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WLAN PPDU Structure

IEEE® 802.11™1 is a packet-based protocol. Each physical layer protocol data unit (PPDU) contains preamble and data fields. The preamble field contains the transmission vector format information. The data field contains the user payload and higher layer headers, such as medium access control (MAC) fields and cyclic redundancy check (CRC). The transmission vector (TXVECTOR) format and the PPDU structure vary between 802.11 versions.

The table shows 802.11 versions that WLAN Toolbox™ supports, along with the supported TXVECTOR options and associated modulation formats.

802.11 Version

Transmission Vector Format

Modulation Format

Bandwidth/MHz

802.11b™

non-HT

DSSS/CCK

11

802.11a™

non-HT

OFDM only

5, 10, 20

802.11j™

non-HT

OFDM only

10

802.11p™

non-HT

OFDM only

5, 10

802.11g™

non-HT

OFDM

20

non-HT

DSSS/CCK

11

802.11n™ (Wi-Fi 4)

HT_MF, Non-HT

OFDM only

20, 40

802.11ac™ (Wi-Fi 5)

VHT, HT_MF, Non-HT

OFDM only

20, 40, 80, 160

802.11ah™

S1G

OFDM only

1, 2, 4, 8, 16

802.11ad™

DMG

Single Carrier and OFDM

2640

802.11ax™ (Wi-Fi 6)

HE

OFDMA

20, 40, 80, 160

802.11ba™WURMC-OOK20, 40, 80
802.11be™ (Wi-Fi 7)

EHT

OFDMA

20, 40, 80, 160, 320

For more detailed information about the PPDU structures for different 802.11 versions, see these topics:

References

[1] Perahia, E., and R. Stacey. Next Generation Wireless LANs: 802.11n and 802.11ac. 2nd Edition. United Kingdom: Cambridge University Press, 2013.

See Also

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1 IEEE Std 802.11-2016 Adapted and reprinted with permission from IEEE. Copyright IEEE 2016. All rights reserved.