communications by using one power amplifier for each subset of circularly arranged antenna elements or one power amplifier for each circle of antenna elements, rather than using one power amplifier for each individual circularly arranged antenna element.

[0123] In some examples, the devices 205 may exchange signaling to indicate the ability of the devices to transmit multiple signals using a multi-mode transmission mode. For example, the transmitting device 205-a may send a capability message to the receiving device 205-e to specify that the transmitting device 205-a may use a multi-mode transmission mode in a circular antenna array (e.g., a transmitter circle) to transmit a signal 230 to the receiving device 205-e, one or more other devices 205 (e.g., via a broadcast message), or both, and the multi-mode transmission mode may include a first OAM mode using a first subset of antenna elements in the transmitter circle and a second OAM mode using a second subset of antenna elements in the transmitter circle. The signaling may be control signaling configured to indicate the ability to transmit signals using a multi-mode transmission mode, such as RRC signaling, system broadcast signaling, another type of control signaling (e.g., downlink control information (DCI), uplink control information (UCI), sidelink control information (SCI), MAC layer control element (MAC-CE)), or any combination thereof. In some aspects, the signaling (e.g., RRC configuration) may be sent semi-statically. Additionally or alternatively, the device 205 may send signaling dynamically.

[0124] In some examples, the devices 205 may exchange additional signaling in the form of feedback messages to indicate whether the devices 205 are to use the multi-mode transmission mode or the single-mode transmission mode. For example, the transmitting device 205-a may receive a feedback message from the receiving device 205-e. By sending the feedback message, the receiving device 205-e may indicate that the transmitting device 205-a may use the multi-mode transmission mode from the options of the single-mode transmission mode and the multi-mode transmission mode. Similar to the signaling for the capability message, the signaling for the feedback message may be RRC signaling configured to indicate a request to use the multi-mode transmission mode or the single-mode transmission mode, a system broadcast signal, another type of control signaling, or any combination thereof.

[0125] In some examples, the device 205 may communicate multiple groups of reference signals. For example, the transmitting device 205-a may use a first OAM mode to transmit a first group of reference signals, and the transmitting device 205-a may use a second OAM mode to transmit a second group of reference signals. In some examples, the transmitting device 205-a may transmit reference signals from each transmitter antenna element in a circular antenna array, where each antenna element may be identifiable, or each antenna set in a circle is identifiable. In some examples, the receiving device 205-b may perform channel quality measurements by measuring a channel response matrix, if each transmitter antenna element is identifiable, then measuring element-by-element, element-by-modes, mode-by-element, or mode-by-mode. Based on transmitting the first group of reference signals and the second group of reference signals, the device 205 may receive a feedback message that may indicate a channel quality indication corresponding to the antenna element in the OAM mode used to transmit each group of reference signals. In some aspects, the feedback message may include a channel quality measurement. In other aspects, the feedback message may include a mode-by-mode channel quality in order to reduce signaling overhead.

[0126] For example, the transmitting device 205-a may receive a feedback message including one or more channel quality indicators corresponding to each antenna element of the number of antenna elements arranged in the transmitter circle, each mode of the first OAM mode and the second OAM mode, or both. By receiving the feedback message including the channel quality indication in response to sending each group of reference signals, the transmitting device 205-a may adjust various transmission characteristics based on one or more channel qualities indicated in the feedback message. In some aspects, the device 205 may use one or more of the multiple OAM modes to convey subsequent signaling based on the one or more channel quality indications. For example, based on receiving the channel quality indication, the transmitting device 205-a may use the first OAM mode, the second OAM mode, both the first OAM mode and the second OAM mode, or use another mode (e.g., using an OAM mode configured using the antenna elements of the circle) to send one or more subsequent signals.

[0127] In some aspects, the device 205 may exchange signaling to indicate or report the topology of the circular antenna array at the device 205. By indicating the topology of the circular antenna array involved in the OAM communication, the device 205 may be aware of certain properties of the antenna array used to communicate the signal 230. For example, the transmitting device 205-a may send an indication of topology information of the circular antenna array, and the topology information may include information such as the number of circles of antenna elements in the circular antenna array, the number of antenna elements in each of one or more circles, the number of power amplifiers of one or more circles, the number of digital beamformers of one or more circles, or a combination thereof. In some examples, the topology information may include power amplifier chain information (e.g., the number of power amplifiers per circle) to facilitate the OAM multiplexing scheme. Additionally or alternatively, the transmitting device 205-a may receive an indication of the topology of a second circular antenna array relative to the receiving device 205-e (e.g., topology information), wherein the topology may include details such as the number of circles of antenna elements in the second circular antenna array, the number of antenna elements in each of one or more circles, the number of power amplifiers of one or more circles, the number of digital beamformers of one or more circles, or a combination thereof. In some examples, device 205 (e.g., transmitting device 205-a) may use a first OAM mode to send a first signal and use a second OAM mode to send a second signal based on the topology of a first circular antenna array, the topology of a second circular antenna array, or a combination thereof.

[0128] Figure 3 An example of an OAM antenna array configuration 300 that supports OAM multiplexing using multiple modes in an antenna array according to one or more aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated. In some aspects, the OAM antenna array configuration 300 can implement aspects of the wireless communication system 100 or 200. In this example, a transmitting device (e.g., a UE, a base station, a RU, a DU, a CU, an IAB node, or some other device) may include an OAMUCA antenna array 305, and a receiving device (e.g., a UE, a base station, a RU, a DU, a CU, an IAB node, or some other device) may include an OAMUCA antenna array 310.

[0129] In some aspects, one or both of the OAMUCA antenna array 305 or the OAMUCA antenna array 310 may be implemented as a planar array of antenna elements, or a single antenna array or subarray, which may be an example of or otherwise used as a (massive or holographic) MIMO array or smart surface. In some cases, a transmitting device may identify a set of antenna subarrays 315 (e.g., antenna elements) in a planar array (e.g., transmitter antenna subarrays 315-a, 315-b, 315-c, 315-d, 315-e, 315-f, 315-g, and 315-h) that form a UCA, and a receiving device may identify a set of antenna subarrays 345 (e.g., receiver antenna subarrays 345-a, 345-b, 345-c, 345-d, 345-e, 345-f, 345-g, and 345-h) that form a UCA in a planar array. In some aspects, the set of antenna subarrays 315 at the transmitting device may be uniformly arranged in a first circle, and the set of antenna subarrays 345 at the receiving device may be uniformly arranged in a second circle located at a distance z from the first circle. In some examples, the antenna subarrays 315 (e.g., antenna elements) may be individual antennas rather than subarrays.

[0130] When selecting the group of antenna subarrays from the planar array, the transmitting device may apply beamforming weights 335 to each antenna subarray in the selected antenna subarrays 315 based on the OAM mode index l of the transmitted OAM beam and one or more spatial parameters associated with each antenna subarray 315. In the case of using the UCA method to generate the OAM beam, the transmitting device may identify the group of antenna subarrays 315 on the circular antenna element array, and may apply a first set of weights 320 to each antenna subarray in the identified antenna subarrays 315 based on a first OAM mode index (e.g., l=0). In addition, for other OAM mode indices, other weights may be used for the group of antenna subarrays 315, such as a second OAM mode index (e.g., l=+1) that may use a second set of weights 325 and a third OAM mode index (e.g., l=–1) that may use a third set of weights 330. Each OAM mode may be characterized by a different spiral wave structure, as described in reference to FIG. Figure 2 A spiral wave structure for each mode may be generated by applying a corresponding set of weights to the antenna subarray 315 of the transmitting device.

[0131] For example, to generate an OAM beam with an OAM mode index (e.g., l=0), the transmitting device may apply a weight 335 to each antenna subarray 315 on the UCA based on an angle 340 measured between a reference line on the UCA (e.g., the x-axis of the plane in which the UCA is located, with the origin at the center of the UCA) and the antenna subarray 315, the OAM mode index l, and i (e.g., for complex-valued weights, which may alternatively be represented as j in some cases). In some cases, for example, the weight of antenna element n may be the same as Proportional, where = is equal to the angle 340 measured between the reference line on the UCA and the antenna element n. By dividing each set of weights 320-330 (eg, for the first set of weights 320, w1=[w 1,1 ,w 1,2 ,…,w 1,8 ] T ) is multiplied by the corresponding beamforming weight 335 of each antenna subarray 315 to generate a signal port. If the weight 335 of each antenna subarray 315 is equal to in is the angle of antenna subarray 315 in a circle (e.g., angle 340 of antenna subarray 315-g), and l is the OAM mode index, then each set of weights 320-330 provides a beamformed port equivalent to OAM mode l. By using different beamforming weights Here, l′≠l, thus multiple OAM modes are generated.

[0132] In some examples, the transmitting device may apply a corresponding beamforming weight 335 in each set of weights 320-330 (eg, for the first set of weights 320, w1=[w 1,1 ,w 1,2 ,…,w 1,8 ] T ) is used to send multiple signals using a number of phasors (e.g., phase modulators, phase shifters) corresponding to the number of corresponding antenna elements. For example, the transmitting device can use a first number of phasors to send a first signal associated with a first OAM mode and to send a second signal associated with a second OAM mode, wherein each phasor in the number of phasors can correspond to a corresponding antenna element (e.g., antenna subarray 315) in a circle. Therefore, the transmitting device can use the number of phasors to apply a corresponding beamforming weight 335 in each set of weights 320-330 to the corresponding antenna subarray 315.

[0133] In some aspects, the OAMUCA antenna arrays 305 and 310 may support OAM-based communications that efficiently implement advanced spatial multiplexing based on the orthogonality of the OAM weighting vectors. At the OAMUCA antenna array 310, the receiving device may have a receiver antenna subarray 345 configured in a circular shape. The channel matrix may be represented as H from each transmitter antenna subarray 315 to each receiver antenna subarray 345, and then for the beamforming channel matrix [w1,w2,…,w L ] may be orthogonal with respect to each other. Therefore, the OAM channels represented by the beamformed channel matrix may be free of crosstalk.

[0134] It should be understood that an antenna array including multiple antenna subarrays described herein may alternatively be referred to as a transmitter circle or a receiver circle. In addition, the same circular antenna array may sometimes act as a transmitter circle and sometimes act as a receiver circle, but may be referred to as one or the other for clarity in the relevant description. It should be understood that any signaling described as being received by a device having a transmitter circle may be received via the transmitter circle or via another antenna array, antenna subarray, or antenna element at the device (e.g., a separate receiver circle at the device or some other antenna array or element at the device). Similarly, any signaling described as being sent by a device having a receiver circle may be sent via the receiver circle or via another antenna array, antenna subarray, or antenna element at the device (e.g., a separate transmitter circle at the device or some other antenna array or element at the device). In addition, although referred to herein as a transmitter antenna subarray 315 and a receiver antenna subarray 345, it should be understood that these aspects may alternatively be referred to as a transmitting antenna array and a receiving antenna array, each of which may include multiple antenna elements.

[0135] As described herein, in order to support increased throughput, the OAMUCA antenna arrays 305 and 310 can support multiple OAM modes using the same circular antenna array by dividing the antenna subarrays into subsets of antenna elements. For example, a device supporting the OAMUCA antenna array 305 can divide the antenna subarrays 315-a to 315-h into two subsets of antenna subarrays (e.g., two subsets of antenna elements). Each antenna subarray 315 of the OAMUCA antenna array 305 can be divided into a first subset or a second subset in an alternating pattern when passing through the antenna subarray of the circle. The device can use a first OAM mode and a first subset of the antenna subarray 315 to send a first signal, and use a second OAM mode of a second subset of the antenna subarray 315 to send a second signal. As further described in detail herein, the device can exchange signaling to indicate support and / or preference for sending using multiple OAM modes in a single circle. Additionally or alternatively, signaling can be used to indicate topology (e.g., multiple circles, multiple modes per circle, PA chain) to other devices. Additionally, reference signal transmission and feedback may be used to support determination of channel characteristics by a transmitting device and / or receiving device that supports multiple OAM modes in a single circular antenna array.

[0136] As described herein, when multiple modes are used in an antenna array to perform OAM multiplexing, the transmitting device and the receiving device may utilize feedback information to perform OAM beamforming and determine the beamforming vector to be used for communication. The transmitting device may send one or more reference signals to the receiving device. The receiving device may perform a channel estimation process based on one or more reference signals, which may be CSI reference signals, SRS, or other types of reference signals. In some aspects, the channel estimation process may be performed by the transmitting device, the receiving device, or both. Channel estimation may be performed regardless of whether the number of antenna subarrays is the same or different.

[0137] Figure 4A and Figure 4B Examples of OAM antenna array configurations 401 and 402 that support OAM multiplexing using multiple modes in an antenna array according to one or more aspects of the present disclosure are illustrated. OAM antenna array configurations 401 and 402 may implement or be implemented by aspects of wireless communication system 200 or OAM antenna array configuration 300. For example, OAM antenna array configuration 401 illustrates a configuration of antenna elements at a transmitting device, a receiving device, or both. The transmitting device and the receiving device may represent as described in reference Figures 1 to 3 Various aspects of the corresponding device (e.g., UE, base station, CU, DU, RU, IAB node or any other device).

