10 Alcatel-Lucent | MDR-8000 PacketPlus
Licensed and Unlicensed
Operation
The MDR-8000 Packet Plus takes
advantage of virtually all of the
licensed frequency bands used for
long-haulsystems in North America.
Operating from 2 to 11 GHz in all
of the FCC Part 101 and Part 74
bands, as well as bands used by the
Federal Government (NTIA), the
MDR-8000 Packet Plus allows
operators the freedom to select the
band most appropriate to their
intended use and environmental
conditions. A list of the frequency
bands of operation is shown below:
• 1700 MHz (NTIA)
• 1900 MHz (PCS in-band)
• 2 GHz (FCC broadcast,
NTIA & ITU)
• 2.3 GHz (WCS band)
• 2.4 GHz (Unlicensed band)
• 2.47 GHz (FCC licensed)
• Upper 4 GHz (NTIA, ITU)
• 5.8 GHz (Unlicensed ISM band)
• Lower & Upper 6 GHz
(FCC, ITU)
�� 7 GHz (FCC broadcastauxiliary)
• 7 & 8 GHz (NTIA, ITU)
• 10.5 & 11 GHz (FCC, ITU)
In addition, the MDR-8000 Packet
Plus also offers the same robust
operation in the unlicensed bands
of 2.47 and 5.8 GHz. Offering more
configurations, more frequency
selections, and more capacity than
any other unlicensed radio, the
highly-reliable MDR-8000 Packet
Plus provides superior signal quality
and availability.By operating in
either the unlicensed (Part 15) or
licensed (Part 101) portion of the
2.4 GHz frequency band (2.400 -
2.4835 GHz), the MDR-8000
Packet Plus offers a unique
networking option. In licensed
operation, the higher power
transmitters and direct modulation
overcome most interference and
improve overall system quality.
Unlicensed operation offers the
same spectralefficiency and provides
an option for transporting up to 16
DS1s or 24 Mb/s Ethernet. In the
5.8 GHz band, up to 150 Mb/s can
be carried on a single channel.
Operation in the 2.4 GHz spectrum
also allowsusers of 2.1 GHz licensed
systems who need to relocate the
ability to leverage their existing
infrastructure without touching
the tower,antenna, or transmission
line. Reuse of existing antenna
systems and tower structures
provides a definite cost savings
and reduction in cutover time
as compared to other relocation
alternatives. Furthermore, operators
can take advantage of lightweight
grid antennas and coaxial
transmission line to limit tower
loading concerns and minimize
environmental impact issues. Also,
the 2.4 GHz band can be used to
place new links in service, thereby
taking advantage of the excellent
propagation and low-impact
antenna configurations allowed
by this frequency range.
As with all of the licensed versions
of the MDR-8000 Packet Plus,
the unlicensed radios employ a
narrowband single-carrier
modulation technique with high-
receiver selectivity.This technique
provides dramatically superior
propertiesas compared to most other
unlicensed radios which are of the
direct sequence spread spectrum
type. Due to the poor peak to
average power characteristics of
spread spectrum modulation,
transmitter power is significantly
lower than that of the MDR-8000
Packet Plus. That means the MDR-
8000 Packet Plus can deliver more
power to the receiver,which