ELECTRONICS AND COMMUNICATION ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT

NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY, DURGAPUR

ERROR ANALYSIS OF STAR QAM

IN AWGN AND
SLOW FADING CHANNELS

B. Tech. Final Year Project Report

by ,

Sourjya Dutta 08/ECE/08

Bijoykrishna Saha 08/ECE/16
Shamik Saha 08/ECE/19
Shayan Saha 08/ECE/20
Ashish Kumar 08/ECE/38
Tathagata Ghosh 08/ECE/39

Under the preceptorship of

Dr. Aniruddha Chandra

Assistant Professor,
ECE Dept., NIT Durgapur.
 Office: (0343) 2547377
Email ID: ece@nitdgp.ac.in
URL: http://www.nitdgp.ac.in
NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY, DURGAPUR
DEPARTMENT OF ELECTRONICS & COMMUNICATION ENGINEERING

Date: 09/05/2012

CERTIFICATE OF APPROVAL

This is to certify that the work contained in this report entitled, “ERROR ANALYSIS OF
STAR QAM MODULATION SCHEME IN AWGN AND SLOW FADING CHANNELS,”
by Sourjya Dutta (08/ECE/08), Bijoykrishna Saha (08/ECE/16), Shamik Saha (08/ECE/10)
Shayan Saha (08/ECE/20), Ashish Kumar (08/ECE/38) & Tathagata Ghosh (08/ECE/39) has
been carried out successfully under supervision of the undersigned . This work is copyrighted
to the Department of Electronics and Communication Engineering, NIT Durgapur and has
not been submitted elsewhere for any other degree.

Dr. ANIRUDDHA CHANDRA

DEPARTMENT OF ELECTRONICS & COMMUNICATION ENGINEERING
NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY, DURGAPUR
DURGAPUR, INDIA – 713209
 ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

The project report presented will never attain completion if we do not express our sincere
gratitude to the people who has helped us along the path.
A teacher should not only teach but should inspire the students. We express our deep
gratitude to our mentor Dr. Aniruddha Chandra who has not only shown us the guiding light
but has also been a great inspiration. He has always been there to help us out of every
problem that we faced in the process. Working with him has been a great learning
opportunity.
Here we must acknowledge the work conducted by Miss Abhirupa Layek on the error
analysis of star QAM in AWGN channel. Her work has been an useful resource in the
beginning phases of our studies.
Last but certainly not the least we would like to thank the Electronics and Communication
Engg. Dept. of NIT, Durgapur for providing us with a congenial environment where we could
work under the guidance of Dr. Chandra.
 ABSRACT
Quadrature Amplitude Modulation (QAM) or Amplitude Phase Shift Keying (APSK) is widely
used in broadband communication as a preffered modulation scheme. QAM uses a combination
of phase and amplitude modulation to provide a multi-level modulation format.
Star QAM uses a circular constellation rather than a square constellation of allowed phase and
amplitude states. The advantage of this system is that unlike QAM the signal has only two
allowed amplitudes. The signal is coded to ensure that both level conditions are heavily used and
consequently the receiver can actively continually monitor the two allowed level states and
compensate for their variation in fading propagation conditions.

The project has been conducted to study the error rates of generalised two ring star QAM
constellation. The parameter used for error analysis is the symbol error rate (SER) of the
modulation scheme. Using suitable mathematical tools and computational resources the authors
have derived and verifird expressions for SER of the mentioned constellation in additive white
gaussian noise (AWGN) corrupted channel and slow and flat fading channels which follow the
Rayleigh, Rician and Nakagami-m distributions.

i
 TABLE OF CONTENTS
Abstract i

Table of Contents ii

List of figures iv

Acronyms v

Chapter 1: Introduction 1
1.1 Motivation 1
1.2 Objective 2
1.3 Methods and Modelling 2
1.4 Organisation 2

Chapter 2: System Modelling 3

2.1 Modulation Schemes 3

2.1.1 BPSK 3
2.1.2 MPSK 3
2.1.3 PAM 5
2.1.4 QAM 6
2.1.4.1 Square QAM 8
2.1.4.2 Star QAM 8
2.2 Channel Impairments 9
2.2.1 Additive White Gaussain Noise (AWGN) 10
2.2.2 Fading Channel Distribution 11
2.2.2.1 Rayleigh Fading Distribution 11
2.2.2.2 Rician Fading Distribution 12
2.2.2.3 Nakagami-m Fading Distribution 14
2.3 Literature Survey 16

Chapter 3: Error Rate Analysis of Two Ring Star QAM 17

3.1 Derivaton of Symbol Error Probability
for m-PSK System in AWGN Channel 18

ii
 3.2 Extension to signalling points having any
arbitary decision region 19
3.3 Derivation of a generalised formula for
2 ring Star QAM structures in AWGN channel 20
3.4 Study of 2 ring Star QAM in Fading Channels 21
3.4.1 Rayleigh fading channel 22
3.4.2 Ricean Fading channel 22
3.4.3 Nakagami-m Fading channel 23
3.5 BER Estimation 24

