ABSTRACT
Cellular networks are designed to provide wide area coverage to both static and mobile users, indoors as well as outdoors. All our mobile phones are connected to cellular networks and increasingly many other devices and things, such as tablets, drones and even cars are being connected to cellular networks. Cellular network is the oldest networking technology, which has now gone through four generations of evolution, each lasting approximately 10 years. This chapter begins with the history of cellular networks followed by the fundamental design concepts of hexagonal cell geometry, frequency reuse, and handoff. The treatment of frequency reuse includes design of cell clusters, frequency reuse and spectrum distribution within the cluster of cells, notations to describe frequency reuse patterns, and the design of fractional frequency reuse, which enables frequencies to cover either the entire area of the cell (including the cell edge) or restrict their coverage to only within the center area of the cell. The remaining of the chapter highlights the main features and differences between the first four generations of cellular networks with detail coverage of GSM and LTE. [181 words]
