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TR 38.892
APT 600 MHz NR band

V18.0.0 (Wzip)  2023/03  15 p.
Rapporteur:
Mr. Shafi, Mansoor
Spark NZ Ltd

Content for  TR 38.892  Word version:  18.0.0

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1  Scopep. 5

The present document is a technical report for the work item of APT 600 MHz NR band.

2  Referencesp. 5

The following documents contain provisions which, through reference in this text, constitute provisions of the present document.
  • References are either specific (identified by date of publication, edition number, version number, etc.) or non-specific.
  • For a specific reference, subsequent revisions do not apply.
  • For a non-specific reference, the latest version applies. In the case of a reference to a 3GPP document (including a GSM document), a non-specific reference implicitly refers to the latest version of that document in the same Release as the present document.
[1]
TR 21.905: "Vocabulary for 3GPP Specifications".
[2]
ETSI EN 300 422-1 (V1.4.2) (2011-08): "Electromagnetic compatibility and Radio spectrum Matters (ERM); Wireless microphones in the 25 MHz to 3 GHz frequency range; Part 1: Technical characteristics and methods of measurement".
[3]
TS 36.101: "Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (E-UTRA); User Equipment (UE) radio transmission and reception".
[4]
TS 36.104: "Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (E-UTRA); Base Station (BS) radio transmission and reception".
[5]
TR 36.820: "LTE for 700 MHz digital dividend".
[6]
TR 36.755: "US 600 Mhz band for LTE".
[7]
RP 221778: WID on APT 600 MHz band.
[8]
TR 38.860: "Study on Extended 600 MHz NR band".
[9]
R4-2215942: "Asymmetric bandwidths for APT 600 MHz", Ericsson.
[10]
R4-2220016: "TP for TR 38.892: n105 compatibility with legacy n71 UEs", T-Mobile USA.
[11]
R4-2300031: "Text Proposals for section 6 of TR 38 892", Spark NZ, Nokia.
[12]
R4-2302457: "TP to TR 38.892: n71 and n105 compatibility (section 6)", Huawei, HiSilicon.
[13]
R4-2302708: "TP for TR 38.892: Compatibility with Band 71/n71", Qualcomm Incorporated.
[14]
RP-223265: "Revised WID on APT 600 MHz NR band", ZTE.
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3  Definitions, symbols and abbreviationsp. 6

3.1  Definitionsp. 6

For the purposes of the present document, the terms and definitions given in TR 21.905 and the following apply. A term defined in the present document takes precedence over the definition of the same term, if any, in TR 21.905.

3.2  Symbolsp. 6

For the purposes of the present document, the following symbols apply:
BW
Bandwidth
Δf
Separation between the channel edge frequency and the nominal -3dB point of the measuring filter closest to the carrier frequency
Δfmax
The largest value of Δf used for defining the requirement
FDL_low
The lowest frequency of the downlink operating band
FDL_high
The highest frequency of the downlink operating band
FUL_low
The lowest frequency of the uplink operating band
FUL_high
The highest frequency of the uplink operating band
f_offset
Separation between the channel edge frequency and the centre of the measuring filter
f_offsetmax
The maximum value of f_offset used for defining the requirement
NDL
Downlink EARFCN
NOffs-DL
Offset used for calculating downlink EARFCN
NOffs-UL
Offset used for calculating uplink EARFCN
NUL
Uplink EARFCN
PREFSENS
Reference Sensitivity power level
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3.3  Abbreviationsp. 6