Chapter 4: Observations and Results 25

4.1 For AWGN Channel 25
4.2 For Rayleigh Fading channel 27
4.3 For Rician Fading channel 29
4.4 For Nakagami-m Fading channel 30
4.5 On the ring ratio 'L' 32

Chapter 5: Conclusion 33

5.1 Overview 33
5.2 Future Scope of Work 34

References 35

Appendix A: Simulation Methods 36

A.1 Simulation of SEP/ BEP with Monte Carlo Technique 36
A.2 Algorithm 38

Appendix B: Generation of RVs for Simulating Fading Envelope 39

iii
 LIST OF FIGURES
Fig. 2.1 : Constellation Diagram for BPSK
Fig. 2.2 : Constellation Diagram for 8-ary PSK
Fig. 2.3 : PAM Waveform
Fig. 2.4 : 16 Star QAM Constellation Diagram
Fig. 2.5 : Constellation Diagram for 2 ring and 4 ring Star QAM
Fig. 2.6 : Fading Channel model
Fig. 2.7 : Gaussian Distribution for different values of mean and variance
Fig. 2.8 : Rayleigh Distribution for different values of standard deviation
Fig. 2.9 : Rician Distribution for different values of 'A'
Fig. 2.10 : Rician Distribution for K = 6,10 and 15 dB
Fig. 2.11 : Nakagami-m Distribution for different values of 'm' and 'Ω'
Fig. 3.1: Constellation Diagram for 32-ary Star QAM generated using MATLAB
Fig. 3.2: Decision boundary for MPSK
Fig. 3.3: Arbitary decision boundary of a signalling point Sn
Fig. 3.4: Two constellation points for a M-ary Star QAM System
Fig. 4.1: SER vs SNR curve for 16-ary Star QAM in AWGN channel
Fig. 4.2: SER vs SNR curve for 32-ary Star QAM in AWGN channel
Fig. 4.3: SER vs SNR curve for 64-ary Star QAM in AWGN channel
Fig. 4.4: SER vs SNR curve for 16-ary Star QAM in Rayleigh channel
Fig. 4.5: SER vs SNR curve for 32-ary Star QAM in Rayleigh channel
Fig. 4.6: SER vs SNR curve for 64-ary Star QAM in Rayleigh channel
Fig. 4.7: SER vs SNR curve for 16-ary Star QAM in Rician channel.
Fig. 4.8: SER vs SNR curve for 32-ary Star QAM in Rician channel
Fig. 4.9: SER vs SNR curve for 16-ary Star QAM in Nakagami-m
channel with m=0.8
Fig. 4.10: SER vs SNR curve for 16-ary Star QAM in Nakagami-m
channel with m=1.5
Fig. 4.11: SER vs SNR curve for 32-ary Star QAM in Nakagami-m
channel with m=0.7
Fig. 4.12: SER vs SNR curve for 32-ary Star QAM in Nakagami-m
channel with m=1.3
Fig. A.1 : Block diagram of Monte Carlo simulation model for estimating
BEP of modulated digital signals in fading channels.

iv
 ACRONYMS

APSK : Amplitude Phase Shift Keying

AWGN : Additive (or augmented) White Gaussian Noise

BEP : Bit Error Probability

BER : Bit Error Rate

OQPSK : Orthogonal Quadrature Phase Shift Keying

PAM : Pulse Amplitude Modulation

PDF : Probability Density Function

PSK : Phase Shift Keying

QAM : Quadrature Amplitude Modulation

SEP : Symbol Error Probability

SER : Symbol Error Rate

SNR : Signal to Noise Ratio

v
 1
INTRODUCTION
Star QAM is a well known modulation format for high-speed modem, wireless and access
networks applications. Though most of the mentioned domains still predominantly use square
QAM as it is a considerably old and tested method but in near future much of it would be based
on star QAM schemes.
The advantage of star QAM system is that unlike QAM the signal has only two allowed
amplitudes. The signal is coded to ensure that both level conditions are heavily used and
consequently the receiver can actively continually monitor the two allowed level states and
compensate for their variation in fading propagation conditions. This may enable the star QAM
modulation system to be used for future mobile communication.

1.1. MOTIVATION
In digital communication engineering, there is no universal optimum modulation scheme. The
performances of modulation scheme vary for different channels. Modulation schemes used for
wireless communication are very different than those used in wired communication networks.
Each scheme comes with its own merits and demerits. Choice of the modulation scheme is of
paramount importance for communication engineers. While choosing the modulation schemes,
the following factors are needed to be considered:
• Channel characteristics and channel property
• Cost and complexity of hardware
• Spectral efficiency of the coding scheme
For example, if we have a very noisy channel, then we would prefer using a lower order
modulation scheme like BPSK which has a lower probability of error; while when using a
channel which is less corrupted we can use higher order modulation scheme like M-ary PSK,
M-QAM, etc. which ensures spectral efficiency. Cost of hardware is also a major issue in this
field. The cost of hardware should be justified by the performance enhancements provided by
the modulation schemes.
Error estimation and performance analysis is a major area of research in the
telecommunications domain. The study of modulation schemes is an important task as
different schemes are favourable in different fading conditions. For example, a satellite link
uses QPSK while a digital modem uses square QAM.
Keeping these factors in mind, we have studied the performance of the two ring Star QAM
modulation scheme in channel corrupted by AWGN and slow and flat fading.