[0138] Figure 4AAn OAM antenna array configuration 401 is illustrated, which can be an example of a first circular antenna array using a first OAM mode and a second OAM mode. In this example, a transmitting device may include a first circular antenna array comprising a first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle. The first number of antenna elements include first OAM mode antenna elements 405 (e.g., a first subset of the first number of antenna elements) and second OAM mode antenna elements 410 (e.g., a second subset of the first number of antenna elements). Similarly, a receiving device may include a first circular antenna array comprising a first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle. The first number of antenna elements include first OAM mode antenna elements 405 and OAM mode antenna elements 410. Figure 4A In the example of , the transmitting device, the receiving device, or both may include four first OAM mode antenna elements 405 and four second OAM mode antenna elements 410. However, it should be understood that the transmitting device and the receiving device may include any number of antenna elements. In some examples, multiple circles (each circle having a smaller number of antenna elements) may be used for transmission or reception at the device. In some aspects, the antenna elements of the OAM mode antenna element 405 and the antenna elements of the second OAM mode antenna element 410 may be positioned in a circle so that the antenna elements are equally spaced. For illustrative purposes, a first set of radial lines 415 is included to show the positioning of the antenna elements.

[0139] Because each subset of a certain number of antenna elements arranged in a circular antenna array can be associated with a single OAM mode, each antenna element belonging to an OAM mode-specific subset of the number of antenna elements can have equal and constant power. Therefore, one power amplifier can be used for each OAM mode, rather than one power amplifier for each antenna element. In the example of the OAM antenna array configuration 401, a first power amplifier can be used for the first OAM mode antenna element 405, and a second power amplifier can be used for the second OAM mode antenna element 410. In addition, if multiple OAM modes in a single circular antenna array have the same power, a single power amplifier may be sufficient for a circular antenna array containing multiple OAM modes. For example, if the first OAM mode antenna element 405 and the second OAM mode antenna element 410 have the same power, a single power amplifier can be used for the first OAM mode antenna element 405 and the second OAM mode antenna element 410. By using one power amplifier for each subset of antenna elements arranged in a circle or one power amplifier for each circle of antenna elements, rather than one power amplifier for each individual antenna element arranged in a circle, the OAM antenna array configuration 401 can reduce the number of power amplifiers required for OAM communication in a transmitting device and / or a receiving device. Each antenna element in the OAM antenna array configuration 401 can use analog (or digital) phasors to perform beamforming, thereby adding little or no additional complexity to the design compared to an OAM antenna array configuration in which each circle can use one OAM mode.

[0140] In the OAM antenna array configuration 401, the first circular antenna array may split the number of antenna elements arranged in a circle into multiple OAM mode specific subsets of the number of antenna elements in an alternating pattern of antenna elements associated with any one of the OAM modes. For example, the first OAM mode antenna elements 405-a, 405-b, 405-c, and 405-d may be included in the first subset of the number of antenna elements that may be associated with the first OAM mode. Additionally or alternatively, the second OAM mode antenna elements 410-a, 410-b, 410-c, and 410-d may be associated with the second OAM mode. When supporting the first OAM mode multiplexing scheme and the second OAM mode multiplexing scheme described herein, the first OAM mode antenna element 405 may not include the second OAM mode antenna element 410.

[0141] As discussed herein, a single power amplifier may be used to multiplex multiple modes. In some examples, a receiver circle may include a smaller number of antenna elements than a transmitter circle. For example, a transmitter circle may include 16 antenna elements, and a receiver circle may include 8 antenna elements. Additionally or alternatively, multiple modes may be directed to the same user or receiving device. In addition, a receiving device may include multiple circles of antenna elements, each circle having a smaller number of antennas (e.g., less than a transmitter circle), and one or more of the multiple circles may be used for reception. In addition, the techniques described herein may be used for multi-user MIMO. In such cases, different modes may have different strengths at a certain distance. Therefore, multiple users or devices may be positioned at different distances from the transmitter, and may receive signals at different distances according to different modes. Even if the receiver circle and the transmitter circle include the same number of antenna elements, the multiple modes used may provide a degree of freedom gain at the expense of a lower array gain, resulting in a throughput gain at a high SNR.

[0142] Figure 4B An OAM antenna array configuration 402 is illustrated that may represent a circular antenna array 420-a (e.g., a transmitter circle) and a circular antenna array 420-b (e.g., a receiver circle), wherein a distance z separates the circular antenna arrays 420-a and 420-b. In some examples, an OAM weighting vector may be defined as a vector of OAM weights that may be applied to antenna elements of the transmitter circle and / or the receiver circle in order to generate and decode signals corresponding to OAM modes, respectively. For example, OAM weighting vector 425-a may be associated with circular antenna array 420-a (e.g., a transmitter circle), and OAM weighting vector 425-b may be associated with circular antenna array 420-b (receiver circle). Based on OAM weighting vector 425-a, the transmitter circle may have a radius r1. Based on OAM weighting vector 425-b, the receiver circle may have a radius r2. Each OAM mode used in the transmitter circle and / or the receiver circle may correspond to an OAM weighting vector, such as OAM weighting vector 420.

[0143] As reference Figure 3 As described above, the channel matrix can be represented as H from each transmitter antenna subarray 315 to each receiver antenna subarray 345, and then for the beamformed channel matrix [w1,w2,…,w L ] any two OAM weight vectors (e.g., OAM weight vector 420) may be orthogonal with respect to each other. In some aspects, for N transmitter antenna subarrays 315 and N receiver antenna subarrays 345, the transfer matrix H may be found via discrete angle sampling using Equation 1 as shown below.

[0144]

[0145] In the example of Equation 1, the beamformed ports may not experience crosstalk if the beamformed vectors are singular vectors of the transfer matrix H. This may enable OAM-based communications to more efficiently implement advanced spatial multiplexing. In addition, the eigen-based transmit pre-coding weights and receive combining weights of the UCA-based OAM process may be equal to the DFT matrix. Since the transfer matrix H is periodic or cyclic, the eigenvectors of the transfer matrix H may be DFT vectors, as described in Equation 2.

[0146]

[0147] In the example of Equation 2, μ and v can be integers in a range (e.g., μ = 0, 1, ... (N-1), v = 0, 1, ... (N-1)), where ξ is a vector index of the DFT vector, and v is an element index in each DFT vector. Relative to each OAM mode, the μth DFT vector may correspond to the μth OAM waveform. In some cases, the eigenmodes may be identified by performing a singular value decomposition (SVD) on the transfer matrix. If the transmitter circle includes N antenna elements and the receiver circle includes N antenna elements, the OAM modes 0, 1, ... N-1 may be orthogonal at the receiver circle when the OAM modes are transmitted, regardless of the distance z between the transmitter circle and the receiver circle, the radius r1 of the transmitter circle, or the radius r2 of the receiver circle.

[0148] If a device uses multiple OAM modes in a circle of antenna elements as described herein, the offsets between nodes (e.g., subsets of antenna elements) used for the multiple modes may not affect the cyclic nature of the channel matrix, and thus the multiple modes may be orthogonal. Figure 4B As described in Equation 2, in the transmitter circle and / or the receiver circle, the μ-th DFT vector may correspond to an even-numbered antenna element (e.g., v=0, 2, ... (N-2)) (assuming N is an even number), and the μ′-th DFT vector may correspond to an odd-numbered antenna element (e.g., v=1, 3, ... (N-1)). Therefore, the μ′-th DFT vector may be projected onto a fixed offset phase If μ′≠ξ, the receive beamforming of the even-numbered antenna elements can be expressed by Equation 3. Therefore, the multiple OAM modes involved in the circle can be orthogonal.

[0149]

[0150] In some examples, multiple OAM modes of equal size, different order, and uniformly distributed antenna elements in a single circle (e.g., the first OAM mode antenna element 405 and the second OAM mode antenna element 410 in the OAM antenna array configuration 401) may be orthogonal on any receiver antenna circle of equivalent size. For example, a single antenna circle may have N antenna elements, where N is divisible by K. Each of the N antenna elements may be associated with an antenna index assigned as 0, 1, ... (N-1) on a modulo N basis. A first subset of antenna elements ν, v+K, ..., v+(NK) may transmit OAM modes Additionally or alternatively, a second subset of antenna elements v′, v′+K, ..., v′+(NK) may transmit the OAM mode With OAM mode The associated OAM vector can be expressed by Equation 4 and is related to the OAM mode The associated OAM vector can be expressed by Equation 5.

[0151]

[0152] In some examples, a receiver antenna circle including N antenna elements may include an antenna element having an angle of A subset of uniformly distributed / elements, where δ is the offset between the transmitter circle and the receiver circle (e.g., Figure 6 The channel between the first subset of antenna elements at the transmitter circle and the first subset of antenna elements at the receiver circle may be circular. Additionally or alternatively, the channel between the second subset of antenna elements at the transmitter circle and the second subset of antenna elements at the receiver circle may be circular.

[0153] If the channel between the first subset of antenna elements at the transmitter circle and the first subset of antenna elements at the receiver circle is circular, the OAM pattern (N / K, μ) may be a singular vector. As represented in Equation 6, the channel associated with the first subset may be received. Additionally or alternatively, if the channel between the second subset of antenna elements at the transmitter circle and the second subset of antenna elements at the receiver circle is circular, the OAM pattern (N / K, μ) may be a singular vector. As represented in Equation 7, the channel associated with the second subset may be received.

[0154]

[0155] If μ′≠μ, the receive beamforming of the antenna elements associated with any subset may be expressed by Equation 8. As shown in Equation 8, any angular offset between the transmitter antenna subset and the receiver antenna subset may not affect the orthogonality. Therefore, the OAM mode may provide robust performance in OAM communication.

[0156]

[0157] Figure 5A and Figure 5B Examples of OAM antenna array configurations 501 and 502 that support OAM multiplexing using multiple modes in an antenna array according to one or more aspects of the present disclosure are illustrated. The OAM antenna array configurations 501 and 502 may implement or be implemented by aspects of the wireless communication system 100 or 200 or the OAM antenna array configuration 300. For example, the OAM antenna array configuration 501 illustrates a configuration of antenna elements at a transmitting device, a receiving device, or both. The transmitting device and the receiving device may represent as described in reference Figures 1 to 3 Various aspects of the corresponding device (e.g., UE, base station, CU, DU, RU, IAB node or any other device).

[0158] Figure 5A An OAM antenna array configuration 501 is illustrated, which may be an example of a first circular antenna array including a first number of antenna elements supporting OAM multiplexing using multiple modes in a first circle 530 and a second number of antenna elements also supporting OAM multiplexing using multiple modes in a second circle 535. The second circle 535 may be concentric with the first circle 530.

[0159] In this example, the transmitting device and / or the receiving device may include a first number of antenna elements arranged in a first circle 530, wherein the first number of antenna elements includes a first OAM mode antenna element 505 and a second OAM mode antenna element 510. In the same example, the transmitting device and / or the receiving device may also include a second number of antenna elements arranged in a circle 535, wherein the second number of antenna elements includes a third OAM mode antenna element 505 and a fourth OAM mode antenna element 510. Figure 5A In the example of , the transmitting device, the receiving device, or both may include four antenna elements for each corresponding OAM mode. However, it should be understood that the transmitting device and the receiving device may include any number of antenna elements.

[0160] In the OAM antenna array configuration 501, a first number of antenna elements of a first circle 530 may be positioned at a first set of radial lines 525-a, and a second number of antenna elements may be positioned at a second set of radial lines, wherein the second set of radial lines are parallel to the first set of radial lines 525-a. Thus, the antenna elements of the first circle 530 and the antenna elements of the second circle 535 may be positioned along the same radial lines in the OAM antenna array configuration 501. It should be understood that for illustrative purposes, the first set of radial lines 525-a (and Figure 5BThus, as illustrated in the OAM antenna array configuration 501, the first OAM mode antenna element 505-a of the first circle 530 is positioned in line with the third OAM mode antenna element 515-a on the corresponding radial line of the first group of radial lines 525-a.

[0161] In some examples, a device implementing a first circular antenna array may split the arranged first number of antenna elements into multiple OAM mode specific subsets of antenna elements. In other words, a device implementing the OAM antenna array configuration 501 may split the first number of antenna elements so that there is an alternating pattern (e.g., an interlaced pattern) of antenna elements associated with the first OAM mode and the second OAM mode. For example, the first OAM mode antenna elements 505-a, 505-b, 505-c, and 505-d may be included in a first subset of the first number of antenna elements. Additionally or alternatively, the second OAM mode antenna elements 510-a, 510-b, 510-c, and 510-d may be included in a second subset of the first number of antenna elements. Therefore, the first OAM mode antenna element 505 and the second OAM mode antenna element 510 may be arranged in a first alternating pattern in the circle 530.

[0162] In a second circle 535 that may be concentric with the first circle 530 including the first number of antenna elements, the OAM antenna array configuration 501 may divide the second number of antenna elements such that there is a second alternating pattern of antenna elements associated with the third OAM mode and the fourth OAM mode. For example, the third OAM mode antenna elements 515-a, 515-b, 515-c, and 515-d may be included in a first subset of the second number of antenna elements. Additionally or alternatively, the fourth OAM mode antenna elements 520-a, 520-b, 520-c, and 520-d may be included in a second subset of the second number of antenna elements. Thus, the third OAM mode antenna elements 515 and the fourth OAM mode antenna elements 520 may be arranged in a second alternating pattern in the second circle 535. In some aspects, the transmitting device, the receiving device, or both may be configured to have a second alternating pattern with respect to the third OAM mode except Figure 5A and Figure 5B An alternating or staggered pattern of antenna elements associated with multiple modes in one or more concentric circles outside of the first circle 530 and the second circle 535 depicted in FIG.

