OFDM Basics for Wireless Communications

Institute of Microelectronic Systems

Darmstadt University of Technology

Single Carrier vs. Multicarrier

Data bits

Single Carrier
Noise TX TX Filter Filter

Data bits

MOD MOD
e.g., QAM

h(t, ) h(t, )

RX RX Filter Filter

DEMOD DEMOD

Wireless Channel

Multicarrier
Data bits 1

MOD MOD

TX TX Filter Filter

Noise

RX RX Filter Filter

DEMOD DEMOD

Data bits

h(t, ) h(t, )

+
RX RX Filter Filter

MOD MOD

TX TX Filter Filter

Wireless Channel

DEMOD DEMOD

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Multicarrier Transmission
f

Single Carrier (SC)

Basic principle: Split the transmision bandwidth into many narrow subchannels which are transmitted in parallel (Ideally) Each subchannel is narrow enough so that it experiences a flat fading although the overall radio propagation environment is frequency-selective.

| h(f) |2

FSC

| h() |2

Tsymb, SC

f
FSC

| h(f) |2

The time dispersion effects are less significant as the symbol duration increases
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F= N

Multicarrier
3

t
TS = N Tsymb, SC
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Benefit of Multicarrier Transmission

The multicarrier transmission allows to achieve high data rate in frequency-selective radio propagation environment By assuming the same data rate: Single-Carrier

1 Tsymb,SC

> BC

Distortion, interference (ISI)

Large amount of signal processing required in the equalizer Multicarrier

1 N Tsymb,SC
(BC = Coherence bandwidth)
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< BC

No interference

- Data rate can be increased by using

a larger number of subcarriers - Less equalization effort (as ISI is reduced by a factor N) L.D. Kabulepa 4

Benefit of Multicarrier Transmission: Example

A data rate of 10 Mbit/s is targeted in a multipath radio environment by using the BPSK modulation. Maximum spread delay = 5 s 5 Mbit/s with BPSK Single Carrier Scenario Tsymb,SC = 0.2 s

Bandwidth = 5 MHz

Intersymbol-Interference (ISI) is extended over 25 symbols

Multicarrier Scenario Number of subcarriers: 128

max = 25 Tsymb,SC

Symbol duration = N Tsymb,SC

ISI significantly reduced

max = 0.039 NTsymb,SC

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Orthogonal Multicarrier

Frequency

Orthogonality between the sub -carriers allows their overlapping while disabling the occurrence of crosstalks. Thus, a significant power saving can be achieved by using an orthogonal multicarrier technique

Bandwidth saving

Frequency

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Orthogonal Multicarrier (contd)

The orthogonality between the subcarriers can be achieved by letting the transmit filters gi(t) and the receive filters ri(t) fulfill the following conditions (i {1, ... , N}) 1. Matched filter condition

ri (t ) = K g (T0 t )
i

2. Convolution condition

c j,n (t = 0 ) =

=
+

g j ( ) h n (t ) d
n

1 , = g j ( ) g (t ) d = j,n = = 0 ,
(Assumption: Perfect synchronization, T0 = 0, K = 1)
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j=n j n
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Conventional OFDM
OFDM = Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing In a conventional OFDM system, the orthogonality between the subcarriers is achieved by means of the discrete Fourier transform (DFT) Baseband OFDM signal
N 1 k =0

s(t) = a k
Passband OFDM signal

j2 k f t

,0 t T

N 1 s(t) = Re a k k =0

j2 (f C + k f ) t

,0 t T
1 1 = = T N TS
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ak = complex-valued modulated symbols (e.g., QAM) N = number of subcarriers fC = carrier frequency Ts = sampling period, f = subcarrier spacing f The inverse DFT is used at the transmitter side
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Conventional OFDM(contd)
1 subcarrier

6 subcarriers

The receiver is expected to compute the spectra values at those points corresponding to the maxima of individual subcarriers As a maximum of a subcarrier corresponds to zeros of other subcarrier, each subcarrier can demolutated independently of the others (by assuming a perfect synchronization)
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Impact of a Wireless Channel

i-1 i i+1 i+2 t
Channel Power Delay Profile

OFDM Symbol OFDM Symbol OFDM Symbol OFDM Symbol

|h()|2
Interference

Symbol (i-1)

Symbol (i)

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Cyclic Extension
Cyclic Extension

i-1
G OFDM Symbol
Channel Power Delay Profile

i
G
OFDM Symbol

i+1
G
OFDM Symbol

|h()|2
Interference induced by the channel are canceled by inserting a cylic extension with Tg > max
(at the expense of the data Rate)

Symbol (i-1)

Symbol (i)

Tg
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T
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Circular Convolution
In the presence of interference induced by the channel

DFT {h(k) s(k)}N DFT{h(k)}N DFT{s(k)}N

The cyclic extension (with Tg > max) allows to apply the circular convolution

DFT {h(k) s(k)}N = DFT{h(k)}N DFT{s(k)}N

= Circular Convolution
This property allows the use of a simple equalization scheme in the receiver y (n) = H(n) y(n) Relationship between transmitted and detected symbol
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OFDM Transceiver
sk xk sk

Transmitter

S/P

IDFT

P/S

Transmit Transmit Filter Filter

Channel
Multipath Propagation Environment

Remove CP

{
S/P

Receiver

+
Receive Receive Filter Filter

AWGN

P/S

DFT
yn rk

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OFDM Drawbacks
1. High sensitivity to synchronization errors Synchronization errors Interference, loss of orthogonality
Frequency

Timing Errors
FFT Window
Time

Q I

= 2 fC t

f (t t )
Frequency

F (f ) e

j 2 f t

Frequency Offset Errors

f f

fC
FFT Window
f f
Time

Frequency

f (t ) e

j 2 t f f

F (f ) (f f f )
14

f-1

f0

f1

f2

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OFDM Drawbacks(contd)
2. Occurrence of very high peak values
Amplitude Peak amplitude RMS amplitude

time

A reduction of the PAPR is highly desirable. The higher the PAPR, the lower The efficiency of circuits such as power amplifiers and analog-to-digital converters

CR =

Peak amplitude RMS amplitude

PAPR =

CR2 =

Peak power Average power

CR: Crest Factor

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PAPR: Peak-to-Average Power Ratio

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OFDM Drawbacks(contd)
DLC DLC (MAC) (MAC) Append Cyclic Prefix Tx Analog Tx Analog Append Preambles

Scrambling Encoding Interleaving

P/S S/P

DAC DAC

MPX MPX

InterInterpolation polation

Shaping Shaping Filter Filter

Mapping

Nonlinear effects generated by the power amplifier may introduce intercarrierinterfrence and thus destroy the orthogonality
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IFFT

DAC DAC I/Q I/Q Mod. Mod. DAC DAC PA LO1 LO2
Transmit Filter

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