Propagation Measurement and Modeling for Indoor Stairwells at 2.4 and 5.8 GHz

The propagation characteristics of indoor multi-floor environments have been studied extensively and empirical models for many scenarios are available. These studies usually do not concern about stair structures. In this paper we study radio propagation in four typical stairwells through measurement at two frequencies (2.4 GHz and 5.8 GHz). Values of path loss exponent have been derived for vertical and horizontal polarizations. These n-values for stairwells are found to be higher than the n-values for multi-floor environments. We also propose a new path loss model based on the so-called "accumulative distance" the receiver has traveled, in addition to the conventional separation distance between transmitting and receiving antennas. The new path loss model has lower n values and, most importantly, smaller standard deviation and can thus be considered a better model fitting the measurement data. The results in this study can be useful for designers of small cell wireless communications system such as pico- and femto-cells.