1
1.2. OBJECTIVE
The major thrust area of this project is the error analysis of star QAM modulation scheme. The
parameters used to study the performance of the Star QAM scheme is the symbol error rate
(SER).
The objective of this project is to find the expression for SER of the two ring star QAM
structure in an AWGN channel in a form from which SER can be calculated using simple
numerical methods. Following this we need to compute the SER of the scheme in three slow
fading channels commonly used in literature – Rayleigh, Rician and Nakagami-m fading
channels.

1.3. METHODS AND MODELLING

The derivation of the expression for SER has been based on the methods proposed by Craig in
[1]. The method is a very simple one and is chiefly based on simple geometry. They have been
included in this report for better understanding.
The two ring Star QAM model used is a general one. The expressions will be valid for any
value of bits or symbol. However, due to time constraints, no attempt to optimise the ring ratio
has been made. The expressions derived are valid for any value of ring ratio. Simpson’s
quadrature rule has been used to calculate the definite integrals.
To verify the expressions, simulation has been done using MATLAB 7.10.0. Monte Carlo
method has been used to calculate SER in different channels.

1.4. ORGANISATION
The report has been organized in the following manner. Chapter1 serves as a general
introduction to the work presented in the report. Chapter 2 has been incorporated to refresh the
reader’s memory. In it the basics of QAM which is the PSK and PAM is discussed which some
details on Square and Star QAM. The second part of the chapter deals with the channel
impairments and their statistics. At the end of the chapter, a survey of the literature used in the
project has been presented,
Chapter 3 is completely dedicated to the analytical derivations for SER of the two ring Star
QAM scheme in AWGN corrupted channel and in slow fading channels. The expressions
derived in chapter 3 have been verified in chapter 4 using simulation. In chapter 5, a general
conclusion has been drawn and a possible course of future work mentioned.

2
 2
SYSTEM MODELLING
2.1. MODULATION SCHEMES
2.1.1. Binary Phase Shift Keying (BPSK)
Binary data are represented by two signals with different phases in BPSK. Typically
these two phases have a phase difference of π. The signals can be represented as
s1(t) = Acos2пfct, 0 ≤ t ≤ T, for 1 ..........................(2.1a)
s2(t) = -Acos2пfct, 0 ≤ t ≤ T, for 0 ..........................(2.1b)

Fig. 2.1 : Constellation Diagram for BPSK

2.1.2. M-ary Phase Shift Keying (MPSK)

The motivation behind MPSK is to increase the bandwidth efficiency of the PSK
modulation schemes. In BPSK, a data bit is represented by a symbol. In MPSK,
n = log2 M data bits are represented by a symbol, thus the bandwidth efficiency is
increased to n times. Among all MPSK schemes, QPSK is the most-often-used
scheme since it does not suffer from BER degradation while the bandwidth efficiency
is increased.

3
M-ary PSK signal set is defined as
si(t) = A cos (2пfct + θi) , 0 ≤ t ≤ T, i = 1,2,......, M ........(2.2)

where, ( 2i −1) π ........(2.3)

θ i=
M

The carrier frequency is chosen as integer multiple of the symbol rate, therefore in
any symbol interval, the signal initial phase is also one of the :\I phases. Usually JI is
chosen as a power of 2 (i.e., M= 2 n, n = log2 M). Therefore binary data stream is
divided into n-tuples. Each of them is represented by a symbol with a particular initial
phase.
The above expression can be written as
si(t) = Acosθi cos 2пfct – Asin 2пfct
= si1φ1(t) + si2φ2(t) .........(2.4)
where φ1(t) and φ2(t) are orthonormal basis functions
T
si 1 =∫ s i (t ) ϕ1 (t )d t=√ E c o s θ i ........(2.5a)
0

T
si 2=∫ si (t) ϕ2 (t) d t= √ E s i n θ i .......(2.5b)
0

where, E = ½ A2T ........(2.6)

is the symbol energy of the signal. The phase is related with sil and si2 as

θi = t a n si 2 ........(2.7)
si 1

The MPSK signal constellation is therefore two-dimensional. Each signal s i(t) is

represented by a point ( s i1 ,s i2 ) in the coordinates spanned by φ1( t )a nd φ2( t ) The
polar coordinates of the signal are (√E,θi). That is, its magnitude is √E and its angle θ i
with respect to the horizontal axis is θi. The signal points are equally spaced on a
circle of radius fi and centered at the origin.

