ETSI TS 138 151 V18.5.0 (2026-04)

5G; NR; User Equipment (UE) Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO) Over-the-Air (OTA) performance requirements (3GPP TS 38.151 version 18.5.0 Release 18)

RTS/TSGR-0438151vi50

General Information

• Status: Not Published
• Technical Committee: 3GPP RAN 4 - Specification for radio performance
• Current Stage: 12 - Citation in the OJ (auto-insert)
• Completion Date: 17-Apr-2026

Standards Content (Sample)

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATION
5G;
NR;
User Equipment (UE) Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO)
Over-the-Air (OTA) performance requirements
(3GPP TS 38.151 version 18.5.0 Release 18)

3GPP TS 38.151 version 18.5.0 Release 18 1 ETSI TS 138 151 V18.5.0 (2026-04)

Reference
RTS/TSGR-0438151vi50
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ETSI
3GPP TS 38.151 version 18.5.0 Release 18 2 ETSI TS 138 151 V18.5.0 (2026-04)
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ETSI
3GPP TS 38.151 version 18.5.0 Release 18 3 ETSI TS 138 151 V18.5.0 (2026-04)
Contents
Intellectual Property Rights . 2
Legal Notice . 2
Modal verbs terminology . 2
Foreword . 5
1 Scope . 7
2 References . 7
3 Definitions of terms, symbols and abbreviations . 8
3.1 Terms . 8
3.2 Symbols . 8
3.3 Abbreviations . 8
4 General . 9
4.1 Relationship between minimum requirements and test requirements . 9
4.2 Applicability of minimum requirements . 9
4.3 Applicability rules for testing of SA and NSA UEs . 9
5 Frequency bands . 10
5.1 General . 10
5.2 Operating bands . 10
6 FR1 MIMO OTA requirements . 13
6.1 General . 13
6.1.1 Definition of MIMO throughput . 13
6.1.2 Total Radiated Multi-antenna Sensitivity (TRMS) . 13
6.2 Minimum requirement . 14
7 FR2 MIMO OTA requirements . 14
7.1 General . 14
7.1.1 MIMO Average Spherical Coverage (MASC) . 14
7.2 Minimum requirement . 15
Annex A (normative): . 16
A.1 General . 16
A.2 Multi-Probe Anechoic Chamber (MPAC). 16
A.2.1 System setup . 16
A.2.2 Calibration procedure . 17
A.2.3 Test procedure . 17
A.2.4 Minimum Range Length . 18
A.2.5 Preliminary MU budget of FR1 MPAC system . 18
A.3 EUT positioning . 19
Annex B (normative): . 22
B.1 General . 22
B.2 FR2 3D Multi-Probe Anechoic Chamber (3D-MPAC) . 22
B.2.1 System setup . 22
B.2.2 Calibration procedure . 24
B.2.3 Test procedure . 24
B.2.4 Minimum Range Length . 26
B.2.5 Preliminary MU of FR2 3D-MPAC system . 27
B.2.6 Sample Device Orientations for Selected Test Points . 28
B.3 EUT positioning . 31
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3GPP TS 38.151 version 18.5.0 Release 18 4 ETSI TS 138 151 V18.5.0 (2026-04)
Annex C (normative): . 32
C.1 FR1 Channel models . 32
C.2 FR1 Base Station beam configuration . 33
C.3 FR1 Channel model validation . 34
C.3.1 General . 34
C.3.2 Power Delay Profile (PDP) . 35
C.3.3 Doppler/Temporal correlation . 38
C.3.4 Spatial correlation. 41
C.3.5 Cross-polarization . 48
C.3.6 Power validation . 51
C.4 Validation Pass/fail limit . 52
C.4.1 General . 52
C.4.2 Pass/Fail Criteria of PDP . 52
C.4.3 Pass/Fail Criteria of Doppler/Temporal correlation . 52
C.4.4 Pass/Fail Criteria of Spatial correlation . 54
C.4.5 Pass/Fail Criteria of Cross-polarization . 57
C.4.6 Pass/Fail Criteria of Power validation . 57
Annex D (normative): . 58
D.1 FR2 Channel models . 58
D.2 FR2 Base Station beam configuration . 58
D.3 FR2 Channel model validation . 59
D.3.1 General . 59
D.3.2 FR2 Power Delay Profile (PDP) . 60
D.3.3 FR2 Doppler/Temporal correlation . 61
D.3.4 FR2 PAS similarity percentage (PSP) . 63
D.3.5 FR2 Cross-polarization . 67
D.3.6 FR2 Power validation . 68
D.4 Validation Pass/fail limit . 69
D.4.1 General . 69
D.4.2 Pass/Fail Criteria of PDP . 69
D.4.3 Pass/Fail Criteria of Doppler/Temporal correlation . 69
D.4.4 Pass/Fail Criteria of PSP . 70
D.4.5 Pass/Fail Criteria of Cross-polarization . 71
D.4.6 Pass/Fail Criteria of Power validation . 71
Annex E (normative): . 72
E.1 FR1 gNB configurations . 72
E.2 FR2 gNB configurations . 76
Annex F (normative): . 81
F.1 Scope . 81
F.2 Ambient temperature . 81
F.3 Operating voltage . 81
Annex G (informative): Change history . 82
History . 84