For the purposes of the present document, the abbreviations given in TR 21.905 and the following apply.
An abbreviation defined in the present document takes precedence over the definition of the same abbreviation, if any, in TR 21.905.
ACLR
Adjacent Channel Leakage Ratio
BS
Base Station
CBRS
Citizens Broadband Radio Service
CIM
Counter-InterModulation
CW
Continuous Wave
DL
Downlink
DTV
Digital Television
EARFCN
E-UTRA Absolute Radio Frequency Channel Number
eCFR
electronic Code of Federal Regulation
EIRP
Effective Isotropic Radiated Power
ERP
Effective Radiated Power
ETSI
European Telecommunications Standards Institute
E-UTRA
Evolved UTRA
FCC
Federal Communications Commission
FDD
Frequency Division Duplex
HAAT
Height Above Average Terrain
LA
Local Area
LO
Local Oscillator
MOP
Maximum Output Power
MR
Medium Range
MSR
Multi-Standard Radio
NF
Noise Figure
NRAO
National Radio Astronomy Observatory
NSF
National Science Foundation
PA
Power Amplifier
PRB
Physical Resource Block
RAS
Radio Astronomy Service
REFSENS
Reference Sensitivity
RF
Radio Frequency
RX
Receiver
SEM
Spectrum Emission Mask
TX
Transmitter
UE
User Equipment
UHF
Ultra High Frequency
UL
Uplink
UMTS
Universal Mobile Telecommunications System
UTRA
UMTS Terrestrial Radio Access
VLBA
Very Long Baseline Array
WA
Wide Area
WMTS
Wireless Medical Telemetry Service
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4  Backgroundp. 7

The text in this section is largely from the WID [7], [14]
The 470-694 MHz frequency range is allocated to the broadcasting service and mobile service on a co-primary basis in ITU Region 3. The frequency band 470-698 MHz, or parts thereof, was identified by WRC-15 in 7 countries in Region 3 through new footnote No. 5.296A for use by those administrations as listed wishing to implement terrestrial IMT systems. In addition, there is interest from other significant markets to do the same. Elsewhere, USA, Mexico and several other countries in ITU Region 2 also identified this band for IMT through footnotes 5.295 and 5.308A. It is noted that resolves 2 of revised Resolution 224 (Rev.WRC-19) to encourage administrations to take into account results of the existing relevant ITU Radio communication Sector studies, when implementing IMT applications/systems in the frequency bands 694-862 MHz in Region 1, in the frequency band 470-806 MHz in Region 2, in the frequency band 790-862 MHz in Region 3, in the frequency band 470-698 MHz, or portions thereof, for those administrations mentioned in No. 5.296A, and in the frequency band 698-790 MHz, or portions thereof, for those administrations mentioned in No. 5.313A.
Spectrum below 1 GHz is expectedly well suited for mobile broadband applications. In particular, the unique propagation characteristics of the bands below 1 GHz allow for wider area coverage, which in turn requires fewer infrastructures and facilitates service delivery to rural or sparsely populated areas. In this regard, the 700MHz ecosystem is growing swiftly: there are over 34 commercial networks deployments. (see https://gsacom.com/paper/gsa-apt700-global-status-regulatory-deployments-devices/).The APT700 band plan coming out from Region 3 played a huge role in its success globally. Outside of APAC, countries in Region 2 have adopted or plan to adopt the APT700 band plan (3GPP band 28) for LTE system deployments. The lower duplexer of APT700 plan has also been adopted for Region 1 since the conclusion of WRC-15.
As the utilisation of the 700MHz spectrum increases over time, it is desirable to look at additional spectrum that could be considered as a companion besides 3GPP Band 28. Therefore, the use of parts of the 600MHz band for the mobile broadband service would provide a vital means of delivering high quality, wide area broadband services including in rural areas and deep inside buildings. The timely availability of frequency arrangements is essential for the development of IMT specifications and standards and the early consideration by Administrations in the footnotes referred to above of suitable frequency arrangements.
The APT region is very diverse and consists of highly developed and developing countries and some with extremely large and rural population base. The sub 1 GHz bands is well suited for the later.
During the last year or so, 3GPP RAN 4 has completed a study item on the feasibility of various duplex filter options for use in this band. The results of this study are documented in TR 38.860 This study was sent to the AWG in an LS RP-212629 in Sep 2021 with a request to provide guidance on a preferred band plan and information on regulatory aspects for the normative work to begin.
The AWG 28 meeting has considered the request of the 3GPP and has provided a response to this LS. In this response the LS has indicated a preference for option B1 (full band)- see Figure 4-1 below, and has also requested for the work to begin immediately with a view to completion by Dec 2022. Additionally, the answers to the regulatory questions sought by the 3GPP have now been provided via a reply LS RP 221045.
To facilitate the development of additional spectrum in the APT region it is proposed to develop the following band option:
Copy of original 3GPP image for 3GPP TS 38.892, Fig. 4-1: Proposed band option
Figure 4-1: Proposed band option
(⇒ copy of original 3GPP image)
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5  Frequency band arrangementp. 8

