3D Beamforming for Wireless Data Centers
Weile Zhang
Xia Zhou
Lei Yang
Zengbin Zhang
Ben Y. Zhao
Haitao Zheng
Proceedings of the 10th ACM Workshop on Hot Topics in Networks (HotNets-X)
[Full Text in PDF Format, 392KB]
Paper Abstract
Contrary to prior assumptions, recent measurements show that data center
traffic is not constrained by network bisection bandwidth, but is instead
prone to congestion loss caused by short traffic bursts. Compared to the
cost and complexity of modifying data center architectures, a much more
attractive option is to augment wired links with flexible wireless links in
the 60 GHz band. Current proposals, however, are severely constrained by
two factors. First, 60 GHz wireless links are limited by line-of-sight, and
can be blocked by even small obstacles between the endpoints. Second, even
beamforming links leak power, and potential interference will severely
limit concurrent transmissions in dense data centers. In this paper, we
explore the feasibility of a new wireless primitive for data centers,
3D beamforming. We explore the design space, and show how bouncing 60
GHz wireless links off reflective ceilings can address both link blockage
and link interference, thus improving link range and number of current
transmissions in the data center.