Space Division Multiplexing 5G Fronthaul with Analog and Digital Radio-over-Fiber and Optical Beamforming – the blueSPACE Concept

This paper presents the concept of the blueSPACE project. The blueSPACE project is one of the 21 second phase 5G-PPP initiative European H2020 projects focusing on delivering solutions, architectures, technologies and standards for the ubiquitous next generation communication infrastructures. This concept paper presents the blueSPACE proposition for the use of spatial division multiplexing for 5G fronthauling, the use of optical beamforming from Ka-band wireless signals, the incorporation of power-over-fiber distribution and the integration into a flexible SDN/NFV environment. Also, the chosen use cases and a global description of the planned demonstrations are presented.