4
 Fig. 2.2 : Constellation Diagram for 8-ary PSK

BPSK and QPSK are special cases of MPSK with h i = 2 and 4, respectively. On the
entire time axis, we can write MPSK signal as,
s (t)=s 1 (t)c o s 2 π f c t−s 2 (t) s i n 2 π f c t ,−∞≤t≤∞
whe r e ,
∞
s1 (t )=A ∑ c o s (θ k ) p (t−k T ) ...........(2.8)
k =−∞
∞
s 2 (t)= A ∑ s i n (θ k ) p(t−k T )
k=−∞

where, Bk is one of the N phases determined by the input binary n-tuple,

p(t) is the rectangular pulse with unit amplitude defined on [0, T].

2.1.3. Pulse Amplitude Modulation (PAM)

In PAM, the amplitudes of regularly spaced pulses are varied in proportion to the
corresponding sampled values of a continuous message signal. The pulses can be of a
rectangular form or some other appropriate shape. Pulse-amplitude modulation as
defined here is somewhat similar to natural sampling, where the message signal is
multiplied by a periodic train of rectangular pulses. However, in natural sampling the
top of each modulated rectangular pulse varies with the message signal, whereas in
PAM it is maintained as in Figure 1.3. There are two operations involved in the
generation of PAM signal :

a. Instantaneous sampling of the message signal m(t) every Ts seconds,

5
 where the sampling rate fs = 1=Ts is chosen in accordance with the sampling
theorem.
b. Lengthening the duration of each sample so obtained to some constant value T

Fig. 2.3 : PAM Waveform

2.1.4. Quadrature Amplitude Modulation (QAM)

Quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM) is such a class of non-constant envelope
schemes that can achieve higher bandwidth efficiency than MPSK with the same
average signal power. QAM is widely used in modems designed for telephone
channels.
QAM (quadrature amplitude modulation) is a method of combining two amplitude-
modulated (AM) signals into a single channel, thereby doubling the effective
bandwidth. QAM is used with pulse amplitude modulation (PAM) in digital systems,
especially in wireless applications.

In a QAM signal, there are two carriers, each having the same frequency but differing
in phase by 90 degrees (one quarter of a cycle, from which the term quadrature arises).
One signal is called the I signal, and the other is called the Q signal. Mathematically,
one of the signals can be represented by a sine wave, and the other by a cosine wave.
The two modulated carriers are combined at the source for transmission. At the
destination, the carriers are separated, the data is extracted from each, and then the
data is combined into the original modulating information.

In MPSK schemes, signals have the same amplitude but different phases. Naturally,
the next step of development is to consider using both amplitude and phase
modulations in a scheme (QAM).

6
That is,

si (t)= Ai c o s(2 π f c t+θ i ) , i=1,2 , .. . . M .............(2.9)

where, Ai is the amplitude and θi is the phase of the ith signal in the M-ary signal set.
Pulse shaping is usually used to improve the spectrum and for ISI control purpose in
QAM. With pulse shaping, the QAM signal is
si ( t )=Ai p ( t ) c o s( 2 π f c t +θ i ), i=1,2 ,. . . M ...........(2.10)

where, p(t) is a smooth pulse defined on [0, T].

si (t)= Ai 1 p(t)c o s( 2 π f c t)−Ai 2 p (t)s i n( 2 π f c t)
whe r e ,
Ai 1=Ai c o s θ i .........(2.11)
A i 2= A i s i n θ i
a nd ,
Ai =√ A2i 1+A2i 2

Similar to MPSK, QAM signal can be expressed as a linear combination of two

orthonormal functions.
s1(t)= si1 φ1(t) + si2φ2(t) . ........(2.12)
where,

Ep √
φ1(t)= 2 p (t) c o s 2 π f t , 0≤ t ≤ T
c
.......(2.13a)

and
φ2(t)= −
√ 2
Ep
p( t )s i n 2 π f c t ,0≤t ≤T ......(2.13b)

φ1 (t)=
√ 2
Ep
p (t) c o s 2 π f c t , 0≤t≤T
........(2.14)
φ2 (t )=
√ 2
Ep
p (t) sin 2 π f c t , 0≤t≤T

T
where, Ep is the energy of p(t) in [0,T]; that is Ep= ∫ p2 (t )d t . ......(2.15)
0

The factor
√ 2 is to normalise the basis functions φ1(t) and φ2(t).
Ep

Similar to MPSK, a geometric representation called constellation is a very clearway of

describing a QAM signal set. The horizontal axis of the constellation plane is φ 1(t) and
7
the vertical axis is φ2(t). A QAM signal is represented by a point (or vector, or phasor)
with coordinates (sill si2) Alternatively, the two axes can be simply chosen as
p(t)cos2пfct and –p(t)sin2пfct. Then the signal coordinates are (Ai l ,A iz). The two
axes sometimes are simply labelled as I-axis and Q-axis, and sometimes are even left
unlabeled.

2.1.4.1. Square QAM

S c a t t e r p lo t

1
Q u a d ra tu re

-1

-2

-3
-3 -2 -1 0 1 2 3
In - P h a s e

Fig. 2.4: 16 Square QAM Constellation

Fig. 2.4 shows us the constellation diagram of a 16 square QAM modulated

signal. Rectangular QAM constellations are, in general, sub-optimal in the sense
that they do not maximally space the constellation points for a given energy.
However, they have the considerable advantage that they may be easily
transmitted as two pulse amplitude modulation (PAM) signals on quadrature
carriers, and can be easily demodulated. The square QAM modulation scheme is
widely used in broadband cable transmissions and modems.

