CDMA & GSM Technology Comparison

By K S Madanpuri DGM(GSM) & B S S Rao SDE(GSM)

This article compares CDMA and GSM cellular systems. In the context of this paper the generic term CDMA is used to refer to the CDMA portion of the IS95 standard and the generic term GSM is used to refer to the GSM standard operating around the frequency regions 900MHz, 1800MHz, and 1900MHz. This article does not attempt to draw a conclusion on which is the best technology to employ - an objective direct comparison of the two technologies would be nearly impossible to achieve.

CDMA Standards
CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access) is a wideband technology which lends itself to low interference, secure communications and has been used in military satellite communications systems for decades. In July of 1993, the Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA) adopted CDMA IS-95 (Interim Standard 95) as a standard for systems in North America. This standard is supported by the CDMA Development Group (CDG), a consortium of service providers and manufacturers. The CDG created the cdmaOne brand name that is now commonly used to refer to CDMA networks. IS-95 is a cellular telephony air interface standard (not an entire system specification) for digital multiple access, which was developed to address burgeoning needs for increased capacity. IS-95 was originally defined for 800 MHz and was later up- banded for 900, 1700, and 1900 MHz. Thus far IS-95 networks have delivered multi-fold increases in capacity beyond other technologies.

Air Interface and Channel Bandwidth

The GSM Air Interface uses a TDMA (Time Division Multiple Access) transport mechanism to allow multiple users to be allocated specific timeslots within a narrowband carrier (200 KHz) frequency allocation. The carrier is split into eight timeslots, each at 9.6 kbps. For each call being processed, eight simultaneous calls are possible on each carrier (radio). GSM supports a fixed number of conversations per block of spectrum. CDMA is a wideband technology in which the radio spectrum is divided into carriers which are approximately 1.23 MHz wide (.27 MHz guard bands are located on either side of the first carrier and subsequent carriers may share adjacent guard bands). The traffic channels are created by assigning each user a unique code within the carrier. Each code or user is then layered and simultaneously transmitted over the entire carrier. These codes are scrambled and unscrambled at precise times by both the BTS and the mobile, thus requiring absolute time synchronization (through the use of GPS technology, further described in the Synchronization Methods section below). In CDMA, a signal begins at a standard data rate of 9.6 kbps. This signal is then spread to a transmitted rate of about 1.23 Megabits per second, thus reducing the impact of any interference

signals and enhancing the capacity characteristics associated with the indicated block of spectrum. The number of callers per block of spectrum is not fixed for CDMA, but is determined by individual system characteristics. As the number of callers is increased, the quality of the calls is decreased, due to additional noise generated by each additional caller. The proper balance is determined and implemented by individual network operators. Vendors Manufacturing of GSM infrastructure equipment began in 1991. CDMA infrastructure equipment began to be built in 1995. The marketplace for GSM infrastructure is highly competitive. This is due in part to being a more mature technology, as well as being designed upon an Open Architecture. The Open Architecture allows network operators to incorporate RF, O&M, and switching components from multiple vendors into a single network. This competitive environment has resulted in lower prices and faster delivery of new features to the customers. CDMA is a less mature technology, but has seen a significant influx of competitors since its inception. At the present time, manufacturers of CDMA infrastructure do not fully adhere to the open standards of the IS-634 interface between the switch and the RF equipment. This currently prevents a CDMA network operator from implementing the RF, O&M, and switching components from multiple vendors within a single network. However, the CDMA specifications are designed to support an Open Interface and customers are increasingly pressuring vendors to comply with these specifications. As the implementation of Open Architecture becomes pervasive, competition will become more intense, prices will decrease, and delivery of new feature functionality will become accelerated. The original manufacturers of CDMA infrastructure equipment were Qualcomm, Motorola, Lucent, and Nortel. The Korean government mandated that local manufacturers supply CDMA equipment for Korean networks. This gave rise to Koreanbased companies Daewoo, Datang, Hyundai, LG Information and Communications, and Samsung entering the marketplace as CDMA infrastructure manufacturers. The first Korean CDMA service began in January 1996. GSM began as a European technology that is evident by the large presence of European suppliers such as Ericsson, Nokia, Siemens, and Alcatel. Motorola (GSM Division based in Swindon, England) is also a GSM vendor and has been one of the larger players in the GSM marketplace. Lucent Technologies, through their acquisition of Phillips GSM equipment business in 1993, has been a more recent entrant to the GSM infrastructure business.

Wireless Technology GSM

Short term higher operator profitability Lower infrastructure cost

Advantages

Disadvantages Lower vendor profitability

Lower operator profitability

CDMA

Higher vendor profitability

Adoption
CDMA deployment has been primarily focused in the U.S. and South Korea, though expansion into other markets has been taking place recently. GSM deployment was initially focused in Europe, but has expanded over time such that today, Europe only represents 40% of total GSM deployments. Today, 72 operators worldwide, provide CDMA service to over 8 million subscribers in 32 countries. North America boasts the largest number of CDMA networks (currently 24 operators serving over 100 cities), however, Korea, with only a few network operators, dominates the number of CDMA subscribers Interference Management Multipath Fading or Interference is a phenomena in which a generated signal is disrupted (scattered off of mountains, buildings, vehicles, etc.) such as to arrive as multiple occurrences of the original signal, at slightly different times. GSM as well as other TDMA and analog-based systems, are susceptible to multipath fading. These reflected signals, combined with the transmitted signal, create a moving pattern of signal peaks and nulls. When a narrowband receiver moves through these nulls, there is a sudden drop in signal strength. This fading will cause lower, more noisy speech quality or, if the fading is severe enough, the loss of signal and a dropped call. CDMA is not negatively impacted by multipath fading, rather it is designed to take advantage of it. CDMA utilizes a Rake Receiver with individual fingers to separately receive up to three reflected occurrences of the original signal. Because these signals from the different paths are all time shifted with respect to each other, due to the differences in distance each signal must travel, each signal must be time shifted at the receiver to align the signals. Once the time shifting has taken place, the signals can be combined to result in a stronger signal than any that was individually received at the antenna.