5.1  Operating band, channel bandwidth and channel arrangementp. 8

NR band APT600 is designed to operate in the operating band defined in Table 5.1-1.
Operating Band Uplink (UL) operating band
BS receive
UE transmit
FUL_low - FUL_high
Downlink (DL) operating band
BS transmit
UE receive
FDL_low - FDL_high
Duplex Mode
n105663 MHz - 703 MHz612 MHz - 652 MHzFDD
The requirements in the TR apply to the combination of channel bandwidths, SCS and operating bands shown in Table 5.1-2.
SCS (kHz) channel bandwidth (MHz)
155101520253303353
30101520253303353
NOTE 3:
This UE channel bandwidth is applicable only to downlink.
The channel raster of APT600 band is 100 kHz based (the same as band 71/n71). The applicable NR-ARFCN entries for band n105 are defined in Table 5.1-3.
NR operating band ΔFRaster
(kHz)
Uplink
range of NREF
(First - <Step size> - Last)
Downlink
range of NREF
(First - <Step size> - Last)
n105100132600 - <20> - 140600122400 - <20> - 130400
The synchronization raster for APT600 band is give in Table 5.1-4.
NR operating band SS Block SCS SS Block pattern
(NOTE 1)
Range of GSCN
(First - <Step size> - Last)
n10515 kHzCase A1535 - <1> - 1624
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5.2  Duplex spacingp. 9

The default TX channel (carrier centre frequency) to RX channel (carrier centre frequency) separation (default duplex spacing) for NR band n105 as given by Table 5.1-1: NR operating band for APT600 band is 51 MHz as defined in Table 5.2-1.
NR Operating Band TX - RX carrier centre frequency separation
n105-51 MHz
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6  Compatibility with B71/n71p. 9