[0163] Figure 5BAn OAM antenna array configuration 502 is illustrated, which may be an example of a first circular antenna array including a first number of antenna elements in a first circle 540 that support OAM multiplexing using multiple modes and a second number of antenna elements in a second circle 545 that also support OAM multiplexing using multiple modes. A transmitting device may include a first circular antenna array including a first number of antenna elements arranged in the first circle 540 and a second number of antenna elements arranged in the second circle 545. Figure 5B As shown in , a second circle 545 including a second number of antenna elements may be concentric with a first circle 540 including a first number of antenna elements. Similarly, a receiving device may include a first circular antenna array including a first number of antenna elements arranged in a first circle 540 and a second number of antenna elements arranged in a second circle 545.

[0164] like Figure 5B As shown, the first number of antenna elements arranged in a first circle 540 may include a first OAM mode antenna element 505 and a second OAM mode antenna element 510. Additionally or alternatively, the second number of antenna elements arranged in a second circle 545 may include a third OAM mode antenna element 515 and a fourth OAM mode antenna element 520. Figure 5B In the example of , the transmitting device, the receiving device, or both may include four antenna elements for each corresponding OAM mode. However, it should be understood that the transmitting device and the receiving device may include any number of antenna elements. In the OAM antenna array configuration 502, a first number of antenna elements may be positioned at a first group of radial lines 525-a, and a second number of antenna elements may be positioned at a second group of radial lines 525-b offset from the first group of radial lines 525-a. Thus, a radial line in the second group of radial lines 525-b may bisect two radial lines in the first group of radial lines 525-a. The offset (e.g., first circle 540 and second circle 545) between concentric circles may be greater than or equal to one another. Figure 5B As described above, radial lines (a first set of radial lines 525-a and a second set of radial lines 525-b) are included for illustrative purposes to illustrate the positioning of antenna elements.

[0165] The device may split the first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle into multiple OAM mode specific subsets of antenna elements. In other words, the device implementing the OAM antenna array configuration 502 may split the first number of antenna elements of the first circle 540 so that there is an alternating pattern of antenna elements associated with the first OAM mode and the second OAM mode. The first OAM mode antenna elements 505-e, 505-f, 505-g, and 505-h may be included in the first subset of the first number of antenna elements. Additionally or alternatively, the second OAM mode antenna elements 510-e, 510-f, 510-g, and 510-h may be included in the second subset of the first number of antenna elements. In the second circle 545, the OAM antenna array configuration 502 may split the second number of antenna elements so that there is a second alternating pattern of antenna elements associated with the third OAM mode and the fourth OAM mode. For example, the third OAM mode antenna elements 515-e, 515-f, 515-g, and 515-h may be included in the first subset of the second number of antenna elements. Additionally or alternatively, fourth OAM mode antenna elements 520 - e , 520 - f , 520 - g , and 520 - h may be included in a second subset of the second number of antenna elements.

[0166] As described in more detail herein, the various OAM modes of a circle may be orthogonal to each other and to other OAM modes on other circles. Figure 6 As described, the offsets between circles and the offsets between the transmitting and receiving panels can be selected in the same manner as would be performed with one OAM mode in each circle. Additionally, if radial modes are desired to further increase the degrees of freedom, these modes can be applied by beamforming of azimuth modes across circles. The same azimuth mode can be applied to antenna nodes on multiple circles. In some examples, multiple OAM modes may have different propagation losses between a transmitter circle and a receiver circle pair. To this end, a receiving device may receive multiple modes via multiple circles. Additionally or alternatively, on a circle, for an OAM mode, the device may have more receiver antenna elements than transmitter antenna elements.

[0167] Figure 6An example of an OAM antenna array system 600 that supports OAM multiplexing using multiple modes in an antenna array according to one or more aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated. The OAM antenna array system includes OAM array configurations 601 and 602, which may implement or be implemented by aspects of the wireless communication systems 100 and 200 or the OAM antenna array configuration 300. For example, the OAM antenna array configuration 601 illustrates a configuration of antenna elements at a transmitting device, and the OAM antenna array configuration 602 illustrates a configuration of antenna elements at a receiving device that are radially offset from the OAM antenna array configuration 601. The transmitting device and the receiving device may represent as shown in reference Figures 1 to 3 Various aspects of the corresponding device (e.g., UE, base station, CU, DU, RU, IAB node or any other device).

[0168] Figure 6 An OAM antenna array configuration 601 at a transmitting device (e.g., transmitting one or more signals 630 to a receiving device) is illustrated, which can be an example of a first circular antenna array that includes a first number of antenna elements in the first circle that support OAM multiplexing using multiple modes and a second number of antenna elements in the second circle that also support OAM multiplexing using multiple modes. In the first circle, the first number of antenna elements may include a first OAM mode antenna element 605 and a second OAM mode antenna element 610. In the second circle, the second number of antenna elements may include a third OAM mode antenna element 615 and a subset of a fourth OAM mode antenna element 620. In the OAM antenna array configuration 602, the transmitting device may include four antenna elements for each corresponding OAM mode. However, it should be understood that the transmitting device may include any number of antenna elements.

[0169] In the OAM antenna array configuration 601, a first number of antenna elements in a first circle and a second number of antenna elements in a second circle may be positioned at a first set of radial lines 625-a (e.g., a corresponding set of parallel lines). The device implementing the first circular antenna array may split the first number of antenna elements and / or the second number of antenna elements arranged in the corresponding circle into the first and second sets of radial lines 625-a. Figure 5A and Figure 5B A specific subset of the multiple OAM modes of the number of antenna elements is described.

[0170] Additionally, Figure 6An OAM antenna array configuration 602 at a receiving device (receiving one or more signals 630 from a transmitting device) is illustrated, which can be an example of a first circular antenna array that includes a first number of antenna elements in the first circle that support OAM multiplexing using multiple modes and a second number of antenna elements in the second circle that also support OAM multiplexing using multiple modes. In the first circle, the first number of antenna elements may include a first OAM mode antenna element 605 and a second OAM mode antenna element 610. In the second circle, the second number of antenna elements may include a third OAM mode antenna element 615 and a fourth OAM mode antenna element 620. In the OAM antenna array configuration 602, the receiving device may include four antenna elements for each corresponding OAM mode. However, it should be understood that the receiving device may include any number of antenna elements.

[0171] In some aspects, the antenna elements on each device may be installed or dynamically adjusted or activated so that they are aligned along a first axis (e.g., a horizontal axis or a vertical axis) and rotationally (e.g., a transmitter antenna element may be aligned with a receiver antenna element on each rotational axis). Additionally or alternatively, any angular offset (e.g., offset 635) may be applied between the transmitter antenna element and the receiver antenna element. For example, OAM communications may support relatively high-order spatial multiplexing, and in some aspects, angular offsets between antenna elements may be configured to improve orthogonality between signals and increase data throughput.

[0172] In the OAM antenna array configuration 601, the first number of antenna elements and the second number of antenna elements may be positioned at a first set of radial lines 625-a (e.g., corresponding sets of parallel lines). In the OAM antenna array configuration 602, the first number of antenna elements and the second number of antenna elements at the receiving device may be radially offset (e.g., offset 635) from the first number of antenna elements and the second number of antenna elements represented in the OAM antenna array configuration 601 at the transmitting device. In some examples, the second set of radial lines 625-b may be spaced offset 635 from the first set of radial lines 625-a. Therefore, the first number of antenna elements and the second number of antenna elements in the OAM antenna configuration 602 at the receiving device may be positioned at the second set of radial lines 625-b.

[0173] The first circular antenna array may split a first number of antenna elements arranged in a first circle into multiple OAM mode specific subsets of the number of antenna elements. In other words, the OAM antenna array configuration 602 may split the first number of antenna elements so that there is an alternating pattern of first OAM mode antenna elements 605 and second OAM mode antenna elements 610. In a second circle that may be concentric with the first circle containing the first number of antenna elements, the OAM antenna array configuration 602 may split the second number of antenna elements so that there is a second alternating pattern of third OAM mode antenna elements 615 and fourth OAM mode antenna elements 620.

[0174] In some cases (not in Figure 6 ), a transmitter circle at a transmitting device and a receiver circle at a receiving device may be angularly aligned (e.g., offset 635 is 0). For example, there may be no offset between a first circular antenna array of a transmitter circle and a first circular antenna array of a receiver circle. In this case, aliasing may occur, which may reduce data throughput and communication reliability. When a system is represented by a finite number of samples, aliasing may correspond to an under-representation of the system. For example, sampling a continuous signal may produce interference or may permit at least some erroneous representation of the continuous signal, which may be referred to as aliasing.

[0175] As stated in this article, Figure 6 The antenna subarrays of the transmitter circle depicted in A may be offset from the antenna subarrays in the receiver circle by a non-zero angular offset 635 to reduce aliasing effects. The offset 635 may be Figure 6 The first transmitter antenna subarray of the transmitter circle shown in A is connected to Figure 6 The corresponding first antenna subarrays can be defined arbitrarily or based on the position of an axis or other reference in the panel, such as an x-axis or y-axis passing through the plane of the circle, with the origin at the center of the transmitter circle and the receiver circle. In some examples, a transmitter device and a receiver device having multiple modes on multiple circles can be configured to have angular offsets between the multiple circles (e.g., as Figure 5B ) and having an angular offset between the transmitter panel and the receiver panel.

[0176] The reference line at the transmitting device may be defined as line 640-a from the center of the panel to the first OAM mode transmitter antenna element. The reference line at the receiving device may be defined as line 640-b from the center of the panel to the first OAM mode receiver antenna element. Figure 4BAs described above, since the offsets between nodes for multiple modes in a single circle may not affect the orthogonality between the modes, the transmitting device and receiving device offsets may be selected in a similar manner. Offset 635 may be defined as a rotation angle θ between reference lines 640-a and 640-b for the transmitting device and the receiving device, respectively. Offset 635 may be configured as a positive or negative non-zero value to reduce aliasing effects as described herein. When there are the same number of transmitter antenna subarrays as receiver antenna subarrays (e.g., M=N), the first non-zero aliasing term may be When there are a different number of transmitter antenna subarrays than receiver antenna subarrays (e.g., M≠N), the first non-zero aliasing term can be given by index, and the choice for Tx-RX offset can be This result may be true if M is the actual number of antennas used for transmission.

[0177] In addition, as described in this article, Figure 6 In the scenario depicted in , the ability to split or partition a circle by a transmitter (e.g., a device implementing OAM antenna array configuration 601) can signal the ability to split a circle to a receiver (e.g., a device implementing OAM antenna array configuration 602) via system broadcast or dedicated RRC signaling. In such a case, for a particular pair of receiving and transmitting circles, the receiver can consider whether the receiver is configured to support a single mode and its channel gain from the transmitting circle, or whether the receiver is configured to support multiple modes, staggered patterns (offset p) and / or corresponding channel gains of multiple modes in one or more transmitting circles. In addition, the transmitter can transmit a set of reference signals (e.g., signal 630) using one or more modes as described herein. The receiver can respond to the reference signal with channel state feedback in conjunction with the selection of single and / or multiple modes for each transmitting circle. In some cases, the receiver can feedback information associated with a single OAM mode transmission mode and a multiple OAM mode transmission mode.

[0178] In some cases, a device implementing multiple OAM modes per circular antenna array may signal the topology of one or more antenna circles (including size, number of circles, number of elements on each circle, PA chain information, receive chain information, number of beamformers, or a combination thereof) to facilitate selection of multiplexing. A transmitter (e.g., or a scheduling device) may determine a set of possible modes that may be multiplexed on each transmit circle. In some examples, a scheduling device may configure a reference signal to support channel quality measurements to determine a specific multiplexing scheme.

[0179] To support channel quality measurement, the channel matrix can be determined based on the number of circles (M) and the number of elements of each circle (N). The size of the full channel matrix can be (MN)*(MN), but for each pair of circles m1, m2, the N*N sub-matrix is ​​cyclic. The full channel matrix can be expressed as follows:

[0180]

[0181] With H m1m2 An N*N circulant matrix whose elements is the complex channel gain between the tx-rx antenna pair n1n2. Based on the results about the DFT vector as the eigenvector of the circulant matrix, it is obtained that: Where the pth DFT vector is the pth complex eigenvalue, which is The pth value in the DFT of the row vector in .

[0182] According to the above results: Therefore, the eigenvectors of H have the form {x1e p ,x2e p ,...x m e p} T , p=0,1,...(N-1).

[0183] Circular antenna arrays can support phase difference The beamforming vector can be the pth DFT vector The eigenvectors of ; the (partial) beam strengths can be eigenvalues: The pth DFT of the row vectors in . For each azimuthal pattern in , the radial pattern goes from 0 to (M-1).

[0184] The beamforming vectors / eigenvectors and the (full) beam strengths / eigenvalues ​​can be those from the intermediate matrix:

[0185] in is a block matrix The pth eigenvalue of .

[0186] The beamforming along the radial direction may depend on the azimuth pattern. The radial beamforming vectors may be applied to a circle with the same azimuth pattern. If multiple azimuth patterns are multiplexed in a circle, the antennas of each pattern across the circle may be beamformed along the radial direction. Therefore, the assumption of a single PA may be broken. The beamforming vectors along the radial direction may be obtained by an SVD process (with a simplified channel matrix of reduced size) or by a codeword-based approach.

[0187] Figure 7 An example of a process flow 700 for supporting OAM multiplexing using multiple modes in an antenna array according to one or more aspects of the present disclosure is illustrated. The process flow 700 may implement or be implemented by aspects of the wireless communication systems 100 and 200 or the OAM antenna array configurations 300, 401, 402, 501, 502, 601, or 602. For example, the process flow 700 illustrates a device 705-a and a device 705-b (which may represent a device such as a reference Figures 1 to 6 Device 705 may be a UE, a base station, an IAB node, a RU, a CU, a DU, any other network node, or any combination thereof that supports OAM communication.