Wireless Technology GSM

Slow frequency hopping helps reduce multi-path

Advantages

Disadvantages

Susceptible to multi-path Signal quality is not assured when line-of-sight signal is not available (multipath). Benefit is negated inside buildings where GSM and CDMA perform equally

CDMA

Higher vendor profitability

Power Control / VAD / DTX Power (signal strength) directly contributes to the ability of a listener to clearly receive a signal. Higher power signals, barring excessive interference, are more clearly received. Power Control is the activity of tailoring the signals strength to the needs of the system. In general, low-power communications will reduce the overall noise level of the system and at the subscriber level, will extend the battery life of the mobile. Power Control in GSM is managed by the BSS which regulates the signal strength generated from the base station. The BSS also provides each subscriber unit with commands that regulate the signal strength generated by each subscriber unit. Uplink and downlink power control may be applied independently of one another and independently of any individual mobile station. Uplink/Downlink transmission power can be adjusted up to 17 times per second, in increments of 2 dB each. Power control is a network option that is settable by the operator in one or both directions. Power control levels are determined by balancing the current power and quality measurements at the BTS and mobile stations with the objective of minimizing power without degrading call quality. At the manufacturers discretion, the power control functionality can reside in the BSC (supported by the A-bis interface specifications) or in the BTS, though this latter configuration is not explicitly spelled out in the specifications. Additionally, DRX (Discontinuous Reception) minimizes the amount of paging information (used to locate a mobile station within a whole location area) received by a mobile while in idle mode. The downlink common control channel is divided into several paging sub-channels and all paging messages pertaining to a given subscriber are normally sent on the same subchannel. This scheme allows mobile stations to restrict their monitoring of paging messages to their own paging sub-channel, thereby significantly increasing the lifetime of their battery, at the expense of a small

increase in delay for setting up of incoming calls. Discontinuous Reception (DRX) should not be confused with Discontinuous Transmission (DTX) with which it bears no relationship except similar names. CDMA is concerned with managing RF power to maximize capacity. The technology works most effectively when all mobile signals reach the base station with the same overall signal strength. The power level should also be as low as possible, while still maintaining a high quality call. The closer all the mobiles are to their ideal power levels, the less interference will be present on the CDMA channel. The less interference, the higher the capacity. Power Control in CDMA is implemented by the cell site continually measuring the received signals from the mobile, comparing it to the desired level, and instructing the mobile to increase/reduce transmit power up to 800 times per second, (up to 84 increments of 1 dB each). This high-speed power adjustment ensures that no matter how close or far a mobile is from the cell site (even when fading occurs), each mobile will be received by the cell site at the same power level (minimizing interference and maximizing capacity). In addition to the power control mechanisms listed above, CDMA has variable rate vocoders to further conserve power and reduce interference. The mobile user is not actively speaking during 60% of a typical call. An 8 kpbs multirate vocoder allows the encoded data rate to drop from 9.6kbps to 1.2 kbps when no voice is actively detected. Transmission of fewer bits contributes to lowering the noise level of the system and further maximizing capacity, much as the Voice Activity Detection (VAD) feature does for GSM. Synchronization Methods CDMA requires the most precise time synchronization of any wireless technology. A Global Positioning System (GPS) is used as a common time source with which to set the timing throughout the network. The GPS provides a timing signal used by all cells of a network to take turns transmitting the identical set of code sequences, on the same carrier frequency, to the mobiles within their respective service areas. The mobiles in a service area only listen at the instant in time in which their servicing cell is transmitting. This eliminates the interference which would otherwise be contributed when a mobile would receive the correct code sequence, but from the incorrect neighboring cell. This complete coordination by the GPS signal is the key to the reuse of a single frequency (n=1 reuse) across an entire network, resulting in maximum spectral efficiency and capacity. GSM has less demanding synchronization requirements. A high stability reference oscillator in the BSS serves as the timing source. It can operate in free-run mode or be synchronized to the clock signal of a selected E1/T1 serial link. The focus in GSM is to keep a base station in sync with the mobiles in its cell rather than needing to keep all base stations and mobiles synchronized within a network. GSM design actually enables the clocks in different cells to be run independently. GSM does not gain spectral efficiency by using precise timing offsets between cells, as seen in

CDMA. Rather, interference between cells is reduced by not using the same frequency in adjacent cells or through frequency hopping techniques.

Handovers As mobile subscribers move about a network, their calls are handed over from one cell to the next. In GSM, all handovers are considered to be hard handovers. As a user approaches a new cell and its signal becomes stronger than the current cell, handling of the call is switched from the old cell to the new cell. The likelihood of a dropped call increases at the moment control is being transferred to the new cell. In CDMA, frame erasure rates which are analogous to bit error rates, are used to determine when handovers should occur. Throughout the duration of a call the mobile subscriber compares the frames of signals from multiple cells/sectors and triggers handoff to those with the lowest frame erasure rates. CDMA uses soft handovers which use the resources of up to three base stations to continue facilitation of calls. Additionally, transfer of control between two sectors of the same cell is accomplished with softer handovers. The soft and softer handovers minimize the risk of a dropped call while control is being transferred. CDMA also uses hard handovers, generally for handovers between carriers of different frequencies and carriers of different technologies Capacity Comparison