2.1.4.2. Star QAM

Star QAM is a well known modulation format for high-speed modem, wireless
and access networks applications. Star-QAM is composed of multiple concentric
circles of phase-shift keying (PSK) and is also known as an amplitude and phase
shift keying (APSK).
The circular constellation highlights the relationship between QAM
and PSK. Two diagrams of circular QAM constellation are shown, for 8-QAM
and 16-QAM. The circular 8-QAM constellation is known to be the optimal 8-
QAM constellation in the sense of requiring the least mean power for a given
minimum Euclidean distance. The 16-QAM constellation is suboptimal although
the optimal one may be constructed along the same lines as the 8-QAM
constellation.
8
 Fig. 2.5 : Constellation Diagram for 2 ring and 4 ring Star QAM

The advantage of this system is that unlike QAM the signal has only two allowed
amplitudes. The signal is coded to ensure that both level conditions are heavily
used and consequently the receiver can actively continually monitor the two
allowed level states and compensate for their variation in fading propagation
conditions.

2.2 CHANNEL IMPAIRMENTS

The electromagnetic waves travel along different paths of varying lengths due to
multiple reflections from various objects. It is assumed that they undergo slow and flat
fading which is multiplicative in nature while the noise (n(t)) in the channel is additive
in nature. As a mobile moves over very small distances, the instantaneous received
signal strength may fluctuate rapidly giving rise to small-scale fading which is simply
known as fading. In small-scale fading, the received signal power may vary by as much
as three or four orders of magnitude (30 or 40 dB) when the receiver is moved by only a
fraction of a wavelength.

The received signal r(t) can be expressed as :

r(t) = s(t) . α(t) . e j θ(t) + n(t)

where,
s(t) = transmitted signal amplitude,
α(t) = fading amplitude,
θ(t) = fading phase,
and, n(t) = complex additive white Gaussian noise (AWGN)

9
 Fig. 2.6 : Fading Channel model

2.2.1. Additive White Gaussian Noise (AWGN)

Additive white Gaussian noise (AWGN) is a channel model in which the only
impairment to communication is a linear addition of wideband or white noise with a
constant spectral density (expressed as watts per hertz of bandwidth) and a Gaussian
distribution of amplitude. The model does not account for fading, frequency
selectivity, interference, nonlinearity or dispersion. However, it produces simple and
tractable mathematical models which are useful for gaining insight into the underlying
behavior of a system before these other phenomena are considered.
The Gaussian (or normal)distribution is a continuous probability distribution that has
a bell-shaped probability density function, known as the Gaussian function or
informally the bell curve.

The Gaussian distribution is given by:

( )
2
1 ( r − μ) .............(2.16)
p ( r )= e x p⁡
√2 π σ 2
σ2

where,
μ = mean or expectation (location of the peak)
σ2 = variance

10
 0 .4

0 .3 5

0 .3 μ=2 σ=1

0 .2 5 μ=0 σ=1
p (r)->

0 .2

0 .1 5
μ=0σ=2
0 .1
μ=0 σ=4
0 .0 5

0
-5 -4 -3 -2 -1 0 1 2 3 4 5
x ->

Fig. 2.7 : Gaussian Distribution for different values of mean and variance

2.2.2. Fading Channel Distribution

2.2.2.1 Rayleigh Fading Distribution
In mobile radio channels, the Rayleigh distribution is commonly used to describe
the statistical time varying nature of the received envelope of a flat fading signal, or
the envelope of an individual multi-path component. It is well known that the
envelope of the sum of two quadrature Gaussian noise signals obey a Rayleigh
distribution. When there is no dominant signal component present, that is there is
no line-of-sight (NLOS) propagation path, the small-scale fading envelope
distribution is considered to be Rayleigh.

The Rayleigh probability density function is given by:

( )
2
r −r ..............(2.17)
p ( r )= 2
e x p⁡ 2
f o r r≥0
σ 2σ

where,
σ2 = variance of the fading envelope

11
1 .4
1.σ=0.5
1 2..σ=1.0
1 .2
3.σ=2.0
4.σ=3.0
1
5.σ=4.0

0 .8

2
0 .6

0 .4
3
4
0 .2
5

0
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
r->

Fig. 2.8 : Rayleigh Distribution for different values of standard deviation

2.2.2.2 Rician Fading Distribution

When there is a dominant stationary (nonfading) signal component present, such as
a line-of-sight propagation path, the small-scale fading envelope distribution is
Rician. In such a situation, random multi-path components arriving at different
angles are superimposed on a stationary dominant signal. At the output of an
envelope detector, this has the effect of adding a dc component to the random multi-
path. Just as for the case of detection of ,a sine wave in thermal noise, the effect of a
dominant signal arriving with many weaker multi-path signals gives rise to the
Rician distribution. As the dominant signal becomes weaker, the composite signal
resembles a noise signal which has an envelope that is Rayleigh. Thus, the Rician
distribution degenerates to a Rayleigh distribution when the dominant component
fades away.

