Cost-Effective Policy for Deployment of Dense 5G RAN with Fiber and Wireless Backhaul Link_

Densification of network with numerous small cells is an important aspect of 5G radio access network (RAN). Planning of backhaul connectivity for these small cells has become crucial for cost effective deployment of the network. Integrated access and backhaul (IAB) node has been envisaged to address this important aspect. In this work, we have considered a scenario where, an existing telecom service provider (TSP) plans to augment its network by deploying additional multiple small base stations (SBSs) at different locations. We consider that the TSP has optical fiber cable (OFC) at few existing locations. Hence, the SBS may be integrated by laying of OFC from nearest OFC available location. Alternatively, self-backhauled SBSs may be employed for the integration. In case of OFC backhaul, involvement of capital expenditure (CAPEX) will be higher. On the other hand, the deployment of self-backhauled SBSs causes higher interference to the users in the network. Hence, optimal deployment policy for the TSPs is required considering usage patterns of the subscribers, CAPEX involvement, deployment hindrance, and resulting interference in the network.<br>The problem of cost effective deployment of the 5G RAN has been posed as an optimization problem. Subsequently, novel GA based hybrid backhauling (GAHB) technique has been presented. Our simulation results show that GAHB outperforms All Wired (AW) and All Unwired (AU) approaches as far as total cost of ownership (TCO) of the network is concerned.