[0188] The device 705 - a may include a transmit antenna array having a first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle, and the device 705 - b may include a receive circular antenna array having a first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle.

[0189] In the following description of process flow 700, operations between device 705-a and device 705-b may be performed in a different order or at a different time. Some operations may also be excluded from process flow 700, or other operations may be added. Although device 705-a and device 705-b are shown as performing operations of process flow 700, some aspects of some operations may also be performed by one or more other wireless devices.

[0190] At 710, the base station 705-a may send a capability message, and the device 705-b may receive the capability message. By sending the capability message, the device 705-a may specify that the device 705-a may be able to use a multi-mode transmission mode for a circular antenna array to transmit a signal, wherein a first OAM mode may use a first subset of antenna elements arranged in a circle, and a second OAM mode may use a second subset of antenna elements arranged in the same circle. In some aspects, the device 705-a may send the capability message by using an RRC signal or a system broadcast signal. In some cases, the device 705-a may send an indication of the topology of the first circular antenna array. In some examples, the topology may include information about the properties of the first circular antenna array, such as the number of circles, the number of antenna elements in one or more of the circles, the number of power amplifiers for one or more circles, the number of digital beamformers for one or more circles, or a combination thereof. The indication of the topology may be sent as part of the capability message sent at 710, or may be a separate control message.

[0191] At 715, device 705-b may send a feedback message, and device 705-a may receive the feedback message. By sending the feedback message, device 705-b may indicate that the first device 705-a may use a multi-mode transmission mode from options of a single-mode transmission mode and a multi-mode transmission mode. Additionally or alternatively, the feedback message may include information associated with both the single-mode transmission mode and the multi-mode transmission mode. In some examples, the feedback message indicates one or more channel quality indicators corresponding to each antenna element in the first number of antenna elements, each mode in the first orbital angular momentum mode and the second orbital angular momentum mode, or a combination thereof.

[0192] At 720, the device 705-a may generate a plurality of signals. For example, the device 705-a may generate a first plurality of signals for transmission from the device 705-a via a first circular antenna array, which may include a first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle. In some aspects, the generated signals may include a reference signal such as a CSI-RS or SRS, a control message, data, or a combination thereof.

[0193] At 725, in some aspects, the device 705-a may apply a set of beamforming weights for transmitting the first signal and the second signal in the first plurality of signals. In some examples, the device 705-a may determine or identify multiple sets of beamforming weights based on a previously received feedback message. For example, the device 705-a may identify multiple sets of beamforming weights based on an indication of the beamforming weights via a previously received feedback message or based on a channel quality measurement indicated via a previously received feedback message. In some examples, the device 705-a may use a first number of phasors to apply a set of beamforming weights to corresponding antenna elements that may be used to transmit the first signal and the second signal in the first plurality of signals. In such examples, each phasor in the first number of phasors may correspond to a corresponding antenna element in the first number of antenna elements. Additionally or alternatively, the device 705-b may use a second number of phasors to apply a set of beamforming weights to corresponding antenna elements that may be used to receive signals from the first device 705-a.

[0194] At 730, device 705-a may transmit a first signal of the first plurality of signals using a first OAM mode and a first subset of a first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle. Device 705-a may transmit one or more signals using a transmitter circle, and device 705-b may receive one or more signals using a receiver circle.

[0195] At 735, device 705-a may transmit a second signal in the first plurality of signals using a second OAM mode and a second subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle. Similar to at 730, device 705-a may transmit one or more signals using a transmitter circle, and device 705-b may receive one or more signals using a receiver circle. Each of the one or more signals may be associated with a respective set of beamforming weights in the plurality of sets of beamforming weights.

[0196] At 740, device 705-b may decode a first signal from the first plurality of signals by using a first OAM mode and a first subset of a first number of antenna elements at device 705-b, and may also decode a second signal from the first plurality of signals by using a second OAM mode and a second subset of the first number of antenna elements at device 705-b.

[0197] The first device 705-a and the second device 705-b can thus support OAM beamforming and multiplexing using multiple OAM modes at the transmitter circle and the receiver circle to increase data throughput and provide improved resource utilization. In some examples, the first device 705-a can support at least the third OAM mode and the fourth OAM mode using a second number of antenna elements arranged in a second circle, which is concentric with the first circle containing the first number of antenna elements. In such cases, the first device 705-a can use the third mode and the fourth mode and a corresponding subset of the second number of antenna elements of the second circle to send (and receive) signals. Similarly, the second device 705-a can use the second number of antenna elements arranged in a second circle to support at least the third OAM mode and the fourth OAM mode, which is concentric with the first circle of the second device 705-b. The second device 705-a can use the third mode and the fourth mode and a corresponding subset of antenna elements of the second number of antenna elements arranged in the second circle of the second device 705-b to receive (and send) signals.

[0198] Figure 8 A block diagram 800 of a device 805 supporting OAM multiplexing using multiple modes in an antenna array according to one or more aspects of the present disclosure is shown. The device 805 may be an example of aspects of a UE 115 or a network entity 105 as described herein. The device 805 may include a receiver 810, a transmitter 815, and a communication manager 820. The device 805 may also include a processor. Each of these components may communicate with each other (e.g., via one or more buses).

[0199] The receiver 810 may provide means for receiving information (such as packets, user data, control information, or any combination thereof) associated with various information channels (e.g., control channels related to OAM multiplexing using multiple modes in an antenna array, data channels, information channels). The information may be passed to other components of the device 805. The receiver 810 may utilize a single antenna or a group of multiple antennas.

[0200] The transmitter 815 may provide means for transmitting signals generated by other components of the device 805. For example, the transmitter 815 may transmit information associated with various information channels (e.g., control channels related to OAM multiplexing using multiple modes in an antenna array, data channels, information channels), such as packets, user data, control information, or any combination thereof. In some examples, the transmitter 815 may be co-located with the receiver 810 in a transceiver module. The transmitter 815 may utilize a single antenna or a set of multiple antennas.

[0201] The communication manager 820, the receiver 810, the transmitter 815, or various combinations thereof, or various components thereof may be examples of means for performing various aspects of OAM multiplexing using multiple modes in an antenna array as described herein. For example, the communication manager 820, the receiver 810, the transmitter 815, or various combinations or components thereof may support methods for performing one or more of the functions described herein.

[0202] In some examples, the communication manager 820, the receiver 810, the transmitter 815, or various combinations or components thereof may be implemented in hardware (e.g., in a communication management circuit). The hardware may include a processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), a central processing unit (CPU), an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, a microcontroller, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof that is configured as or otherwise supports means for performing the functions described in the present disclosure. In some examples, the processor and a memory coupled to the processor may be configured to perform one or more of the functions described herein (e.g., by executing instructions stored in the memory by the processor).

[0203] Additionally or alternatively, in some examples, the communication manager 820, the receiver 810, the transmitter 815, or various combinations or components thereof may be implemented in code executed by a processor (e.g., as communication management software or firmware). If implemented in code executed by a processor, the functionality of the communication manager 820, the receiver 810, the transmitter 815, or various combinations or components thereof may be performed by a general purpose processor (e.g., configured as or otherwise supporting means for performing the functionality described in the present disclosure), a DSP, a CPU, an ASIC, an FPGA, a microcontroller, or any combination of these or other programmable logic devices.

[0204] In some examples, the communication manager 820 can be configured to perform various operations (e.g., receive, obtain, monitor, output, send) using or otherwise cooperating with the receiver 810, the transmitter 815, or both. For example, the communication manager 820 can receive information from the receiver 810, transmit information to the transmitter 815, or integrate with the receiver 810, the transmitter 815, or both to obtain information, output information, or perform various other operations as described herein.

[0205] The communication manager 820 may support wireless communication at the first device according to the examples disclosed herein. For example, the communication manager 820 may be configured to or otherwise support a component for generating a set of multiple signals to be sent from the first device via a first circular antenna array, the first circular antenna array including a first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle. The communication manager 820 may be configured to or otherwise support a component for sending a first signal in the set of multiple signals using a first OAM mode and a first subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle. The communication manager 820 may be configured to or otherwise support a component for sending a second signal in a set of multiple signals using a second OAM mode and a second subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle, wherein the second subset does not include the first subset.

[0206] Additionally or alternatively, the communication manager 820 may support wireless communication at the first device according to the examples disclosed herein. For example, the communication manager 820 may be configured to or otherwise support a component for receiving a first signal in a set of multiple signals using a first OAM mode and a first subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle at a first circular antenna array including a first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle. The communication manager 820 may be configured to or otherwise support a component for receiving a second signal in the set of multiple signals using a second OAM mode and a second subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle, wherein the second subset does not include the first subset. The communication manager 820 may be configured to or otherwise support a component for decoding a first signal received using the first OAM mode and the first subset and a second signal received using the second OAM mode and the second subset.

[0207] By including or configuring the communication manager 820 according to the examples described herein, the device 805 (e.g., a processor that controls or is otherwise coupled to the receiver 810, the transmitter 815, the communication manager 820, or a combination thereof) can support techniques for reducing power consumption, more efficient use of communication resources, and higher throughput. For example, the device 805 may include a first circular antenna array, and may support communication with a second device via the first circular antenna array by using multiple OAM modes. By supporting communication between such devices and using multiple modes in an antenna element circle, the number of power amplifiers used for operation can be reduced, which can provide improved resource utilization and reduced power consumption. Additionally, using multiple OAM modes in a single circle can provide higher degrees of freedom with smaller array gain, which can improve the throughput of communication. In some aspects, an angular offset can be configured between an antenna subarray of the device 805 and an antenna subarray of another device, which can reduce aliasing and improve throughput.

[0208] Fig. 9 A block diagram 900 of a device 905 supporting OAM multiplexing using multiple modes in an antenna array according to one or more aspects of the present disclosure is shown. The device 905 may be an example of aspects of the device 805, UE 115, or network entity 105 as described herein. The device 905 may include a receiver 910, a transmitter 915, and a communication manager 920. The device 905 may also include a processor. Each of these components may communicate with each other (e.g., via one or more buses).

[0209] The receiver 910 may provide means for receiving information (such as packets, user data, control information, or any combination thereof) associated with various information channels (e.g., control channels related to OAM multiplexing using multiple modes in an antenna array, data channels, information channels). The information may be passed to other components of the device 905. The receiver 910 may utilize a single antenna or a group of multiple antennas.

[0210] The transmitter 915 may provide means for transmitting signals generated by other components of the device 905. For example, the transmitter 915 may transmit information associated with various information channels (e.g., control channels related to OAM multiplexing using multiple modes in an antenna array, data channels, information channels), such as packets, user data, control information, or any combination thereof. In some examples, the transmitter 915 may be co-located with the receiver 910 in a transceiver module. The transmitter 915 may utilize a single antenna or a set of multiple antennas.

[0211] The device 905 or its various components may be examples of components for performing various aspects of OAM multiplexing using multiple modes in an antenna array as described herein. For example, the communication manager 920 may include a signal generation component 925, a first mode component 930, a second mode component 935, a decoding component 940, or any combination thereof. The communication manager 920 may be an example of various aspects of the communication manager 820 as described herein. In some examples, the communication manager 920 or its various components may be configured to use or otherwise cooperate with the receiver 910, the transmitter 915, or both to perform various operations (e.g., receive, obtain, monitor, output, send). For example, the communication manager 920 may receive information from the receiver 910, transmit information to the transmitter 915, or be integrated with the receiver 910, the transmitter 915, or both to obtain information, output information, or perform various other operations as described herein.

[0212] The communication manager 920 may support wireless communication at the first device according to the examples disclosed herein. The signal generation component 925 may be configured to or otherwise support a component for generating a set of multiple signals to be sent from the first device via a first circular antenna array, the first circular antenna array including a first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle. The first mode component 930 may be configured to or otherwise support a component for sending a first signal in the set of multiple signals using a first OAM mode and a first subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle. The second mode component 935 may be configured to or otherwise support a component for sending a second signal in a set of multiple signals using a second OAM mode and a second subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle, wherein the second subset does not include the first subset.

[0213] Additionally or alternatively, the communication manager 920 may support wireless communication at the first device according to examples as disclosed herein. The first mode component 930 may be configured to or otherwise support a component for receiving a first signal in a set of multiple signals using a first OAM mode and a first subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle at a first circular antenna array including a first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle. The second mode component 935 may be configured to or otherwise support a component for receiving a second signal in the set of multiple signals using a second OAM mode and a second subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle, wherein the second subset does not include the first subset. The decoding component 940 may be configured to or otherwise support a component for decoding a first signal received using the first OAM mode and the first subset and a second signal received using the second OAM mode and the second subset.

[0214] Fig.10 A block diagram 1000 of a communication manager 1020 supporting OAM multiplexing using multiple modes in an antenna array according to one or more aspects of the present disclosure is shown. The communication manager 1020 can be an example of aspects of the communication manager 820, the communication manager 920, or both as described herein. The communication manager 1020 or its various components can be examples of means for performing various aspects of OAM multiplexing using multiple modes in an antenna array as described herein. For example, the communication manager 1020 may include a signal generation component 1025, a first mode component 1030, a second mode component 1035, a decoding component 1040, a capability message interface 1045, a topology message interface 1050, a communication interface 1055, a beamforming component 1060, a third mode component 1065, a fourth mode component 1070, a feedback interface 1075, or any combination thereof. Each of these components may communicate with each other directly or indirectly (e.g., via one or more buses), which communication may include communication within a protocol layer of a protocol stack, communication associated with a logical channel of a protocol stack (e.g., between protocol layers of a protocol stack, within a device, component, or virtualized component associated with the network entity 105, between devices, components, or virtualized components associated with the network entity 105), or any combination thereof.