ETSI
3GPP TS 38.151 version 18.5.0 Release 18 5 ETSI TS 138 151 V18.5.0 (2026-04)
Foreword
This Technical Specification has been produced by the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP).
The contents of the present document are subject to continuing work within the TSG and may change following formal
TSG approval. Should the TSG modify the contents of the present document, it will be re-released by the TSG with an
identifying change of release date and an increase in version number as follows:
Version x.y.z
where:
x the first digit:
1 presented to TSG for information;
2 presented to TSG for approval;
3 or greater indicates TSG approved document under change control.
y the second digit is incremented for all changes of substance, i.e. technical enhancements, corrections,
updates, etc.
z the third digit is incremented when editorial only changes have been incorporated in the document.
In the present document, modal verbs have the following meanings:
shall indicates a mandatory requirement to do something
shall not indicates an interdiction (prohibition) to do something
The constructions "shall" and "shall not" are confined to the context of normative provisions, and do not appear in
Technical Reports.
The constructions "must" and "must not" are not used as substitutes for "shall" and "shall not". Their use is avoided
insofar as possible, and they are not used in a normative context except in a direct citation from an external, referenced,
non-3GPP document, or so as to maintain continuity of style when extending or modifying the provisions of such a
referenced document.
should indicates a recommendation to do something
should not indicates a recommendation not to do something
may indicates permission to do something
need not indicates permission not to do something
The construction "may not" is ambiguous and is not used in normative elements. The unambiguous constructions
"might not" or "shall not" are used instead, depending upon the meaning intended.
can indicates that something is possible
cannot indicates that something is impossible
The constructions "can" and "cannot" are not substitutes for "may" and "need not".
will indicates that something is certain or expected to happen as a result of action taken by an agency
the behaviour of which is outside the scope of the present document
will not indicates that something is certain or expected not to happen as a result of action taken by an
agency the behaviour of which is outside the scope of the present document
might indicates a likelihood that something will happen as a result of action taken by some agency the
behaviour of which is outside the scope of the present document
ETSI
3GPP TS 38.151 version 18.5.0 Release 18 6 ETSI TS 138 151 V18.5.0 (2026-04)
might not indicates a likelihood that something will not happen as a result of action taken by some agency
the behaviour of which is outside the scope of the present document
In addition:
is (or any other verb in the indicative mood) indicates a statement of fact
is not (or any other negative verb in the indicative mood) indicates a statement of fact
The constructions "is" and "is not" do not indicate requirements.
ETSI
3GPP TS 38.151 version 18.5.0 Release 18 7 ETSI TS 138 151 V18.5.0 (2026-04)
1 Scope
The present document establishes the Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO) Over-the-Air (OTA) performance
requirements for NR UEs operating on frequency Range 1 and frequency rang 2, for NR standalone (SA) and NR non-
standalone (NSA) operation mode. The corresponding test methodologies are also presented in the Annex of this
Technical Specification.
2 References
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] 3GPP TR 21.905: "Vocabulary for 3GPP Specifications".
[2] 3GPP TR 38.827: “Study on radiated metrics and test methodology for the verification of multi-
antenna reception performance of NR User Equipment (UE)”.
[3] 3GPP TS 38.101-1: "NR; User Equipment (UE) radio transmission and reception; Part 1: Range 1
Standalone"
[4] 3GPP TS 38.101-2: "NR; User Equipment (UE) radio transmission and reception; Part 2: Range 2
Standalone"
[5] 3GPP TS 38.101-3: "NR; User Equipment (UE) radio transmission and reception; Part 3: Range 1
and Range 2 Interworking operation with other radios"
[6] 3GPP TS 36.101: "Evolved Universal Terrestrial Radio Access (E-UTRA); User Equipment (UE)
radio transmission and reception"
[7] 3GPP TS 38.508-1: "5GS; User Equipment (UE) conformance specification; Part 1: Common test
environment"
[8] 3GPP TR 38.901: "Study on channel model for frequencies from 0.5 to 100 GHz"
[9] F. Zhang, L. Hentilä, P. Kyösti and W. Fan, "Millimeter-wave New Radio Test Zone Validation
for MIMO Over-the-air Testing," in IEEE Transactions on Antennas and Propagation, doi:
10.1109/TAP.2021.3111326.
[10] 3GPP TS 38.101-4: "NR; User Equipment (UE) radio transmission and reception; Part 4:
Performance requirements"
[11] 3GPP TS 38.551: "NR; User Equipment (UE) Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO) Over-the-
Air (OTA) performance; Conformance testing"