The Rician distribution is given by:

p ( r )=
σ
r
2
e x p ⁡
( 2σ 2 )( )
−( r 2+ A2 ) Ar
I 0 2 f o r A≥0 , r ≥0
σ
..........(2.18)

where,
σ2 = variance,
A = the peak amplitude of the dominant signal,
and, I0(.) = the modified Bessel function of the first kind and zero-order
1
12
0 .7

σ=1
0 .6 1 1.A=0
2.A=0.5
0 .5 2 3.A=1.0
3 4.A=2.0
4 5.A=4.0
0 .4
5
0 .3

0 .2

0 .1

0
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
r->

Fig. 2.9 : Rician Distribution for different values of 'A'

The Rician distribution is often described in terms of a parameter K which is

defined as the ratio between the deterministic signal power and the variance of the
multi-path.
It is given ( in terms of dB) by:

( )
2
A ..............(2.19)
K ( d B )=10 l o g 2
2σ
The parameter K is known as the Rician factor and completely specifies the Rician
distribution. As A tends to 0, K tends to (-∞) dB, and as the dominant path
decreases in amplitude, the Rician distribution degenerates to a Rayleigh
distribution.

The Rician distribution in terms of K parameter and average SNR ( γ )is given
by,

p ( γ)=
1+K
γ
̄
exp(−K ) exp(
−γ(1+K )
γ
̄
) I 0 (2
γ
̄ √
γ K ( K+1)
) ...........(2.20)

13
 The probability density function given below is obtained by varying K.

0 .9

0 .8

0 .7 K=15 dB

0 .6

0 .5

0 .4
K=6dB
0 .3
K=10dB
0 .2

0 .1

0
0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7

Fig. 2.10 : Rician Distribution for K = 6,10 and 15 dB

2.2.2.3 Nakagami-m Fading Distribution

Another probability distribution for field strength that is in widespread use is the
Nakagami-m distribution.
The pdf is given as:
m
p ( r )=
2 m
Γ ( m) Ω ( )r 2 m−1
ex p ( −mΩ r )
2
for r≥0 a n d m≥0.5 .........(2.21)

where,
Γ(m) = Euler’s Gamma function,
Ω = the mean square value = r2
and, m = Ω2 ......(2.22)
(r 2−Ω)
̄ 2

If the amplitude is Nakagami fading, then the power follows a Gamma distribution
as follows:

m m r m−1 −mr ...........(2.23)

p ( r )= ( ) e x p( )
Ω Γ (m) Ω Ω
14
Nakagami and Rician distribution have a quite similar shape, and one can be used
to approximate the other. For m >1, the m-factor can be computed as:
2
( K r+1) .............(2.24)
m=
( 2 K r +1)

where,
K r= √ m 2−m ...........(2.25)
m−√ m 2−m
While Nakagami and Rician pdfs show good “general” agreement, they have
different slopes close to r = 0.The main difference between the two pdfs is that the
Rician distribution gives the exact distribution of the amplitude of a non-zero-mean
complex Gaussian distribution – this implies the presence of one dominant
component, and a large number of non-dominant components while the Nakagami
distribution describes an approximate way the amplitude distribution of a vector
process where the central limit theorem is not necessarily valid.

1 .4

4 1. Ω=1 m=0.5
1 .2 2. Ω=1 m=0.7
3. Ω=1 m=1.0
1 4. Ω=1 m=2.0
3 5. Ω=2 m=0.1
1
0 .8

2
0 .6
5
0 .4 5

0 .2

0
0 0 .5 1 1 .5 2 2 .5 3 3 .5 4
x->
Fig. 2.11 : Nakagami-m Distribution for different values of 'm' and 'Ω'

15
2.3 LITERATURE SURVEY

In the paper [1] , the double integral for the probability of error (Pe) has been shown by Craig in a
different way than it has been done before. It has been pointed that the P e can be expressed as the
sum of a small number of simple, single integrals, all with the same integrand containing only
elementary functions and all having a finite range. Computation of the P e for MPSK system has
been undertaken in the paper and hints have been provided for calculating the SER for arbitary
signal constellation.
In [2] Craig's wisdom presented in [1] have been used by Dong ,et al to derive the expressions
of SER for 16 star QAM modulation scheme in AWGN corrupted channels and fading channels
following Rayleigh, Rician and Nakagami-m distributions. In [3] it has also been attempted to
provide mathematical expressions for SER of star QAM structures but the accuracy of their
results are held in doubt.
A good analysis of different star QAM structures has been provided in [4] by Binh. Though
nothing is mentioned about error rates in this letter but a good study on the optimal ring ratio has
been made. A simple and lucid writing about star QAM structures in general has been provided
in the paper.
In [5] a new signal-space partitioning method for the calculation of transition probabilities of
arbitrary two-dimensional (2-D) signaling with polygonal decision regions which enables exact
computation of BER, SER and mutual information for arbitary signal constellation has been
proposed by Xiao and Dong.
The method of computation of error rates in Rician and Nakagami-m channel for binary and
M-ary modulation schemes in general has been presented in [6] and [7] and is not explicitly
concerned with QAM.
Some fields where the star QAM modulation scheme is or may be used has been mentioned in
[8],[9],[10] and [11].
In [12] an extensive insight into digital communication in totality has been provided. A good
insight into modulation techniques like PSK, PAM and square QAM which creates the base for
the study of star QAM has been comprehensibly treated.
An insight into the fading models which dominates signal reception in wireless domain has been
given in [13] and [14]. A more mathematical insight has been presented in [13] while a more
practical approach in [14]. The different aspects of fading in wireless networks and how they
affect signal reception has been dealt in [14].