[0215] The communication manager 1020 may support wireless communication at the first device according to the examples disclosed herein. The signal generation component 1025 may be configured to or otherwise support a component for generating a set of multiple signals to be sent from the first device via a first circular antenna array, the first circular antenna array including a first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle. The first mode component 1030 may be configured to or otherwise support a component for sending a first signal in the set of multiple signals using a first OAM mode and a first subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle. The second mode component 1035 may be configured to or otherwise support a component for sending a second signal in a set of multiple signals using a second OAM mode and a second subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle, wherein the second subset does not include the first subset.

[0216] In some examples, the capability message interface 1045 may be configured to or otherwise support components for sending a capability message specifying that the first device is capable of sending signals using a multi-mode transmission mode that includes a first OAM mode using a first subset of antenna elements arranged in a circle and a second OAM mode using a second subset of antenna elements arranged in a circle.

[0217] In some examples, to support sending capability messages, capability message interface 1045 may be configured or otherwise support means for sending capability messages using radio resource control signals or system broadcast signals.

[0218] In some examples, feedback interface 1075 may be configured or otherwise support means for receiving a feedback message from the second device indicating that the first device is to use the multi-mode transmission mode of the single-mode transmission mode and the multi-mode transmission mode.

[0219] In some examples, the topology message interface 1050 may be configured to or otherwise support components for sending an indication of the topology of the first circular antenna array, wherein the topology includes the number of circles of the first circular antenna array, the number of antenna elements in one or more circles of the first circular antenna array, the number of power amplifiers used for the one or more circles, the number of digital beamformers used for the one or more circles, or a combination thereof.

[0220] In some examples, the topology message interface 1050 may be configured to or otherwise support components for receiving, from a second device, an indication of the topology of a second circular antenna array of the second device, wherein the topology includes the number of circles of the second circular antenna array, the number of antenna elements in one or more circles of the second circular antenna array, the number of power amplifiers used for the one or more circles, the number of digital beamformers used for the one or more circles, or a combination thereof.

[0221] In some examples, to support sending a first signal and sending a second signal, communication interface 1055 may be configured to or otherwise support components for sending the first signal using a first OAM mode and sending the second signal using a second OAM mode based on the topology of the first circular antenna array, the topology of the second circular antenna array of the second device, or a combination thereof.

[0222] In some examples, to support sending the first signal and sending the second signal, the first mode component 1030 can be configured to or otherwise support means for sending the first signal including the first set of reference signals. In some examples, to support sending the first signal and sending the second signal, the second mode component 1035 can be configured to or otherwise support means for sending the second signal including the second set of reference signals.

[0223] In some examples, the feedback interface 1075 may be configured to or otherwise support a component for receiving a feedback message from the second device based on sending the first set of reference signals and the second set of reference signals, the feedback message indicating one or more channel quality indicators corresponding to each antenna element in the first number of antenna elements, each mode in the first OAM mode and the second OAM mode, or a combination thereof.

[0224] In some examples, communication interface 1055 may be configured or otherwise support means for sending one or more subsequent signals using the first OAM mode, the second OAM mode, or both based on one or more channel quality indications.

[0225] In some examples, each antenna element in the first subset and each antenna element in the second subset are arranged in a circle in an alternating pattern.

[0226] In some examples, to support sending the first signal and sending the second signal, first mode component 1030 may be configured as or otherwise support means for sending the first signal using a first power applied by a first power amplifier corresponding to a first subset of antenna elements and a first OAM mode. In some examples, to support sending the first signal and sending the second signal, second mode component 1035 may be configured as or otherwise support means for sending the second signal using a second power applied by a second power amplifier corresponding to a second subset of antenna elements and a second OAM mode.

[0227] In some examples, beamforming component 1060 may be configured as or otherwise support components for applying a set of beamforming weights to transmit a first signal and a second signal using a first number of phasors, wherein each phasor in the first number of phasors corresponds to a respective antenna element in the first number of antenna elements.

[0228] In some examples, the signal generation component 1025 may be configured to or otherwise support components for generating a second plurality of signals to be transmitted from the first device via a first circular antenna array, the first circular antenna array including a second number of antenna elements arranged in a second circle. In some examples, the third mode component 1065 may be configured to or otherwise support components for transmitting a first signal of the second plurality of signals using a third OAM mode and a first subset of the second number of antenna elements arranged in a second circle. In some examples, the fourth mode component 1070 may be configured to or otherwise support components for transmitting a second signal of the second plurality of signals using a fourth OAM mode and a second subset of the second number of antenna elements arranged in a second circle, wherein the second subset of the second number of antenna elements does not include the first subset of the second number of antenna elements, and wherein the circle and the second circle are concentric.

[0229] In some examples, a first number of antenna elements are positioned at a first set of radial lines of the circle. In some examples, a second number of antenna elements are positioned at a second set of radial lines in the second circle, and the second set of radial lines are offset between the first set of radial lines.

[0230] In some examples, the first number of antenna elements are positioned at a first set of radial lines of the circle, and the second number of antenna elements are positioned at a second set of radial lines in the second circle. In some examples, the second set of radial lines are parallel to the first set of radial lines.

[0231] In some examples, to support sending a first signal and sending a second signal, the communication interface 1055 may be configured as or otherwise support components for sending the first signal and the second signal to a second device using the first number of antenna elements, where the first number of antenna elements is radially offset from the second number of antenna elements of the second device.

[0232] Additionally or alternatively, the communication manager 1020 may support wireless communication at the first device according to the examples disclosed herein. In some examples, the first mode component 1030 may be configured to or otherwise support a component for receiving a first signal in a set of multiple signals using a first OAM mode and a first subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle at a first circular antenna array including a first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle. In some examples, the second mode component 1035 may be configured to or otherwise support a component for receiving a second signal in the set of multiple signals using a second OAM mode and a second subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle, wherein the second subset does not include the first subset. The decoding component 1040 may be configured to or otherwise support a component for decoding a first signal received using the first OAM mode and the first subset and a second signal received using the second OAM mode and the second subset.

[0233] In some examples, capability message interface 1045 may be configured or otherwise support means for receiving a capability message from a second device specifying that the first device is capable of transmitting signals using a multimodal transmission mode.

[0234] In some examples, to support receiving and transmitting capability messages, capability message interface 1045 may be configured or otherwise support means for receiving capability messages using radio resource control signals or system broadcast signals.

[0235] In some examples, feedback interface 1075 may be configured to or otherwise support means for sending a feedback message to the second device indicating that the first device is to use the multi-mode transmission mode among the single-mode transmission mode and the multi-mode transmission mode.

[0236] In some examples, the topology message interface 1050 may be configured to or otherwise support components for receiving, from a second device, an indication of the topology of a second circular antenna array of the second device, wherein the topology includes the number of circles of the second circular antenna array, the number of antenna elements in one or more circles of the second circular antenna array, the number of power amplifiers used for the one or more circles, the number of digital beamformers used for the one or more circles, or a combination thereof.

[0237] In some examples, the topology message interface 1050 may be configured to or otherwise support components for sending an indication of the topology of the first circular antenna array to a second device, wherein the topology includes the number of circles of the first circular antenna array, the number of antenna elements in one or more circles of the first circular antenna array, the number of power amplifiers used for the one or more circles, the number of digital beamformers used for the one or more circles, or a combination thereof.

[0238] In some examples, to support receiving a first signal and a second signal, communication interface 1055 may be configured to or otherwise support components for receiving the first signal using a first OAM mode and receiving the second signal using a second OAM mode based on the topology of the first circular antenna array, the topology of the second circular antenna array of the second device, or a combination thereof.

[0239] In some examples, to support receiving the first signal and the second signal, the first mode component 1030 can be configured or otherwise supports means for receiving the first signal including the first set of reference signals. In some examples, to support receiving the first signal and the second signal, the second mode component 1035 can be configured or otherwise supports means for receiving the second signal including the second set of reference signals.

[0240] In some examples, feedback interface 1075 may be configured to or otherwise support a component for sending a feedback message to a second device based on receiving a first set of reference signals and a second set of reference signals, the feedback message indicating one or more channel quality indicators corresponding to each antenna element of a second number of antenna elements of the second device, each OAM mode used by the second device, or a combination thereof.

[0241] In some examples, each antenna element in the first subset and each antenna element in the second subset are arranged in a circle in an alternating pattern.

[0242] In some examples, third mode component 1065 may be configured as or otherwise support means for receiving a third signal using a third OAM mode and a first subset of a second number of antenna elements arranged in a second circle. In some examples, fourth mode component 1070 may be configured as or otherwise support means for receiving a fourth signal using a fourth OAM mode and a second subset of a second number of antenna elements arranged in a second circle. In some examples, decoding component 1040 may be configured as or otherwise support means for decoding a third signal received using the third OAM mode and the first subset of the second number of antenna elements and a fourth signal received using the fourth OAM mode and the second subset of the second number of antenna elements.

[0243] In some examples, the first number of antenna elements are positioned at a first set of radial lines of the circle, and the second number of antenna elements are positioned at a second set of radial lines in the second circle. In some examples, the second set of radial lines are offset between the first set of radial lines.

[0244] In some examples, the first number of antenna elements are positioned at a first set of radial lines of the circle, and the second number of antenna elements are positioned at a second set of radial lines in the second circle. In some examples, the second set of radial lines are parallel to the first set of radial lines.

[0245] In some examples, communication interface 1055 may be configured or otherwise support means for receiving first and second signals from a second device using the first number of antenna elements that are radially offset from a second number of antenna elements of the second device.

[0246] Fig.11 A diagram of a system 1100 including a device 1105 supporting OAM multiplexing using multiple modes in an antenna array according to one or more aspects of the present disclosure is shown. The device 1105 may be an example of a device 805, a device 905, or a network entity 105 as described herein, or include components of these devices. The device 1105 may communicate with one or more network entities 105, one or more UEs 115, or any combination thereof, which may include communication through one or more wired interfaces, through one or more wireless interfaces, or any combination thereof. The device 1105 may include components that support output and acquisition of communications, such as a communication manager 1120, a transceiver 1110, an antenna 1115, a memory 1125, a code 1130, and a processor 1135. These components may be electronically communicated or otherwise coupled (e.g., operatively, communicatively, functionally, electronically, electrically) via one or more buses (e.g., bus 1140).

[0247] The transceiver 1110 may support bidirectional communication via a wired link, a wireless link, or both as described herein. In some examples, the transceiver 1110 may include a wired transceiver and may communicate bidirectionally with another wired transceiver. Additionally or alternatively, in some examples, the transceiver 1110 may include a wireless transceiver and may communicate bidirectionally with another wireless transceiver. In some examples, the device 1105 may include one or more antennas 1115, which may be capable of (e.g., concurrently) sending or receiving wireless transmissions. The transceiver 1110 may also include a modem for modulating a signal, for providing a modulated signal for transmission (e.g., via one or more antennas 1115, via a wired transmitter), for receiving a modulated signal (e.g., from one or more antennas 1115, from a wired receiver), and for demodulating a signal. Where applicable, transceiver 1110 or transceiver 1110 and one or more antennas 1115 or wired interfaces may be examples of transmitter 815, transmitter 915, receiver 810, receiver 910, or any combination thereof or any components thereof as described herein. In some examples, the transceiver may be operable to support communication via one or more communication links (e.g., communication link 125, backhaul communication link 120, midhaul communication link 162, fronthaul communication link 168).

[0248] The memory 1125 may include random access memory (RAM) and read-only memory (ROM). The memory 1125 may store computer-readable, computer-executable code 1130 including instructions that, when executed by the processor 1135, cause the device 1105 to perform various functions described herein. The code 1130 may be stored in a non-transitory computer-readable medium such as a system memory or another type of memory. In some cases, the code 1130 may not be directly executable by the processor 1135, but may (e.g., when compiled and executed) cause the computer to perform the functions described herein. In some cases, in addition to this, the memory 1125 may also include a basic input / output (I / O) system (BIOS), which may control basic hardware or software operations, such as interaction with peripheral components or devices.

[0249] The processor 1135 may include an intelligent hardware device (e.g., a general-purpose processor, a DSP, an ASIC, a CPU, an FPGA, a microcontroller, a programmable logic device, a discrete gate or transistor logic, a discrete hardware component, or any combination thereof). In some cases, the processor 1135 may be configured to operate a memory array using a memory controller. In some other cases, the memory controller may be integrated into the processor 1135. The processor 1135 may be configured to execute computer-readable instructions stored in a memory (e.g., memory 1125) so that the device 1105 performs various functions (e.g., functions or tasks that support OAM multiplexing using multiple modes in an antenna array). For example, the device 1105 or a component of the device 1105 may include a processor 1135 and a memory 1125 coupled to the processor 1135, and the processor 1135 and the memory 1125 are configured to perform the various functions described herein. Processor 1135 can be an example of a cloud computing platform (e.g., one or more physical nodes and supporting software such as an operating system, virtual machine, or container instance) that can host functionality (e.g., by executing code 1130) to perform the functions of device 1105.

[0250] In some examples, bus 1140 may support communications of a protocol layer of a protocol stack (e.g., within the protocol layer). In some examples, bus 1140 may support communications associated with a logical channel of a protocol stack (e.g., between protocol layers of the protocol stack), which may include communications performed within a component of device 1105 or between different components of device 1105 that may be co-located or located in different locations (e.g., where device 1105 may refer to a system where one or more of communication manager 1120, transceiver 1110, memory 1125, code 1130, and processor 1135 may be located in one of the different components or divided between the different components).