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3GPP TS 38.151 version 18.5.0 Release 18 8 ETSI TS 138 151 V18.5.0 (2026-04)
3 Definitions of terms, symbols and abbreviations
3.1 Terms
For the purposes of the present document, the terms given in 3GPP TR 21.905 [1] and the following apply. A term
defined in the present document takes precedence over the definition of the same term, if any, in 3GPP TR 21.905 [1].
FS: UE used in a free space configuration.
Handheld UE: A UE intended to be used in hand held scenario.
MIMO Average Spherical Coverage: An averaged sensitivity of best 18 FR2 MIMO OTA sensitivity values within
the 3D sphere with constant-density points for PC3 device.
Primary mechanical mode: The mode that is most often used for a specific user scenario. Every terminal has at least
one primary mechanical mode, if multiple modes are supported, different primary mechanical modes may be applicable
for different user scenarios, e.g., different primary mechanical modes for Free Space and Hand phantom usage for the
same UE.
PSP (PAS Similarity Percentage): The similarity of the PAS produced by the OTA system and the reference PAS,
which is presented by the Total Variation Distance (TVD) of power angular spectrum (PAS). PSP is defined as (1-
TVD)*100%. PSP=100% denotes full similarity and PSP=0% denotes full dissimilarity.
3.2 Symbols
For the purposes of the present document, the following symbols apply:

P Maximum downlink RS-EPRE
RS-EPRE-MAX
3.3 Abbreviations
For the purposes of the present document, the abbreviations given in 3GPP TR 21.905 [1] and the following apply. An
abbreviation defined in the present document takes precedence over the definition of the same abbreviation, if any, in
3GPP TR 21.905 [1].
AOA Azimuth angle Of Arrival
AOD Azimuth angle Of Departure
BS Base Station
CDL Clustered Delay Line
CW Continuous Wave
DML Data Mode Landscape
DMP Data Mode Portrait
DMSU Data Mode Screen Up
DUT Device Under Test
EUT Equipment Under Test
FR1 Frequency Range 1
FR2 Frequency Range 2
FS Free Space
MASC MIMO Average Spherical Coverage
MIMO Multiple Input Multiple Output
MPAC Multi-Probe Anechoic Chamber
NR New Radio
NSA Non-Standalone, a mode of operation where operation of an other radio is assisted with an other
radio
OTA Over The Air
PAS Power Angular Spectrum
PDP Power Delay Profile
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3GPP TS 38.151 version 18.5.0 Release 18 9 ETSI TS 138 151 V18.5.0 (2026-04)
PSP PAS Similarity Percentage
RS-EPRE Reference Signal-Energy Per Resource Element
SS System Simulator
SSS Secondary Synchronization Signal
TRMS Total Radiated Multi-antenna Sensitivity
UE User Equipment
UMa Urban Macro
UMi Urban Micro
XPR Cross-Polarization Ratio
ZOA Zenith angle Of Arrival
ZOD Zenith angle Of Departure
ZSA Zenith angle Spread of Arrival
ZSD Zenith angle Spread of Departure