Band n71 was introduced for Region 2 during Rel-15 back in 2017, under the LTE600_US work item [6]. UEs supporting operating band n71 are already on the market.
Even if it was not the objective of the APT600 band introduction, consideration of band n71 eco-system reuse was recognized during the discussion to be beneficial from both market, and international UE roaming point of view.
The main difference among band n105 and band n71 is in their frequency arrangement, where duplex spacing of the n105 is 5 MHz larger as compared to band n71, with its DL starting as 612 MHz (compared to 617 MHz for band n71), as detailed in Table 6-1.
The band plan for Band n105 shares a similar frequency range with that of the existing Band 71/n71, but differs in two important aspects. The first difference is Band n105 enables an additional 2x5 MHz of spectrum for a total of 2x40 MHz whereas Band 71/n71 is only specified for 2x35 MHz. The second difference is that the default Tx-Rx separation between uplink and downlink frequency blocks within Band n105 is 51 MHz while it is 46 MHz for Band 71/n71.
Copy of original 3GPP image for 3GPP TS 38.892, Fig. 6-1:  Band n71 and Band n105 differ in passband bandwidth and Tx-Rx separation
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Operating Band Uplink (UL) operating band
BS receive / UE transmit
FUL_low - FUL_high
Downlink (DL) operating band
BS transmit / UE receive
FDL_low - FDL_high
Duplex Mode
n71663 MHz - 698 MHz617 MHz - 652 MHzFDD
n105663 MHz - 703 MHz612 MHz - 652 MHzFDD
Studies have been conducted to explore the possibility of enabling compatibility between Band n105 and Band 71/n71. Specifically, the feasibility and modifications needed to enable existing Band 71/n71 UE's to operate in a network intended for Band n105 was studied. This would be advantageous before Band n105 devices are widely available. In the longer term, it is expected that devices would support both Band n71 and Band n105 [13].
One scheme described in [9] proposed to mandate the support of asymmetric UL/DL bandwidths for the Band n105 UE using the same asymmetric bandwidth combination set mandated for band n71 (BCS set 0). A variable duplex was claimed to be a byproduct of the support for asymmetric UL/DL bandwidths since the narrower UL channel could be placed arbitrarily within a frequency range where the fullband UL channel would have resided for a symmetric UL/DL configuration. Not all companies agreed with this interpretation and also observed UE requirements are not tested for variable duplex by virtue of asymmetric channel bandwidth. One example of a configuration is shown below with four 10 MHz symmetric operator blocks. The DL channel bandwidth configured by the BS is wider than the DL operator block. In order to fully allocate all channels within the band for different operators , PRB blanking would need to be used at the network side with active PRBs strictly within the DL operator block aligning to the Band n105 spectrum allocation. This may imply degraded selectivity for UEs and may be also imply coordination between neighboring networks and potential interference across networks if not properly coordinated. The edge spectrum blocks are unusable by Band n71 UE's since they are outside of the range of Band n71 and therefore outside of the Tx and Rx filter passband for the UE. These blocks would only be accessible to Band n105 UE's.
Copy of original 3GPP image for 3GPP TS 38.892, Fig. 6-2: An example of one variable duplex scheme with PRB blanking
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Another scheme described in [1] proposes to use different configurations depending on whether the channel is located at the bottom, middle, or upper part of Band n105. For channels in the lower part of the band, n71 devices would be configured for symmetric UL and DL using 46 MHz duplex. There is 2x5 MHz blocks which are not accessible to these n71 devices, but might be available to n105 devices using a larger UE specific channel bandwidth configuration with 51 MHz duplex or by intra-band contiguous carrier aggregation using mixed duplex between PCC and SCC.
Copy of original 3GPP image for 3GPP TS 38.892, Fig. 6-3: An example of another variable duplex scheme for partial coverage with n71 and using channel specific bandwidth configuration or CA for n105
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For channels in the middle and upper part of the band the n71 devices use asymmetric channel bandwidth with DL 5 MHz larger than uplink. The remaining 5 MHz uplink is lost to n71 devices but could be used by n105 devices with UE specific channel configuration or intra-band contiguous UL CA. For this scheme, Band n71 devices are limited in the spectrum available to them. For example, assuming the 2x40 MHz of Band n105 is allocated equally to 4 operators in 2x10 MHz blocks, n71 is only able to access 50% of the spectrum. Band n105 devices can access all of the spectrum, but would need to support UE specific channel bandwidth configurations larger than SIB bandwidth and channel location off of the 100 kHz raster. Or the network would need to be divided into two networks and then recombined using carrier aggregation losing efficiency.
None of these schemes to enable compatibility of Band 71/n71 devices to a network intended for Band n105 could be agreed. They all have shortcomings, introducing additional requirements in Band n105 UE design and network deployment complexity. At the same time, it is unclear whether the benefit of a Band 71/n71 UE ecosystem - even in a short-term transitionary phase - would actually be realizable. The Band 71/n71 UE ecosystem is predominantly composed of devices designed and intended for networks in the US. These devices do not support the bands and CA combinations needed for countries in Asia Pacific or future use of this band in ITU Region 1 where Band n105 is expected to be deployed. Thus, the benefit might only be for US operators and devices roaming into Band n105 for temporary connectivity. The benefit for APT operators and users is limited since these devices would not be useful as home devices native to the n105 countries in the absence of support for the other APT bands. Instead, it is recommended to maximize the use of spectrum in the most efficient manner by developing a Band n105 ecosystem directly. It is anticipated that devices will support both Band n71 and Band n105 using common modem and RF hardware to fulfil market demands.
Referring to the LS in [12], AWG has indicated that from the UE perspective, the device should ideally support both band n105, as well as n71 for international UE roaming purposes. From roaming point of view, we can distinguish the following cases:
  1. Legacy n71 UE trying to access network operating n105 band: despite lack of -51 MHz duplex support, in this case a legacy n71 UEs would not be able to access downlink on 612-617 MHz, or uplink on 698-703 MHz.
  2. n105 UE trying to access n71 network: such n105 UE would need to support -46 MHz duplex spacing; such duplex spacing flexibility was discussed in this work item under term "variable duplex", but not concluded. As the n71 frequency range is embedded within n105 band, one may expect that some of the future n105 UE implementations may support both bands to enable roaming.
Considering high level of commonalities among those bands the underlying duplexer designs, it is expected that future UE devices supporting band n71 will also support band n105. Whether this would be achieved with the same RF frontend or not, is an implementation issue. However, possibility of using existing n71 devices with their -46 MHz duplex in n105 markets is not technically feasible with the existing Rel-17 specification.
Finally, it shall be stressed that APAC region mobile network operators willing to deploy band n105 with -51 MHz Tx-Rx spacing, will not be mandated by their regional regulations to support band n71, which was defined in 3GPP for Region 2 based on FCC guidance.
The NR bands n71 and n105 have transmit/receive (duplex) spacings of -46 and -51 MHz respectively. Concurrent operation of UEs with both duplex spacings are not considered as this is a short-term measure only according to R4-2302708. Due to the essentially large commonality of the transmitter/receiver requirement for the modem, specifications of n71 and n105 it is expected that new generation n71 UEs and n105 UEs will support both bands. The immediate issue using existing n71 UEs in an n105 market will not be there in the long term. Therefore, it is anticipated that devices will support both Band n71 and Band n105 using common modem and RF hardware to fulfill market demands [11].
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7  UE and BS requirements for APT 600 MHzp. 12