[0251] In some examples, communication manager 1120 may manage aspects of communications with core network 130 (e.g., via one or more wired or wireless backhaul links). For example, communication manager 1120 may manage delivery of data communications for client devices such as one or more UEs 115. In some examples, communication manager 1120 may manage communications with other network entities 105 and may include a controller or scheduler for controlling communications with UE 115 in coordination with other network entities 105. In some examples, communication manager 1120 may support an X2 interface within an LTE / LTE-A wireless communication network technology to provide communications between network entities 105.

[0252] The communication manager 1120 may support wireless communication at the first device according to the examples disclosed herein. For example, the communication manager 1120 may be configured to or otherwise support a component for generating a set of multiple signals to be sent from the first device via a first circular antenna array, the first circular antenna array including a first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle. The communication manager 1120 may be configured to or otherwise support a component for sending a first signal in the set of multiple signals using a first OAM mode and a first subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle. The communication manager 1120 may be configured to or otherwise support a component for sending a second signal in a set of multiple signals using a second OAM mode and a second subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle, wherein the second subset does not include the first subset.

[0253] Additionally or alternatively, the communication manager 1120 may support wireless communication at the first device according to the examples disclosed herein. For example, the communication manager 1120 may be configured to or otherwise support a component for receiving a first signal in a set of multiple signals using a first OAM mode and a first subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle at a first circular antenna array including a first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle. The communication manager 1120 may be configured to or otherwise support a component for receiving a second signal in the set of multiple signals using a second OAM mode and a second subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle, wherein the second subset does not include the first subset. The communication manager 1120 may be configured to or otherwise support a component for decoding a first signal received using the first OAM mode and the first subset and a second signal received using the second OAM mode and the second subset.

[0254] By including or configuring a communication manager 1120 according to an example as described herein, the device 1105 may support technologies for improved communication reliability, increased throughput, reduced power consumption, more efficient use of communication resources, and improved coordination between devices. For example, the device 1105 may include a first circular antenna array, and may support communication with a second device via the first circular antenna array by using multiple OAM modes. By supporting communication between such devices and using multiple modes in an antenna element circle, the number of power amplifiers used for operation may be reduced, which may provide improved resource utilization and reduced power consumption. Additionally, using multiple OAM modes in a single circle may provide higher degrees of freedom with a smaller array gain, which may improve the throughput of communication. In some aspects, an angular offset may be configured between an antenna subarray of the device 1105 and an antenna subarray of another device, which may reduce aliasing and improve throughput. In some aspects, the device 1105 may send or receive a feedback message from the second device, indicating information used by the device 1105 to generate a signal and send a signal to the second device. The feedback information may improve coordination between devices, reduce latency, and reduce processing. For example, the device 1105 may avoid reporting certain channel quality measurements in order to reduce signaling overhead.In some aspects, an angular offset may be configured between an antenna subarray of the device 1105 and an antenna subarray of another device, which may reduce aliasing and improve throughput.

[0255] In some examples, the communication manager 1120 may be configured to perform various operations (e.g., receive, obtain, monitor, output, transmit) using or otherwise cooperating with the transceiver 1110, one or more antennas 1115 (e.g., where applicable), or any combination thereof. Although the communication manager 1120 is illustrated as a separate component, in some examples, one or more functions described with reference to the communication manager 1120 may be supported or performed by the processor 1135, the memory 1125, the code 1130, the transceiver 1110, or any combination thereof. For example, the code 1130 may include instructions that are executable by the processor 1135 to cause the device 1105 to perform various aspects of OAM multiplexing using multiple modes in an antenna array as described herein, or the processor 1135 and the memory 1125 may be otherwise configured to perform or support such operations.

[0256] Fig.12A diagram of a system 1200 including a device 1205 that supports OAM multiplexing using multiple modes in an antenna array according to one or more aspects of the present disclosure is shown. The device 1205 may be an example of a device 805, a device 905, or a UE 115 as described herein, or include components of these devices. The device 1205 may communicate (e.g., wirelessly) with one or more network entities 105, one or more UEs 115, or any combination thereof. The device 1205 may include components for two-way voice and data communications, including components for sending and receiving communications, such as a communication manager 1220, an I / O controller 1210, a transceiver 1215, an antenna 1225, a memory 1230, a code 1235, and a processor 1240. These components may be in electronic communication or otherwise coupled (e.g., operatively, communicatively, functionally, electronically, electrically) via one or more buses (e.g., a bus 1245).

[0257] I / O controller 1210 can manage input and output signals for device 1205. I / O controller 1210 can also manage peripheral devices that are not integrated into device 1205. In some cases, I / O controller 1210 can represent a physical connection or port to an external peripheral device. In some cases, I / O controller 1210 can utilize an operating system such as or another known operating system. Additionally or alternatively, I / O controller 1210 may represent or interact with a modem, keyboard, mouse, touch screen, or similar device. In some cases, I / O controller 1210 may be implemented as part of a processor such as processor 1240. In some cases, a user may interact with device 1205 via I / O controller 1210 or via hardware components controlled by I / O controller 1210.

[0258] In some cases, the device 1205 may include a single antenna 1225. However, in some other cases, the device 1205 may have more than one antenna 1225, which may be capable of concurrently transmitting or receiving multiple wireless transmissions. The transceiver 1215 may communicate bidirectionally via one or more antennas 1225, a wired link, or a wireless link as described herein. For example, the transceiver 1215 may represent a wireless transceiver and may communicate bidirectionally with another wireless transceiver. The transceiver 1215 may also include a modem for modulating packets, providing the modulated packets to one or more antennas 1225 for transmission, and for demodulating packets received from one or more antennas 1225. The transceiver 1215, or the transceiver 1215 and one or more antennas 1225 may be examples of transmitters 815, transmitters 915, receivers 810, receivers 910, or any combination thereof or any components thereof as described herein.

[0259] Memory 1230 may include RAM and ROM. Memory 1230 may store computer-readable, computer-executable code 1235 including instructions that, when executed by processor 1240, cause device 1205 to perform various functions described herein. Code 1235 may be stored in a non-transitory computer-readable medium such as system memory or another type of memory. In some cases, code 1235 may not be directly executable by processor 1240, but may (e.g., when compiled and executed) cause a computer to perform the functions described herein. In some cases, memory 1230 may include, among other things, a BIOS that may control basic hardware or software operations, such as interaction with peripheral components or devices.

[0260] The processor 1240 may include an intelligent hardware device (e.g., a general-purpose processor, a DSP, a CPU, a microcontroller, an ASIC, an FPGA, a programmable logic device, a discrete gate or transistor logic component, a discrete hardware component, or any combination thereof). In some cases, the processor 1240 may be configured to operate a memory array using a memory controller. In some other cases, the memory controller may be integrated into the processor 1240. The processor 1240 may be configured to execute computer-readable instructions stored in a memory (e.g., memory 1230) so that the device 1205 performs various functions (e.g., functions or tasks that support OAM mode communication technology). For example, the device 1205 or a component of the device 1205 may include a processor 1240 and a memory 1230 coupled to or coupled to the processor 1240, and the processor 1240 and the memory 1230 are configured to perform the various functions described herein.

[0261] The communication manager 1220 may support wireless communication at the first device according to the examples disclosed herein. For example, the communication manager 1220 may be configured to or otherwise support components for generating a set of multiple signals to be sent from the first device via a first circular antenna array, the first circular antenna array including a first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle. The communication manager 1220 may be configured to or otherwise support components for sending a first signal in the set of multiple signals using a first OAM mode and a first subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle. The communication manager 1220 may be configured to or otherwise support components for sending a second signal in a set of multiple signals using a second OAM mode and a second subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle, wherein the second subset does not include the first subset.

[0262] Additionally or alternatively, the communication manager 1220 may support wireless communication at the first device according to the examples disclosed herein. For example, the communication manager 1220 may be configured to or otherwise support a component for receiving a first signal in a set of multiple signals using a first OAM mode and a first subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle at a first circular antenna array including a first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle. The communication manager 1220 may be configured to or otherwise support a component for receiving a second signal in the set of multiple signals using a second OAM mode and a second subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle, wherein the second subset does not include the first subset. The communication manager 1220 may be configured to or otherwise support a component for decoding a first signal received using the first OAM mode and the first subset and a second signal received using the second OAM mode and the second subset.

[0263] By including or configuring the communication manager 1220 according to the examples described herein, the device 1205 may support technologies for improved communication reliability, increased throughput, reduced power consumption, more efficient utilization of communication resources, and improved coordination between devices. For example, the device 1205 may include a first circular antenna array, and may support communication with a second device via the first circular antenna array by using multiple OAM modes. By supporting communication between such devices and using multiple modes in the antenna element circle, the number of power amplifiers used for operation can be reduced, which can provide improved resource utilization and reduced power consumption. Additionally, using multiple OAM modes in a single circle can provide higher degrees of freedom with a smaller array gain, which can improve the throughput of communication. In some aspects, an angular offset can be configured between the antenna subarray of the device 1205 and the antenna subarray of another device, which can reduce aliasing and improve throughput. In some aspects, the device 1205 may send or receive a feedback message from the second device, which indicates information used by the device 1205 to generate a signal and send a signal to the second device. The feedback information can improve coordination between devices, reduce latency, and reduce processing. For example, the device 1205 may avoid reporting certain channel quality measurements in order to reduce signaling overhead.In some aspects, an angular offset may be configured between an antenna subarray of the device 1205 and an antenna subarray of another device, which may reduce aliasing and improve throughput.

[0264] In some examples, the communication manager 1220 may be configured to perform various operations (e.g., receive, monitor, transmit) using or otherwise cooperating with the transceiver 1215, one or more antennas 1225, or any combination thereof. Although the communication manager 1220 is illustrated as a separate component, in some examples, one or more functions described with reference to the communication manager 1220 may be supported or performed by the processor 1240, the memory 1230, the code 1235, or any combination thereof. For example, the code 1235 may include instructions that are executable by the processor 1240 to cause the device 1205 to perform various aspects of OAM multiplexing using multiple modes in an antenna array as described herein, or the processor 1240 and the memory 1230 may be otherwise configured to perform or support such operations.

[0265] Fig.13 A flowchart illustrating a method 1300 for supporting OAM multiplexing using multiple modes in an antenna array according to one or more aspects of the present disclosure is shown. The operations of the method 1300 may be implemented by a network entity or a UE or a component thereof as described herein. For example, the operations of the method 1300 may be implemented by a network entity or a UE or a component thereof as described herein. Figures 1 to 12The network entity or UE 115 performs the functions. In some examples, the network entity or UE may execute an instruction set to control the functional elements of the network entity or UE to perform the functions. Additionally or alternatively, the network entity or UE may use dedicated hardware to perform various aspects of the functions.

[0266] At 1305, the method may include generating a set of multiple signals to be transmitted from the first device via a first circular antenna array, the first circular antenna array including a first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle. The operations of 1305 may be performed according to examples disclosed herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of 1305 may be performed as described in reference to Fig.10 The signal generating component 1025 is used to perform.

[0267] At 1310, the method may include: transmitting a first signal in the set of multiple signals using a first OAM mode and a first subset of a first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle. The operations of 1310 may be performed according to examples disclosed herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of 1310 may be performed as described in reference to Fig.10 The first mode component 1030 is executed.

[0268] At 1315, the method may include: transmitting a second signal in a set of a plurality of signals using a second OAM mode and a second subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle, wherein the second subset does not include the first subset. The operations of 1315 may be performed according to examples disclosed herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of 1315 may be performed as described in reference to Fig.10 The second mode component 1035 is executed.

[0269] Fig.14 A flowchart illustrating a method 1400 for supporting OAM multiplexing using multiple modes in an antenna array according to one or more aspects of the present disclosure is shown. The operations of the method 1400 may be implemented by a network entity or a UE or a component thereof as described herein. For example, the operations of the method 1400 may be implemented by a network entity or a UE or a component thereof as described herein. Figures 1 to 12 The network entity or UE 115 performs the functions. In some examples, the network entity or UE may execute an instruction set to control the functional elements of the network entity or UE to perform the functions. Additionally or alternatively, the network entity or UE may use dedicated hardware to perform various aspects of the functions.

[0270] At 1405, the method may include: sending a capability message specifying that the first device is capable of transmitting a signal using a multi-mode transmission mode, the multi-mode transmission mode including a first OAM mode using a first subset of antenna elements arranged in a circle and a second OAM mode using a second subset of antenna elements arranged in a circle. The operations of 1405 may be performed according to examples disclosed herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of 1405 may be performed as described in reference to Fig.10 The capability message interface 1045 is executed.

[0271] At 1410, the method may include: receiving a feedback message from the second device, the feedback message indicating that the first device is to use the multi-mode transmission mode of the single-mode transmission mode and the multi-mode transmission mode. The operation of 1410 may be performed according to the examples disclosed herein. In some examples, aspects of the operation of 1410 may be performed as described in reference Fig.10 The feedback interface 1075 is used to perform the above operation.

[0272] At 1415, the method may include generating a set of multiple signals to be transmitted from the first device via a first circular antenna array, the first circular antenna array including a first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle. The operations of 1415 may be performed according to examples disclosed herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of 1415 may be performed as described in reference to Fig.10 The signal generating component 1025 is used to perform.

[0273] At 1420, the method may include: transmitting a first signal in the set of multiple signals using a first OAM mode and a first subset of a first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle. The operations of 1420 may be performed according to examples disclosed herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of 1420 may be performed as described in reference to Fig.10 The first mode component 1030 is executed.

[0274] At 1425, the method may include: transmitting a second signal in a set of a plurality of signals using a second OAM mode and a second subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle, wherein the second subset does not include the first subset. The operations of 1425 may be performed according to examples disclosed herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of 1425 may be performed as described in reference to Fig.10 The second mode component 1035 is executed.