16
 3
ERROR RATE ANALYSIS OF
TWO RING STAR QAM
In this section we have derived the Symbol Error Rates(SER) for M-ary Star QAM constellation
in AWGN and common fading channels. We have used the method proposed by Craig in [1]. The
method as given in the paper has been presented here again. As in the paper we have first derived
the SER expression for a M-ary PSK and then proceeded with the drivation for the QAM( APSK)
constellation.

C o n s t e lla t io n d ia g r a m fo r 3 2 - a r y s t a r Q A M

1 .5

0 .5
Q u a d ra tu re

-0 .5

-1

-1 .5

-2
-2 -1 0 1 2
In - P h a s e

Fig. 3.1: Constellation Diagram for 32-ary Star QAM generated using MATLAB
17
The two ring structure shown in Fig..3.1 is the constellation we have used for the drivations. The
expressions derived in this section is applicable for any simailar two ring structure.
To the best of our knowledge such general expressions have not been published in any journal
previously.

3.1.Derivaton of Symbol Error Probability for M-PSK System

in AWGN Channel
In Fig.. 3.2 we show a decision region of
a M-PSK system. The point Sn is the
original signal point. The point P is A P
considered to be erronously detected if
it lies outside the wedge OAC. OA and D
OC are semi-infinite lines. R
Now as the decision region is symmetric B θ φ
hence the probability of symbol error Sn φ O
can be given as

π-φ ∞ C φ=π/M
Pe=2∫ dθ ∫ f(r,θ)dr.........(3.1) OSn=R0
0 R Fig. 3.2: Decision boundary for MPSK
where f(r, θ) is the probability density
function of the noise present in the
system under analysis.

In our analysis as we are using an AWGN channel hence f(r, θ) can be given as

r −r 2
f(r, θ)= 2
exp( 2 ) ......................(3.2)
2σ 2σ

Substituting (2) in (1) and computing the integral we can get

π-φ
R02 sin 2 (φ)
1
Pe= /π ∫ exp (- 2 2
2 σ sin ( θ+φ) ) dθ ..........................(3.3)

as applying the law of sines on the triangle ODSn we can write

sin (φ)
R=R0 ......................(3.4)
sin (θ+φ)

Now using this simple fourmula we can derive the fourmula for our required constellation.

18
3.2. Extension to signalling points having any arbitrary
decision region
In fig 3.3 we have shown the region of decision for a signal point S n . The angles and the
distances used in our analysis are as shown in the figure. We say that an error has occured in
the received signal if the signal point falls in either regions 1,2,3 or 4. And we also note that
these regions are non-overlapping hence the total probability can be expressed as a sum of
the individual probabilities.

Fig. 3.3: Arbitary decision boundary of a signalling point S n

Here we find the situation quite similar to that of section 3.1. Hence we can express the
probability of symbol error as a sum that can be given by
4 θi
r 2i sin 2 (φi )
Pe= /π∑ ∫ exp[ -
1
2 2 dθ .........................
(3.5)
2 σ sin ( φi+θ)
i=1 0

Though here we have shown for a four sided decision region in AWGN channel but if the
decision region is a n sided region then we should take the summation from 1 to n.
19
3.3. Derivation of a generalised fourmula for 2 ring Star
QAM structures in AWGN channel

θ4
φ4
φ φ r
r1 1 3 3 = r
φ2 θ2 θ θ3 4
1
r2
S0 SM/2

Fig. 3.4: Two constellation points for a M-ary Star QAM System

Fig..3.4 shows two signal points for a M-ary two ringed star QAM system. Here we find that
the correct decision region can be divided into two symmetric regions for both the signal
points. Thus the probability of error for signal point S0 may be given as:
2 θi

1 r 2i sin 2 (φi )
P So= π ∑ ∫exp[ - 2 σ 2 sin 2 (φ +θ) ] dθ .........(3.6)
i
i=1 0

and for the point SM/2 we can similarly write the probability of error as
4 θi

1 r 2i sin 2 (φi )
P Sm/2=
π
∑ ∫exp[ - 2 σ2 sin 2 (φi+θ)
] dθ .........(3.7)
i=3 0

Combining the above two equations we can write the total probability of symbol error for a
M-Star QAM system to be
4 θi

