  Carrier Aggregation (CA) is one of the Long Term Evolution Advanced (LTE-A)
features that allow mobile network operators (MNO) to combine multiple
component carriers (CCs) across the available spectrum to create a wider
bandwidth channel for increasing the network data throughput and overall
capacity. CA has a potential to enhance data rates and network performance in
the downlink, uplink, or both, and it can support aggregation of frequency
division duplexing (FDD) as well as time division duplexing (TDD). The
technique enables the MNO to exploit fragmented spectrum allocations and can be
utilized to aggregate licensed and unlicensed carrier spectrum as well. This
paper analyzes the performance gains and complexity level that arises from the
aggregation of three inter-band component carriers (3CC) as compared to the
aggregation of 2CC using a Vienna LTE System Level simulator. The results show
a considerable growth in the average cell throughput when 3CC aggregations are
implemented over the 2CC aggregation, at the expense of reduction in the
fairness index. The reduction in the fairness index implies that, the scheduler
has an increased task in resource allocations due to the added component
carrier. Compensating for such decrease in the fairness index could result into
scheduler design complexity. The proposed scheme can be adopted in combining
various component carriers, to increase the bandwidth and hence the data rates.