[0275] Fig.15 A flowchart illustrating a method 1500 for supporting OAM multiplexing using multiple modes in an antenna array according to one or more aspects of the present disclosure is shown. The operations of the method 1500 may be implemented by a network entity or a UE or a component thereof as described herein. For example, the operations of the method 1500 may be implemented by a network entity or a UE or a component thereof as described herein. Figures 1 to 12The network entity or UE 115 performs the functions. In some examples, the network entity or UE may execute an instruction set to control the functional elements of the network entity or UE to perform the functions. Additionally or alternatively, the network entity or UE may use dedicated hardware to perform various aspects of the functions.

[0276] At 1505, the method may include: sending an indication of a topology of the first circular antenna array, wherein the topology includes the number of circles of the first circular antenna array, the number of antenna elements in one or more circles of the first circular antenna array, the number of power amplifiers for the one or more circles, the number of digital beamformers for the one or more circles, or a combination thereof. The operations of 1505 may be performed according to examples as disclosed herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of 1505 may be performed as described in reference to Fig.10 The topology message interface 1050 described above is implemented.

[0277] At 1510, the method may include generating a set of multiple signals to be transmitted from a first device via a first circular antenna array, the first circular antenna array including a first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle. The operations of 1510 may be performed according to examples disclosed herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of 1510 may be performed as described in reference to Fig.10 The signal generating component 1025 is used to perform.

[0278] At 1515, the method may include: transmitting a first signal in the set of multiple signals using a first OAM mode and a first subset of a first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle. The operations of 1515 may be performed according to examples disclosed herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of 1515 may be performed as described in reference to Fig.10 The first mode component 1030 is executed.

[0279] At 1520, the method may include: transmitting a second signal in a set of a plurality of signals using a second OAM mode and a second subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle, wherein the second subset does not include the first subset. The operations of 1520 may be performed according to examples disclosed herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of 1520 may be performed as described in reference to Fig.10 The second mode component 1035 is executed.

[0280] Fig.16 A flowchart illustrating a method 1600 for supporting OAM multiplexing using multiple modes in an antenna array according to one or more aspects of the present disclosure is shown. The operations of the method 1600 may be implemented by a network entity or a UE or a component thereof as described herein. For example, the operations of the method 1600 may be implemented by a network entity or a UE or a component thereof as described herein. Figures 1 to 12The network entity or UE 115 performs the functions. In some examples, the network entity or UE may execute an instruction set to control the functional elements of the network entity or UE to perform the functions. Additionally or alternatively, the network entity or UE may use dedicated hardware to perform various aspects of the functions.

[0281] At 1605, the method may include: receiving a first signal of a set of a plurality of signals at a first circular antenna array including a first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle using a first OAM mode and a first subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle. The operations of 1605 may be performed according to examples as disclosed herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of 1605 may be performed as described in reference to Fig.10 The first mode component 1030 is executed.

[0282] At 1610, the method may include: receiving a second signal from the plurality of signals using a second OAM mode and a second subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle, wherein the second subset does not include the first subset. The operations of 1610 may be performed according to examples disclosed herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of 1610 may be performed as described in reference to Fig.10 The second mode component 1035 is executed.

[0283] At 1615, the method may include decoding a first signal received using a first OAM mode and a first subset and a second signal received using a second OAM mode and a second subset. The operations of 1615 may be performed according to examples disclosed herein. In some examples, aspects of the operations of 1615 may be performed as described in reference to Fig.10 The decoding component 1040 is used to perform.

[0284] The following provides an overview of various aspects of the present disclosure:

[0285] Aspect 1: A method for performing wireless communications at a first device, comprising: generating a plurality of signals for transmission from the first device via a first circular antenna array, the first circular antenna array comprising a first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle; transmitting a first signal among the plurality of signals using a first orbital angular momentum pattern and a first subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in the circle; and transmitting a second signal among the plurality of signals using a second orbital angular momentum pattern and a second subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in the circle, wherein the second subset does not include the first subset.

[0286] Aspect 2: The method according to Aspect 1 also includes: sending a capability message, wherein the capability message specifies that the first device is capable of sending signals using a multi-mode transmission mode, wherein the multi-mode transmission mode includes the first orbital angular momentum mode using the first subset of antenna elements arranged in the circle and the second orbital angular momentum mode using the second subset of antenna elements arranged in the circle.

[0287] Aspect 3: The method according to aspect 2, wherein sending the capability message comprises: sending the capability message using a radio resource control signal or a system broadcast signal.

[0288] Aspect 4: The method according to any one of Aspects 2 to 3 further includes: receiving a feedback message from a second device, wherein the feedback message indicates that the first device is to use the multi-mode transmission mode among the single-mode transmission mode and the multi-mode transmission mode.

[0289] Aspect 5: The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 4 further includes: sending an indication of the topology of the first circular antenna array, wherein the topology includes the number of circles of the first circular antenna array, the number of antenna elements in one or more circles of the first circular antenna array, the number of power amplifiers used for the one or more circles, the number of digital beamformers used for the one or more circles, or a combination thereof.

[0290] Aspect 6: The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 5 further includes: receiving an indication of the topology of a second circular antenna array of the second device from a second device, wherein the topology includes the number of circles of the second circular antenna array, the number of antenna elements in one or more circles of the second circular antenna array, the number of power amplifiers used for the one or more circles, the number of digital beamformers used for the one or more circles, or a combination thereof.

[0291] Aspect 7: A method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 6, wherein sending the first signal and sending the second signal include: using the first orbital angular momentum pattern to send the first signal and using the second orbital angular momentum pattern to send the second signal at least partially based on the topology of the first circular antenna array, the topology of the second circular antenna array of the second device, or a combination thereof.

[0292] Aspect 8: The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 7, wherein sending the first signal and sending the second signal include: sending the first signal including a first set of reference signals; and sending the second signal including a second set of reference signals.

[0293] Aspect 9: The method according to Aspect 8 also includes: receiving a feedback message from a second device based at least in part on sending the first group of reference signals and the second group of reference signals, wherein the feedback message indicates one or more channel quality indications corresponding to each antenna element in the first number of antenna elements, each mode in the first orbital angular momentum mode and the second orbital angular momentum mode, or a combination thereof.

[0294] Aspect 10: The method according to aspect 9 further includes: sending one or more subsequent signals using the first orbital angular momentum mode, the second orbital angular momentum mode, or both based at least in part on the one or more channel quality indicators.

[0295] Aspect 11: The method according to any one of aspects 1 to 10, wherein each antenna element in the first subset and each antenna element in the second subset are arranged in the circle in an alternating pattern.

[0296] Aspect 12: A method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 11, wherein sending the first signal and sending the second signal include: sending the first signal using a first power applied by a first power amplifier corresponding to the first subset of antenna elements and the first orbital angular momentum mode; and sending the second signal using a second power applied by a second power amplifier corresponding to the second subset of antenna elements and the second orbital angular momentum mode.

[0297] Aspect 13: The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 12 further includes: applying a set of beamforming weights to send the first signal and the second signal using a first number of phasors, wherein each phasor in the first number of phasors corresponds to a corresponding antenna element in the first number of antenna elements.

[0298] Aspect 14: The method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 13 further includes: generating a second plurality of signals for transmission from the first device via the first circular antenna array, the first circular antenna array comprising a second number of antenna elements arranged in a second circle; using a third orbital angular momentum pattern and a first subset of the second number of antenna elements arranged in the second circle to transmit a first signal among the second plurality of signals; and using a fourth orbital angular momentum pattern and a second subset of the second number of antenna elements arranged in the second circle to transmit a second signal among the second plurality of signals, wherein the second subset of the second number of antenna elements does not include the first subset of the second number of antenna elements, and wherein the circle and the second circle are concentric.

[0299] Aspect 15: A method according to Aspect 14, wherein the first number of antenna elements are positioned at a first set of radial lines of the circle; and the second number of antenna elements are positioned at a second set of radial lines in the second circle, and the second set of radial lines are offset between the first set of radial lines.

[0300] Aspect 16: A method according to any one of Aspects 14 to 15, wherein the first number of antenna elements are positioned at a first set of radial lines of the circle, and the second number of antenna elements are positioned at a second set of radial lines in the second circle; and the second set of radial lines are parallel to the first set of radial lines.

[0301] Aspect 17: A method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 16, wherein sending the first signal and sending the second signal include: using the first number of antenna elements to send the first signal and the second signal to a second device, and the first number of antenna elements is radially offset from the second number of antenna elements of the second device.

[0302] Aspect 18: A method for performing wireless communications at a first device, comprising: receiving a first signal among multiple signals using a first orbital angular momentum pattern and a first subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle at a first circular antenna array including a first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle; receiving a second signal among the multiple signals using a second orbital angular momentum pattern and a second subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in the circle, wherein the second subset does not include the first subset; and decoding the first signal received using the first orbital angular momentum pattern and the first subset and the second signal received using the second orbital angular momentum pattern and the second subset.

[0303] Aspect 19: The method according to aspect 18 further comprises: receiving a capability message from a second device, the capability message specifying that the first device is capable of transmitting signals using a multi-mode transmission mode.

[0304] Aspect 20: The method according to aspect 19, wherein receiving the capability message comprises: receiving the capability message using a radio resource control signal or a system broadcast signal.

[0305] Aspect 21: The method according to any one of Aspects 19 to 20 further includes: sending a feedback message to the second device, wherein the feedback message indicates that the first device is to use the multi-mode transmission mode among the single-mode transmission mode and the multi-mode transmission mode.

[0306] Aspect 22: The method according to any one of Aspects 18 to 21 further includes: receiving an indication of the topology of a second circular antenna array of the second device from a second device, wherein the topology includes the number of circles of the second circular antenna array, the number of antenna elements in one or more circles of the second circular antenna array, the number of power amplifiers used for the one or more circles, the number of digital beamformers used for the one or more circles, or a combination thereof.

[0307] Aspect 23: The method according to any one of Aspects 18 to 22 further includes: sending an indication of the topology of the first circular antenna array to a second device, wherein the topology includes the number of circles of the first circular antenna array, the number of antenna elements in one or more circles of the first circular antenna array, the number of power amplifiers used for the one or more circles, the number of digital beamformers used for the one or more circles, or a combination thereof.

[0308] Aspect 24: A method according to any one of Aspects 18 to 23, wherein receiving the first signal and the second signal includes: using the first orbital angular momentum pattern to receive the first signal and using the second orbital angular momentum pattern to receive the second signal based at least in part on the topology of the first circular antenna array, the topology of the second circular antenna array of the second device, or a combination thereof.

[0309] Aspect 25: The method according to any one of aspects 18 to 24, wherein receiving the first signal and the second signal comprises: receiving the first signal including a first set of reference signals; and receiving the second signal including a second set of reference signals.

[0310] Aspect 26: The method according to Aspect 25 also includes: sending a feedback message to a second device based at least in part on receiving the first group of reference signals and the second group of reference signals, wherein the feedback message indicates one or more channel quality indications corresponding to each antenna element of the second number of antenna elements of the second device, each orbital angular momentum mode used by the second device, or a combination thereof.

[0311] Aspect 27: The method according to any one of aspects 18 to 26, wherein each antenna element in the first subset and each antenna element in the second subset are arranged in the circle in an alternating pattern.

[0312] Aspect 28: The method according to any one of Aspects 18 to 27 further includes: receiving a third signal using a third orbital angular momentum pattern and a first subset of a second number of antenna elements arranged in a second circle; receiving a fourth signal using a fourth orbital angular momentum pattern and a second subset of the second number of antenna elements arranged in the second circle; and decoding the third signal received using the third orbital angular momentum pattern and the first subset of the second number of antenna elements and the fourth signal received using the fourth orbital angular momentum pattern and the second subset of the second number of antenna elements.

[0313] Aspect 29: A method according to Aspect 28, wherein the first number of antenna elements are positioned at a first set of radial lines of the circle, and the second number of antenna elements are positioned at a second set of radial lines in the second circle, and the second set of radial lines are offset between the first set of radial lines.

[0314] Aspect 30: A method according to any one of Aspects 28 to 29, wherein the first number of antenna elements are positioned at a first set of radial lines of the circle, and the second number of antenna elements are positioned at a second set of radial lines in the second circle, and the second set of radial lines are parallel to the first set of radial lines.

[0315] Aspect 31: The method according to any one of Aspects 18 to 30 further includes: using the first number of antenna elements to receive the first signal and the second signal from a second device, the first number of antenna elements being radially offset from the second number of antenna elements of the second device.

[0316] Aspect 32: An apparatus for wireless communication at a first device, comprising: a processor; a memory coupled to the processor; and instructions stored in the memory and executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to perform a method according to any one of Aspects 1 to 17.

[0317] Aspect 33: An apparatus for wireless communication at a first device, comprising at least one means for performing a method according to any one of aspects 1 to 17.

[0318] Aspect 34: A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing code for wireless communication at a first device, the code comprising instructions executable by a processor to perform the method according to any one of aspects 1 to 17.

[0319] Aspect 35: An apparatus for wireless communication at a first device, comprising: a processor; a memory coupled to the processor; and instructions stored in the memory and executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to perform a method according to any one of Aspects 18 to 31.

[0320] Aspect 36: An apparatus for wireless communication at a first device, comprising at least one means for performing a method according to any one of aspects 18 to 31.

[0321] Aspect 37: A non-transitory computer-readable medium storing code for wireless communication at a first device, the code comprising instructions executable by a processor to perform the method according to any one of aspects 18 to 31.

