Cellular Networks

Small Cells are low-powered radio access nodes that operate in licensed and unlicensed spectrum that have a range of 10 meter to 200 meters, compared to a mobile Macrocell which might have a range of a few kilometres. With mobile operators struggling to support the growth in mobile data traffic, many are using Mobile data offloading as a more efficient use of radio spectrum. Small cells are a vital element to 3G data off-loading, and many mobile network operators see small cells as vital to managing LTE Advanced spectrum more efficiently compared to using just macrocells.
Small cells can be used to provide in-building and outdoor wireless service. Mobile operators use small cells to extend their service coverage and/or increase network capacity. With small cells, mobile operators can offload traffic as much as 80% during peak times.
Small cells cover Femtocells, Picocells, and Microcells. Small cell networks can also be realized by means of distributed radio technology consisting of centralized baseband units and remote radio heads. Beamforming technology (focusing a radio signal on a very specific area) can be utilized to further enhance or focus small cell coverage. A common factor in all these approaches to small cells is that they are centrally managed by mobile network operators.
Small cells provide a small radio footprint, which can range from 10 meters within urban and in-building locations to 2 km for a rural location. Picocells and microcells can also have a range of a few hundred meters to a few kilometers, but they differ from femtocells in that they do not always have self-organizing and self-management capabilities.
Small cells are available for a wide range of air interfaces including GSM, CDMA2000, TD-SCDMA, W-CDMA, LTE and WiMax. In 3GPP terminology, a Home NodeB (HNB) is a 3G femtocell. A Home eNodeB (HeNB) is an LTE