4 General
4.1 Relationship between minimum requirements and test
requirements
The Minimum Requirements given in this specification make no allowance for measurement uncertainty. The test
specification in RAN5 will define test tolerances for FR1 and FR2 MIMO OTA. The test tolerances are used to relax
the minimum requirements in this specification to create test requirements.
4.2 Applicability of minimum requirements
The MIMO OTA minimum requirements apply only to the primary mechanical mode of UE which is declared by the
manufacturer if the UE can support multiple mechanical modes.
The minimum requirements apply only to the UE under normal environmental conditions specified in Annex F.
4.3 Applicability rules for testing of SA and NSA UEs
The applicability and test coverage rules for Non-Standalone (NSA) only capable UEs shall include the following:
- For FR1 NSA (EN-DC) only capable UEs, testing is not required.
- For FR2 NSA (EN-DC) only capable UEs, for each FR2 NR band supported by the device, test the UE in EN-
DC mode using any one example configuration containing that NR band or configuration declaration decision
tree as per recommended MIMO OTA test procedures in this specification.
The applicability and test coverage rules for Standalone (SA) and NSA (EN-DC) capable UEs shall include the
following:
- For FR1 UEs, for each NR band in a device, test the UE in Standalone Mode as per the TRMS test procedures in
this specification. This shall also fulfil coverage for all EN-DC minimum performance requirements for that NR
band and need not be retested in EN-DC mode.
- For FR2 UEs, for each FR2 NR band supported by the device, test the UE in any of SA modes including FR2
only mode, FR1+FR2 NR-DC mode and FR1+FR2 NR-CA mode using any one example configuration
containing that NR band. This shall fulfil coverage for FR2 MIMO OTA requirements for that NR band and
need not be retested in EN-DC mode.

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5 Frequency bands
5.1 General
NR MIMO OTA Requirements are defined separately for different frequency ranges (FR). The frequency ranges in
which NR can operate according to this version of the specification are identified as described in Table 5.1-1.
Table 5.1-1: Definition of frequency ranges
Frequency range Corresponding frequency range
designation
FR1 410 MHz – 7125 MHz
FR2 24250 MHz – 52600 MHz
The present specification covers both FR1 and FR2 operating bands. For FR2, only FR2-1 bands are applicable.
5.2 Operating bands
NR is designed to operate in FR1 operating bands defined in TS 38.101-1 [3] and FR2 operating bands defined in TS
38.101-2 [4]. NSA band combinations are defined in TS 38.101-3 [5]. E-UTRA is designed to operate in operating
bands defined in TS 36.101 [6].
For FR2 EN-DC capable UEs, principle of EN-DC band combinations selection for FR2 MIMO OTA testing is as
following:
1) Focus on the performance of the NR carrier and do not consider multiple permutations between different LTE
bands and NR band under test, i.e., for each NR band, only select one EN-DC band combination.
2) For UE supporting multiple EN-DC band combinations for the same NR band, consider only those EN-DC
configurations which have no MSD impact on either LTE or NR.
Table 5.2-1: Measurement parameters for example inter-band EN-DC band combinations (LTE + FR2,
two bands)
EN-DC E-UTRA NR FR2
configuration configurations configurations
DC_66A_n261A Mid channel Mid channel

Table 5.2-2: Measurement parameters for example inter-band NR-DC band combinations (FR1 + FR2,
two bands)
NR-DC NR FR1 NR FR2
configuration configurations configurations
DC_n66A_n261A Mid channel Mid channel

Table 5.2-3: Measurement parameters for example inter-band NR-CA band combinations (FR1 + FR2,
two bands)
NR-CA NR FR1 NR FR2
configuration configurations configurations
CA-n66A_n261A Mid channel Mid channel

With the above basic principle and example band combination, the selection logic for testing is defined by the decision
trees shown in Figure 5.2-1 and Figure 5.2-2.
ETSI
3GPP TS 38.151 version 18.5.0 Release 18 11 ETSI TS 138 151 V18.5.0 (2026-04)

