Impact of beam switching and traffic flow on millimeter‐wave vehicle‐to‐vehicle channel characteristics

Abstract

Millimeter‐wave (mmWave) vehicle‐to‐vehicle (V2V) communication in urban environments is highly sensitive to vehicle blockage and traffic‐dependent multipath propagation. This study investigates the impact of beam switching and traffic flow on mmWave V2V channel characteristics using a ray‐tracing simulator calibrated with on‐road measurement data. Two representative urban scenarios, overtaking and see‐through, are considered. The key channel parameters, including the received power, root‐mean‐square delay spread, Rician ‐factor, and angular spreads, are analyzed at different inter‐vehicle distances and two traffic density conditions (full‐ and low‐traffic flow). The results show that beam switching mitigates blockage‐induced power degradation, whereas traffic density significantly affects the multipath structure, resulting in systematic variations in delay, angular dispersion, and the Rician ‐factor. These findings provide valuable insights into mmWave V2V propagation characteristics and support the design of future vehicular communication systems.