A method, comprising: receiving, by a device, a higher layer message from a base station indicating to monitor a control channel using demodulation reference signals in a shortened transmission time interval in a subframe, where the higher layer is higher than a physical layer, and where the shortened transmission time interval is shorter than a subframe-length transmission time interval; attempting to decode a first control channel candidate in the shortened transmission time interval, where the first control channel candidate comprises a first shortened control channel element spanning a first set of shortened resource element groups in a frequency domain using a first demodulation reference signal on a first antenna port, where a first precoder applies to all demodulation reference signal resource elements in the first set of shortened resource element groups, where the shortened control channel element corresponds to the shortened transmission time interval; and attempting to decode a second control channel candidate in the shortened transmission time interval, where the second control channel candidate comprises a second shortened control channel element spanning a second set of shortened resource element groups in the frequency domain using a second demodulation reference signal on a second antenna port, where a second precoder applies to all demodulation reference signal resource elements in the second set of shortened resource element groups, wherein a first shortened resource element group of the first set of shortened resource element groups occupies a first set of resource elements in a given resource block in a first orthogonal frequency division multiplexing symbol of the shortened transmission time interval and a second shortened resource element group of the second set of shortened resource element groups occupies a second set of resource elements, in the given resource block in a second orthogonal frequency division multiplexing symbol of the shortened transmission time interval, where the first orthogonal frequency division multiplexing symbol is different from the second orthogonal frequency division multiplexing symbol. receiving, by a device, a higher layer message from a base station indicating to monitor a control channel using demodulation reference signals in a shortened transmission time interval in a subframe, where the higher layer is higher than a physical layer, and where the shortened transmission time interval is shorter than a subframe-length transmission time interval; attempting to decode a first control channel candidate in the shortened transmission time interval, where the first control channel candidate comprises a first shortened control channel element spanning a first set of shortened resource element groups in a frequency domain using a first demodulation reference signal on a first antenna port, where a first precoder applies to all demodulation reference signal resource elements in the first set of shortened resource element groups, where the shortened control channel element corresponds to the shortened transmission time interval; and attempting to decode a second control channel candidate in the shortened transmission time interval, where the second control channel candidate comprises a second shortened control channel element spanning a second set of shortened resource element groups in the frequency domain using a second demodulation reference signal on a second antenna port, where a second precoder applies to all demodulation reference signal resource elements in the second set of shortened resource element groups, wherein a first shortened resource element group of the first set of shortened resource element groups occupies a first set of resource elements in a given resource block in a first orthogonal frequency division multiplexing symbol of the shortened transmission time interval and a second shortened resource element group of the second set of shortened resource element groups occupies a second set of resource elements, in the given resource block in a second orthogonal frequency division multiplexing symbol of the shortened transmission time interval, where the first orthogonal frequency division multiplexing symbol is different from the second orthogonal frequency division multiplexing symbol.