Figure 5.2-1: Decision tree for FR1 MIMO OTA testing

ETSI
3GPP TS 38.151 version 18.5.0 Release 18 12 ETSI TS 138 151 V18.5.0 (2026-04)

Figure 5.2-2: Decision tree for FR2 MIMO OTA testing

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3GPP TS 38.151 version 18.5.0 Release 18 13 ETSI TS 138 151 V18.5.0 (2026-04)
6 FR1 MIMO OTA requirements
6.1 General
6.1.1 Definition of MIMO throughput
The MIMO throughput is defined here as the time-averaged number of correctly received transport blocks in a
communication system running an application, where a Transport Block is defined in the reference measurement
channel. From OTA perspective, this is also called MIMO OTA throughput. It will be used as the baseline figure of
merit for FR1 and FR2 MIMO OTA testing.
The MIMO OTA throughput is measured at the top of physical layer of NR system under the use of FRC, the SS
transmit fixed-size payload bits to the DUT. The DUT signals back either ACK or NACK to the SS. The SS then
records the following:
- Number of ACKs,
- Number of NACKs, and
- Number of DTX slots
Hence the MIMO (OTA) throughput can be calculated as
Transmitted TBS × Num of ACKs
MIMO (OTA) Throughput =
MeasurementTime
Where Transmitted TBS is the Transport Block Size transmitted by the SS, which is fixed for an FRC during the
measurement period. MeasurementTime is the total composed of successful slots (ACK), unsuccessful slots (NACK)
and DTX-symbols.
The time-averaging is to be taken over a time period sufficiently long to average out the variations due to the fading
channel. Therefore, this is also called the average MIMO OTA throughput. The throughput should be measured at a
time when eventual start-up transients in the system have evanesced.
6.1.2 Total Radiated Multi-antenna Sensitivity (TRMS)
The average TRMS of free space data mode portrait (FS DMP), free space data mode landscape (FS DML), and free
space data mode screen up (FS DMSU), is defined as the FR1 MIMO OTA requirement. The averaging shall be done in
linear scale for the TRMS results at these DUT positions, according to the formula:
11 1

TRMS=+10log 3 +
a,verage70
SS10 10S 10
FS _ DMP,70 FS _ DML ,70 FS _ DMSU ,70
10 10 10

where
11 1

S=+10log 12 +⋅⋅⋅+
MODE,70
PP10 10 P 10
MODE ,70,0 MODE ,70,1 MODE ,70,11
10 10 10


Such that MODE is one of {FS_DMP, FS_DML, FS_DMSU}, and {P , …, P } are the measured
MODE,70,0 MODE,70,11
sensitivity values at each azimuth position at the 70% throughput outage.
If 1 azimuth position does not result in a defined measured sensitivity at 70% throughput, S is calculated using
MODE,70
the 11 measured sensitivities and the maximum downlink RS-EPRE P (substitution approach) for the one
RS-EPRE-MAX
missing result. P is the maximum downlink RS-EPRE supported by the test system. For bands > 1 GHz, P
RS-EPRE-MAX RS-
is defined as -80dBm/15kHz (or equivalent -77dBm/30kHz) for FR1 MIMO OTA; for bands < 1 GHz, P
EPRE-MAX RS-
is defined as -78dBm/15kHz for FR1 MIMO OTA.
EPRE-MAX
The TRMS shall be measured at the mid channel as specified in TS 38.508-1 subclause 4.3.1 [7]. The average TRMS
shall be lower than the average TRMS requirements specified in Clause 6.2.
ETSI
3GPP TS 38.151 version 18.5.0 Release 18 14 ETSI TS 138 151 V18.5.0 (2026-04)
The additional criterion in azimuthal orientations shall be met:
- The EUT must meet 70% throughput in 11 of total 12 azimuthal orientations. If the EUT fails to meet this
), the EUT shall fail the FR1 MIMO
criterion even under maximum downlink power condition (i.e. PRS-EPRE-MAX
OTA test.
- The EUT must meet 90% throughput in 10 of total 12 azimuthal orientations for bands > 1 GHz, and 8 of total
12 azimuthal orientations for bands < 1 GHz. If the EUT fails to meet this criterion even under maximum
downlink power condition (i.e. P ), the EUT shall fail the FR1 MIMO OTA test.
RS-EPRE-MAX
6.2 Minimum requirement
FR1 TRMS minimum performance requirements for NR handheld UEs operating on SA mode in free space and the
primary mechanical mode for 70% DL throughput with the corresponding measurement configurations (i.e., channel
model and gNB configuration) specified in Annex C.1 and Annex E.1 are defined in Table 6.2-1.
Table 6.2-1: FR1 TRMS minimum performance requirements for NR handheld UEs operating on SA
mode in free space and the primary mechanical mode
Bandwidth MIMO
NR bands Channel model Reference channel TRMSaverage,70
[MHz] layer
n1 10 4x4 FR1 UMa CDL-C R.PDSCH.1-2.4 FDD -96.0 dBm/15kHz
n5 10 2x2 FR1 UMi CDL-C R.PDSCH.1-3.1 FDD -88.0 dBm/15kHz
n28 10 2x2 FR1 UMi CDL-C R.PDSCH.1-3.1 FDD -84.6 dBm/15kHz
n41 40 4x4 FR1 UMa CDL-C R.PDSCH.2-2.4 TDD -93.3 dBm/30kHz
n78 40 4x4 FR1 UMa CDL-C R.PDSCH.2-2.4 TDD -94.8 dBm/30kHz
n79 40 4x4 FR1 UMa CDL-C R.PDSCH.2-2.4 TDD