7.1  UE requirementsp. 12

7.1.1  UE transmitter characteristicsp. 12

7.1.1.1  UE TX maximum output powerp. 12

Power class 3 is specified for Band n105 with a maximum output power of 23 dBm. The tolerance is +2/-2.5 dB similar to Band n71.
NR band Class 1 (dBm) Tolerance (dB) Class 1.5 (dBm) Tolerance (dB) Class 2 (dBm) Tolerance (dB) Class 3 (dBm) Tolerance (dB)
n10523+2/-2.5
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7.1.1.2  NS value and Spectrum Emission Maskp. 12

No additional spurious emission requirements have at this time been identified for Band n105. Therefore, no NS other than the default NS_01 has been specified. In the future if regulators deem it necessary to impose additional spurious emission requirements to protect adjacent or nearby services for deployment in certain countries, the NS specifications for Band n105 can be revised accordingly.
The spectrum emission mask follows the general mask as specified in clause 6.5.2.2 of TS 38.101-1. No additional spectrum mask is applicable to Band n105.
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7.1.2  UE receiver characteristicsp. 12

7.1.2.1  UE REFSENSp. 12

Reference sensitivity for Band n105 has been agreed as follows
Operating band / SCS / Channel bandwidth
Operating Band SCS kHz 5 MHz (dBm) 10 MHz (dBm) 15 MHz (dBm) 20 MHz (dBm) 25 MHz (dBm) 30 MHz (dBm) 35 MHz (dBm) 40 MHz (dBm) 45 MHz (dBm) 50 MHz (dBm)
n10515-97.28-94.0-91.6-86.9-85.1-83.8-82.5
30-94.3-91.9-87.9-85.5-84.3-82.6
NOTE 8:
DL channels overlapping the 612-617MHz range have 0.5dB added to the REFSENS
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7.1.2.2  In-band blockingp. 13

In-band blocking for Band n105 has been specified as Case 1, Case2, and Case 5. Case 5 is specified with an interferer power of -22 dBm except for Band n105 channels overlapping the lowermost 5 MHz of the band where it is relaxed to -34 dBm.
NR band Parameter Unit Case 1 Case 2 Case 3 Case 4 Case 5
PinterfererdBm-56-44-15-38-224
Finterferer (offset)MHz-BWChannel/2 - FIoffset, case 1
and
BWChannel/2 + FIoffset, case 1
≤ -BWChannel/2 - FIoffset, case 2
and
≥ BWChannel/2 + FIoffset, case 2
-BWChannel/2-11
n105FinterfererMHzNOTE 2FDL_low - 12
to
FDL_high + 15
FDL_low - 7
NOTE 1:
The absolute value of the interferer offset Finterferer (offset) shall be further adjusted to formula MHz with SCS the sub-carrier spacing of the wanted signal in MHz. The interferer is an NR signal with 15 kHz SCS.
NOTE 2:
For each carrier frequency, the requirement applies for two interferer carrier frequencies: a: -BWChannel/2 - FIoffset, case 1; b: BWChannel/2 + FIoffset, case 1
NOTE 3:
n48 follows the requirement in this frequency range according to the general requirement defined in Clause 7.1.
NOTE 4:
For Band n105 channels overlapping the 612 - 617 MHz frequency range, Pinterferer is modified to -34 dBm.
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7.1.2.3  Out-of-band blockingp. 13