[0322] It should be noted that the methods described herein describe possible implementations, and that the operations and steps may be rearranged or otherwise modified and that other implementations are possible. Furthermore, aspects from two or more methods may be combined.

[0323] Although aspects of LTE, LTE-A, LTE-A Pro, or NR systems may be described for example purposes, and LTE, LTE-A, LTE-A Pro, or NR terminology may be used in much of the description, the techniques described herein may also be applicable to networks other than LTE, LTE-A, LTE-A Pro, or NR networks. For example, the described techniques may be applicable to various other wireless communication systems, such as Ultra Mobile Broadband (UMB), Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 802.11 (Wi-Fi), IEEE 802.16 (WiMAX), IEEE 802.20, Flash-OFDM, and other systems and radio technologies not explicitly mentioned herein.

[0324] The information and signals described herein may be represented using any of a variety of different technologies and methods. For example, data, instructions, commands, information, signals, bits, symbols, and chips mentioned throughout the specification may be represented by voltage, current, electromagnetic waves, magnetic fields or magnetic particles, optical fields or optical particles, or any combination thereof.

[0325] The various illustrative blocks and components described in conjunction with the disclosure herein may be implemented or performed with a general purpose processor, DSP, ASIC, CPU, FPGA or other programmable logic device, discrete gate or transistor logic, discrete hardware components, or any combination thereof designed to perform the functions described herein. A general purpose processor may be a microprocessor, but in an alternative, the processor may be any processor, controller, microcontroller, or state machine. The processor may also be implemented as a combination of computing devices (e.g., a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, a plurality of microprocessors, one or more microprocessors combined with a DSP core, or any other such configuration).

[0326] The functions described herein may be implemented in hardware, software executed by a processor, firmware, or any combination thereof. If implemented in software executed by a processor, the functions may be stored as one or more instructions or codes on a computer-readable medium, or sent via a computer-readable medium. Other examples and specific implementations are within the scope of this disclosure and the appended claims. For example, due to the nature of software, the functions described herein may be implemented using software executed by a processor, hardware, firmware, hard wiring, or a combination of any of these items. Features that implement the functions may also be physically located at different locations, including being distributed so that the functions are implemented at different physical locations.

[0327] Computer-readable medium includes both non-transient computer storage medium and communication medium, including any medium that facilitates computer program to be transmitted from one place to another.Non-transient storage medium can be any available medium that can be accessed by general or special-purpose computer.In an example and not limiting manner, non-transient computer-readable medium may include RAM, ROM, electrically erasable programmable ROM (EEPROM), flash memory, compact disc (CD) ROM or other optical disc storage, disk storage or other magnetic storage device, or can be used to carry or store desired program code components and can be accessed by general or special-purpose computer or general or special-purpose processor in the form of instruction or data structure Any other non-transient medium.Moreover, any connection is appropriately referred to as computer-readable medium.For example, if software is sent from website, server or other remote source using coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, digital subscriber line (DSL) or wireless technology such as infrared, radio and microwave, then coaxial cable, fiber optic cable, twisted pair, DSL or wireless technology such as infrared, radio and microwave are included in the definition of computer-readable medium. Disk and disc, as used herein, includes CD, laser disc, optical disc, digital versatile disc (DVD), floppy disk and Blu-ray disc, where disks usually reproduce data magnetically, while discs reproduce data optically with lasers. Combinations of the above are also included within the scope of computer-readable media.

[0328] As used herein (including in the claims), "or" used in a list of items (e.g., a list of items with a phrase such as "at least one of" or "one or more of") indicates an inclusive list, so that, for example, a list of at least one of A, B, or C means A or B or C or AB or AC or BC or ABC (i.e., A and B and C). In addition, as used herein, the phrase "based on" should not be interpreted as a reference to a closed set of conditions. For example, an example step described as "based on condition A" can be based on condition A and condition B without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. In other words, as used herein, the phrase "based on" should be interpreted in the same manner as the phrase "based at least in part on."

[0329] The term "determining" encompasses a variety of actions, and thus, "determining" may include calculating, computing, processing, deriving, investigating, looking up (such as via looking up in a table, database, or other data structure), ascertaining, etc. Additionally, "determining" may include receiving (such as receiving information), accessing (such as accessing data in a memory), and similar actions. Additionally, "determining" may include resolving, obtaining, selecting, choosing, establishing, and other such similar actions.

[0330] In the drawings, similar components or features may have the same reference label. In addition, various components of the same type may be distinguished by following the reference label with a dash and a second label to distinguish between similar components. If only the first reference label is used in the specification, the description may apply to any of the similar components having the same first reference label regardless of the second reference label, or other subsequent reference labels.

[0331] The descriptions set forth herein in conjunction with the accompanying drawings describe example configurations and do not represent all examples that may be implemented or within the scope of the claims. The term "example" as used herein means "used as an example, instance, or illustration," rather than "preferred" or "having advantages over other examples." The specific embodiments include specific details to provide an understanding of the described technology. However, these technologies may be practiced without these specific details. In some instances, known structures and devices are shown in block diagram form to avoid obscuring the concepts of the described examples.

[0332] The description herein is provided to enable one of ordinary skill in the art to implement or use the present disclosure. Various modifications to the present disclosure will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be applied to other variations without departing from the scope of the present disclosure. Thus, the present disclosure is not limited to the examples and designs described herein, but should be granted the widest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

Claims

1. A method for wireless communication at a first device, comprising: generating a plurality of signals for transmission from the first device via a first circular antenna array, the first circular antenna array comprising a first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle; transmitting a first signal of the plurality of signals using a first orbital angular momentum pattern and a first subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in the circle; as well as A second signal of the plurality of signals is transmitted using a second orbital angular momentum pattern and a second subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in the circle, wherein the second subset does not include the first subset.

2. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: and transmitting a capability message specifying that the first device is capable of transmitting signals using a multi-mode transmit mode including the first orbital angular momentum mode using the first subset of antenna elements arranged in the circle and the second orbital angular momentum mode using the second subset of antenna elements arranged in the circle.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein sending the capability message comprises: The capability message is sent using a radio resource control signal or a system broadcast signal.

4. The method according to claim 2, further comprising: A feedback message is received from a second device, the feedback message indicating that the first device is to use the multi-mode transmission mode of the single-mode transmission mode and the multi-mode transmission mode.

5. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: Sending an indication of a topology of the first circular antenna array, wherein the topology comprises a number of circles of the first circular antenna array, a number of antenna elements in one or more circles of the first circular antenna array, a number of power amplifiers used for the one or more circles, a number of digital beamformers used for the one or more circles, or a combination thereof.

6. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: Receive an indication of a topology of a second circular antenna array of the second device from a second device, wherein the topology includes the number of circles of the second circular antenna array, the number of antenna elements in one or more circles of the second circular antenna array, the number of power amplifiers used for the one or more circles, the number of digital beamformers used for the one or more circles, or a combination thereof.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein sending the first signal and sending the second signal comprises: The first signal is transmitted using the first orbital angular momentum pattern and the second signal is transmitted using the second orbital angular momentum pattern based at least in part on a topology of the first circular antenna array, a topology of a second circular antenna array of a second device, or a combination thereof.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein sending the first signal and sending the second signal comprises: sending the first signal including a first set of reference signals; as well as The second signal including a second set of reference signals is transmitted.

9. The method according to claim 8, further comprising: and receiving a feedback message from a second device based at least in part on sending the first set of reference signals and the second set of reference signals, the feedback message indicating one or more channel quality indicators corresponding to each of the first number of antenna elements, each of the first orbital angular momentum pattern and the second orbital angular momentum pattern, or a combination thereof.

10. The method according to claim 9, further comprising: One or more subsequent signals are sent based at least in part on the one or more channel quality indicators using the first orbital angular momentum pattern, the second orbital angular momentum pattern, or both.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein each antenna element in the first subset and each antenna element in the second subset are arranged in an alternating pattern in the circle.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein sending the first signal and sending the second signal comprises: transmitting the first signal using a first power applied by a first power amplifier corresponding to the first subset of antenna elements and the first orbital angular momentum mode; as well as The second signal is transmitted using a second power applied by a second power amplifier corresponding to the second subset of antenna elements and the second orbital angular momentum mode.

13. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: A set of beamforming weights is applied to transmit the first signal and the second signal using a first number of phasors, wherein each phasor of the first number of phasors corresponds to a respective antenna element of the first number of antenna elements.

14. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: generating a second plurality of signals for transmission from the first device via the first circular antenna array, the first circular antenna array comprising a second number of antenna elements arranged in a second circle; transmitting a first signal of the second plurality of signals using a third orbital angular momentum pattern and a first subset of the second number of antenna elements arranged in the second circle; as well as A second signal in the second plurality of signals is transmitted using a fourth orbital angular momentum pattern and a second subset of the second number of antenna elements arranged in the second circle, wherein the second subset of the second number of antenna elements does not include the first subset of the second number of antenna elements, and wherein the circle and the second circle are concentric.

15. The method according to claim 14, wherein: The first number of antenna elements are positioned at a first set of radials of the circle; and The second number of antenna elements are positioned at a second set of radial lines in the second circle, and the second set of radial lines are offset between the first set of radial lines.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein: The first number of antenna elements are positioned at a first set of radial lines in the circle, and the second number of antenna elements are positioned at a second set of radial lines in the second circle; and The second set of radial lines are parallel to the first set of radial lines.

17. The method of claim 1, wherein sending the first signal and sending the second signal comprises: The first signal and the second signal are transmitted to a second device using the first number of antenna elements, the first number of antenna elements being radially offset from a second number of antenna elements of the second device.

18. A method for wireless communication at a first device, comprising: receiving a first signal of a plurality of signals at a first circular antenna array including a first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle using a first orbital angular momentum pattern and a first subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in the circle; receiving a second signal of the plurality of signals using a second orbital angular momentum pattern and a second subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in the circle, wherein the second subset does not include the first subset; as well as The first signal received using the first orbital angular momentum pattern and the first subset and the second signal received using the second orbital angular momentum pattern and the second subset are decoded.

19. The method according to claim 18, further comprising: A capabilities message is received from a second device, the capabilities message specifying that the first device is capable of transmitting signals using a multi-mode transmission mode.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein receiving the capability message comprises: The capability message is received using a radio resource control signal or a system broadcast signal.

21. The method of claim 19, further comprising: A feedback message is sent to the second device, wherein the feedback message indicates that the first device is to use the multi-mode transmission mode among the single-mode transmission mode and the multi-mode transmission mode.

22. The method of claim 18, further comprising: Receive an indication of a topology of a second circular antenna array of the second device from a second device, wherein the topology includes the number of circles of the second circular antenna array, the number of antenna elements in one or more circles of the second circular antenna array, the number of power amplifiers used for the one or more circles, the number of digital beamformers used for the one or more circles, or a combination thereof.

23. The method of claim 18, further comprising: Sending an indication of a topology of the first circular antenna array to a second device, wherein the topology includes the number of circles of the first circular antenna array, the number of antenna elements in one or more circles of the first circular antenna array, the number of power amplifiers used for the one or more circles, the number of digital beamformers used for the one or more circles, or a combination thereof.

24. The method of claim 18, wherein receiving the first signal and the second signal comprises: The first signal is received using the first orbital angular momentum pattern and the second signal is received using the second orbital angular momentum pattern based at least in part on a topology of the first circular antenna array, a topology of a second circular antenna array of a second device, or a combination thereof.

25. The method of claim 18, wherein receiving the first signal and the second signal comprises: receiving the first signal including a first set of reference signals; as well as The second signal including a second set of reference signals is received.

26. The method according to claim 25, further comprising: and sending a feedback message to a second device based at least in part on receiving the first set of reference signals and the second set of reference signals, the feedback message indicating one or more channel quality indicators corresponding to each antenna element of a second number of antenna elements of the second device, each orbital angular momentum mode used by the second device, or a combination thereof.

27. The method of claim 18, wherein each antenna element in the first subset and each antenna element in the second subset are arranged in an alternating pattern in the circle.

28. The method of claim 18, further comprising: receiving a third signal using a third orbital angular momentum pattern and a first subset of a second number of antenna elements arranged in a second circle; receiving a fourth signal using a fourth orbital angular momentum pattern and a second subset of the second number of antenna elements arranged in the second circle; as well as The third signal received using the third orbital angular momentum pattern and the first subset of the second number of antenna elements and the fourth signal received using the fourth orbital angular momentum pattern and the second subset of the second number of antenna elements are decoded.

29. An apparatus for wireless communication at a first device, comprising: processor; a memory coupled to the processor; as well as instructions stored in the memory and executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to: generating a plurality of signals for transmission from the first device via a first circular antenna array, the first circular antenna array comprising a first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle; transmitting a first signal of the plurality of signals using a first orbital angular momentum pattern and a first subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in the circle; as well as A second signal of the plurality of signals is transmitted using a second orbital angular momentum pattern and a second subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in the circle, wherein the second subset does not include the first subset.

30. An apparatus for wireless communication at a first device, comprising: processor; a memory coupled to the processor; as well as instructions stored in the memory and executable by the processor to cause the apparatus to: receiving a first signal of a plurality of signals at a first circular antenna array including a first number of antenna elements arranged in a circle using a first orbital angular momentum pattern and a first subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in the circle; receiving a second signal of the plurality of signals using a second orbital angular momentum pattern and a second subset of the first number of antenna elements arranged in the circle, wherein the second subset does not include the first subset; as well as The first signal received using the first orbital angular momentum pattern and the first subset and the second signal received using the second orbital angular momentum pattern and the second subset are decoded.

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