7 FR2 MIMO OTA requirements
7.1 General
7.1.1 MIMO Average Spherical Coverage (MASC)
The MIMO Average Spherical Coverage (MASC) is the Figure of Merit of FR2 MIMO OTA requirement. FR2 MIMO
OTA is measured with 36 constant-density points within the 3D sphere. The MASC is determined by the averaging of
the best 18 sensitivity values for power class 3 UE. The averaging shall be done in linear scale for the MASC result
according to the formula:
⎡ ⎤
⎢ ⎥
⎢ ⎥
���� =10���
��
⎢ ⎥
1 1 1
⎢� + +⋅⋅⋅+ �⎥
� � �
��,� ��,� ��,��
⎣ ⎦
�� �� ��
10 10 10
Such that {P , …, P } are the best 18 sensitivity values from all the 36 constant density measurement points, as
70,1 70,18
defined in Annex B.2.3.
The MASC is determined by the averaging of the best 5 sensitivity values for power class 1 UE. The averaging shall be
done in linear scale for the MASC result according to the formula:
⎡ ⎤
⎢ ⎥
⎢ ⎥
���� =10���
��
⎢ ⎥
1 1 1
� + +⋅⋅⋅+ �
⎢ ⎥
� � �
��,� ��,� ��,�
⎣ ⎦
�� �� ��
10 10 10
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3GPP TS 38.151 version 18.5.0 Release 18 15 ETSI TS 138 151 V18.5.0 (2026-04)
Such that {P , …, P } are the best 5 sensitivity values from all the 36 constant density measurement points, as
70,1 70,5
defined in Annex B.2.3.
The MASC shall be measured at the mid channel as specified in TS 38.508-1 subclause 4.3.1 [7]. The MASC shall be
lower than the requirements specified in Clause 7.2.
For FR2 MIMO OTA, PRS-EPRE-MAX, i.e., the maximum downlink RS-EPRE supported by the test system, is defined as -
79.1dBm/120kHz.
For power class 3 UE, if the number of test points where the UE can meet 70% maximum throughput outage even under
maximum downlink power condition (i.e., -79.1dBm/120kHz) is less than 18, then UE fails the test. For power class 1
UE, if the number of test points where the UE can meet 70% maximum throughput outage even under maximum
downlink power condition (i.e., -79.1dBm/120kHz) is less than 5, then UE fails the test.
Other criteria for FR2 are FFS.