Out-of-band blocking for Band n105 is specified generally as it is for other bands below 2700 MHz.
NR band Parameter Unit Range 1 Range 2 Range 3
PinterfererdBm-44-30-15
n105Finterferer (CW)MHz-60 < f - FDL_low < -15
or
15 < f - FDL_high < 60
-85 < f - FDL_low ≤ -60
or
60 ≤ f - FDL_high < 85
1 ≤ f ≤ FDL_low - 85
or
FDL_high + 85 ≤ f ≤ 12750
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7.2  Network nodes requirementsp. 13

With the introduction on band n105, the following network node specifications were updated to reflect required modifications:
  • NR BS core and conformance testing specifications,
  • IAB core and conformance testing specifications,
  • NR Repeater core and conformance testing specifications.
The following technical modifications were implemented, where applicable:
  • Adding n105 to the list of operating bands for Operating Band Unwanted Emission (Category A, and Category B Option 1) limits,
  • Transmitter spurious emission requirements:
    • co-existence requirements updated for n105 introduction,
    • co-location requirements updated for n105 introduction,
  • Receiver blocking: co-location requirements updated for n105 introduction.
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8  Expected Output and Time Scalep. 14

New specifications {One line per specification. Create/delete lines as needed}
Type TS/TR number Title For info at TSG# For approval at TSG# Remarks
Internal TR38.892APT 600 MHz NR bandRAN#99
Impacted existing TS/TR {One line per specification. Create/delete lines as needed}
TS/TR No. Description of change Target completion plenary# Remarks
38.101-1NR; UE Radio transmission and receptionRAN#99Core part
38.133NR; Requirements for support of radio resource managementRAN#99Core part
38.104NR; BS Radio transmission and receptionRAN#99Core part
38.141-1NR; Base Station (BS) conformance testing Part 1: Conducted conformance testingRAN#99Perf. Part
38.141-2NR; Base Station (BS) conformance testing Part 2:
Radiated conformance testing
RAN#99Perf. Part
36.104E-UTRA; BS Radio transmission and receptionRAN#99Core part
36.141E-UTRA; BS conformance testingRAN#99Perf. Part
37.104E-UTRA, UTRA and GSM/EDGE; Multi-Standard Radio (MSR) Base Station (BS) radio transmission and receptionRAN#99Core part
37.141E-UTRA, UTRA and GSM/EDGE; Multi-Standard Radio (MSR) Base Station (BS) conformance testingRAN#99Perf. Part
37.105Active Antenna System (AAS) Base Station (BS) transmission and receptionRAN#99Core part
37.145-1Active Antenna System (AAS) Base Station (BS) conformance testing; Part 1: conducted conformance testingRAN#99Perf. Part
37.145-2Active Antenna System (AAS) Base Station (BS) conformance testing; Part 2: radiated conformance testingRAN#99Perf. Part
38.174NR; Integrated access and backhaul radio transmission and receptionRAN#99Core part
38.176-1NR; Integrated Access and Backhaul (IAB) conformance testing; Part 1: Conducted conformance testingRAN#99Perf. Part
38.176-2NR; Integrated Access and Backhaul (IAB) conformance testing; Part 2: Radiated conformance testingRAN#99Perf. Part
38.106NR repeater radio transmission and receptionRAN#99Core part
38.115-1NR; Repeater conformance testing - Part 1: Conducted conformance testingRAN#99Perf. Part
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$  Change historyp. 15


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