Method and apparatus for transmission and reception in multi-carrier wireless communication systems

A communication apparatus comprising:

• a memory;
• and
• a processor operably coupled to the memory,
• wherein the processor, when executing program instructions stored in the memory, is configured to:
• monitor Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) candidates in Common Search Space (CSS) and in User equipment-specific Search Space (USS), wherein the PDCCH candidates include a first PDCCH candidate in the CSS and a second PDCCH candidate in the USS;
• determine that the first PDCCH candidate and the second PDCCH candidate satisfy a first set of conditions;
• select the first PDCCH candidate as PDCCH transmitted from an eNB in response to the first PDCCH candidate and the second PDCCH candidate satisfying the first set of conditions;
• and
• cause the communication apparatus to receive data at least based on the first PDCCH candidate,
• wherein:
• the first set of conditions includes:
• (1) Cyclic redundancy check (CRC) of the first PDCCH candidate and CRC of the second PDCCH candidate are scrambled by a same Radio Network Temporary Identifier (RNTI),
• (2) the first PDCCH candidate and the second PDCCH candidate have a same payload size, and
• (3) the first PDCCH candidate and the second PDCCH candidate have a same first Control Channel Element (CCE) index.

A communication device for a User Equipment (UE), the device comprising:

• a memory;
• and
• a processor operably coupled to the memory,
• wherein the processor, when executing program instructions stored in the memory, is configured to:
• monitor Physical Downlink Control Channel (PDCCH) candidates in Common Search Space (CSS) and in User equipment-specific Search Space (USS), wherein the PDCCH candidates include a first PDCCH candidate in the CSS and a second PDCCH candidate in the USS;
• determine that the first PDCCH candidate and the second PDCCH candidate satisfy a first set of conditions;
• select the first PDCCH candidate as PDCCH transmitted from an eNB in response to the first PDCCH candidate and the second PDCCH candidate satisfying the first set of conditions;
• and
• cause the UE to receive data on the first cell at least based on the first PDCCH candidate,
• wherein:
• the first set of conditions includes:
• (1) Cyclic redundancy check (CRC) of the first PDCCH candidate and CRC of the second PDCCH candidate are scrambled by a same Radio Network Temporary Identifier (RNTI),
• (2) the first PDCCH candidate and the second PDCCH candidate have a same payload size, and
• (3) the first PDCCH candidate and the second PDCCH candidate have a same first Control Channel Element (CCE) index.