7.2 Minimum requirement
FR2 MASC minimum performance requirements for power class 3 NR handheld UEs in free space and the primary
mechanical mode for averaging of the best 18 sensitivity values for 70% DL throughput with the corresponding
measurement configurations (i.e., channel model and gNB configuration) specified in Annex D.1 and Annex E.2 are
defined in Table 7.2-1.
Table 7.2-1: FR2 MASC minimum performance requirements for NR handheld UEs in free space and
the primary mechanical mode
Bandwidth MASC
NR bands MIMO layer Channel model Reference channel
[MHz] [dBm/120kHz]
n257 100 2x2 FR2 UMi CDL-C R.PDSCH.5-2.2 TDD
n258 100 2x2 FR2 UMi CDL-C R.PDSCH.5-2.2 TDD
n260 100 2x2 FR2 UMi CDL-C R.PDSCH.5-2.2 TDD
n261 100 2x2 FR2 UMi CDL-C R.PDSCH.5-2.2 TDD -100.0

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3GPP TS 38.151 version 18.5.0 Release 18 16 ETSI TS 138 151 V18.5.0 (2026-04)
Annex A (normative):

A.1 General
FR1 MIMO OTA requirement testing is based on UE-noise limited environmental condition, i.e., UE throughput
characterized as a function of signal power incident to the DUT antennas.
The minimum test zone size for FR1 MIMO OTA test methods is 20cm. “Black-box” testing approach is adopted for
NR MIMO OTA testing, the physical centre of the EUT shall be placed in the centre of the test zone, the EUT shall be
completely contained within the minimum test zone size.
FR1 MIMO OTA requirement testing should be performed under primary mechanical mode. The primary mechanical
mode for devices having multiple mechanical modes shall be declared by the manufacturers. Single primary mechanical
mode for each device should be declared for MIMO OTA conformance testing.

A.2 Multi-Probe Anechoic Chamber (MPAC)
A.2.1 System setup
MPAC test method is the reference methodology for FR NR MIMO OTA testing. By arranging an array of antennas
around the Equipment Under Test (EUT), a spatial distribution of angles of arrival in MPAC system may be simulated
to expose the EUT to a near field environment that appears to have originated from a complex multipath far field
environment.
As illustrated schematically in Figure A.2.1-1, signals propagate from the base station/communication tester to the EUT
through a simulated multipath environment known as a spatial channel model, where appropriate channel impairments
such as Doppler and fading are applied to each path prior to injecting all of the directional signals into the chamber
simultaneously through the antenna array. The resulting field distribution in the test zone is then integrated by the EUT
antenna(s) and processed by the receiver(s) just as it would do so in any non-simulated multipath environment. MPAC
system with 16 uniformly-spaced dual-polarized probes is permitted for NR FR1 MIMO OTA testing.

Figure A.2.1-1: MPAC system layout for NR FR1 MIMO OTA testing

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3GPP TS 38.151 version 18.5.0 Release 18 17 ETSI TS 138 151 V18.5.0 (2026-04)
A.2.2 Calibration procedure
The system needs to be calibrated by using a reference calibration antenna with known gain values in order to ensure
that the downlink signal power is correct. In non-standalone (NSA) mode, the LTE link antenna provides a stable LTE
signal without precise path loss or polarization control.
Unlike traditional TRP/TRS testing where the path loss corrections can all be applied as a post processing step to the
measured data, the path loss for each probe in the MPAC system must be balanced at test time in order to generate the
desired channel model environment within the test zone of the chamber. The imbalance of each path during testing
would result in an alteration of the angular dependence of the channel model (i.e. varied characteristics of generated
channel model) within the test zone of the chamber.
1. Place a vertical reference dipole in the centre of the test zone, connected to a VNA port, with the other VNA port
connected to the input of the channel emulator unit.
2. Configure the channel emulator for bypass mode.
3. Measure the response of each path from each vertical polarization probe to the reference antenna in the centre of
test zone.
4. Adjust the power on all vertical polarization branches of the channel emulator so that the powers received at the
centre are equal.
5. Repeat the steps 1 to 4 with the magnetic loop or horizontally polarized reference dipole instead, and adjust the
horizontal polarization branches of the channel emulator.
6. The worst-case path loss becomes the reference path loss of the entire system, this loss is used to compute the
power in the centre of the test zone relative to the output power of the Base Station simulator. Besides, based on
the reference path loss, the relative offset of each path loss shall be corrected.
Note: Calibration based on other antennas, e.g., horn antennas is not precluded.
A.2.3 Test procedure
Before throughput testing, the initial conditions shall be confirmed to reach the correct measurement state for each test
ca
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