1 r 2i sin 2 (φi )
P e= ∑ ∫ exp[ - ] dθ
2π 2 σ2 sin2 (φi+θ)
i=1 0

4 θi
a i r 2 sin 2 (φi )
P e= 1 ∑ ∫ exp[ - ] dθ . ...........(3.8)
2π 2 σ 2 sin 2 (φi+θ)
i=1 0

20
 where, ai are scaling constants which relates ri with r where r is the distance of S0 form the
centre.
Here we also define L=R/r ,where R=radius of the outer circle r=radius of the inner circle.
Mp=M/2

From geometrical analysis we can write the following expression

π L+1
θ1=θ 2=tan−1 [tan( ) ]
M p L−1
(M p−1)π ...........(3.9)
θ2 =π−θ 1 , θ 4= − θ1
Mp

π
φ1= φ3 = 2 −θ1 .........(3.10a)
π
φ2= M . .........(3.10b)
p
π
φ4= M + θ1 ..........(3.10c)
p

a2=1 ,considering r=1

1 2 2 π 2
a1=a3=a4= 4 [( L−1) +tan ( M )( L+1) ] .............(3.11)
p

r2 M pγ
= .............(3.12)
2 σ (1+L2 )
2

where γ is the average received signal to noise ratio per bit (E b/N0). This result has been
verified using simulation and has been found to be in close agreement.

3.4. Study of 2 ring Star QAM in Fading Channels

In this section we derive the probability of symbol error that will occur in the two ringed Star
QAM structure discussed so far in a Rayleigh fading channel.
Due to the presence of fading the received signal is multiplied with a term α.exp(jθ). Thus
received signal r(t)=α.exp(jθ) s(t)+ n(t) where n(t) is the additive white Gaussian noise we
have dealt so far with.
The average probability of error in a any fading channel can be written as
∞
Pe=∫ Pe(γ)*f(γ) dγ ............(3.13)
0

21
where Pe(γ) is the probability of symbol error in AWGN channel given by eqn. 3.8. (The
values of the constants, needless to say, remains the same.)

3.4.1. Rayleigh fading channel

Rayleigh fadingis the specialised model for stochastic fading when there is no line of sight
signal, and is sometimes considered as a special case of the more generalised concept of
Rician fading. In Rayleigh fading, the amplitude gain is characterized by a Rayleigh
distribution.

f(γ) is the probability density function for a Rayleigh distributed random variable
−γ

f(γ)= γ1' e γ ' ................(3.14)

where, γ' is the average SNR.

Computing the integral in eqn (3.13) we arrive at the expression for symbol error rate given
as

4 θi
1 M p a i sin 2 (φi ) γ '
Pe(Rayleigh)= 2π
∑ ∫[ 2 2
(1+ L )sin (θ+φi)
+1]-1 dθ ............(3.15)

i=1 0

3.4.2. Rician fading channel

Rician fading occurs when one of the paths (in a multi path fading channel), typically a line
of sight signal, is much stronger than the others. In Rician fading, the amplitude gain is
characterized by a Rician distribution.
For the Ricean fading channel we can write the probability density function of the fading
channel can be given by

p ( γ)=
1+K
γ
̄
exp(−K ) exp(
−γ(1+K )
γ
̄
) I 0 (2
γ
̄√
γ K ( K+1)
) .......(3.16)

'K' here is the Ricean K factor where K=a/(2σ2) which determines the extent to which the
LOS component is present. K is basically the ratio between the power in the direct (LOS)
path and the power in the other scattered paths.If K=0 then there is no LOS component and
Ricean distribution becomes Rayleigh distribution. As K-> ∞ then the Ricean distribution
tends to Gaussian or Normal distribution.
It is also necessary at this point to state that
∞
1 β2
∫ exp (−α x) I 0 (β √ x)dx =
α
exp (
4α
) ...........(3.17)
0

22
 This expression would be necessary to compute the probability of symbol error in Ricean
channel.
Using expressions (3.13),(3.16) and (3.17) and using the SER expression derived in AWGN
channel given by equation (3.8) we can give the SER in Ricean channel as,

4 θi
1 1 K
Pe(Ricean) = ∑ ∫ exp(-K). 1+C (θ) .exp( 1+C (θ)
)dθ ...........(3.18)
2π i=1 0

M p ai sin 2 (φi )γ '

where C(θ)= .........(3.19)
(1+ L2 )(1+K )sin2 (θ+φi )

3.4.3. Nakagami-m fading channel

Nakagami-m distribution (also known as the m-distribution) is the widely accepted

statistical model due to both its good fit with experimental results and its versatility.The m-
distribution covers a wide range of fading scenarios by varying its fading index m ,
includes the Rayleigh and one-sided Gaussian distributions as special cases for the
respective fading figures of m=1 and m=0.5 , and can closely approximate the Rician and
Hoyt distributions. Nakagami- distribution also models channel conditions more severe
than Rayleigh fading (when 0.5≤ m<1).
The probability density function for Nakagami-m fading channel can be given as,
2 2
2 m −m γ
f ( γ)= ( ) γ 2m−1 exp( ) ...........(3.20)
Γ( m) Ω Ω

From [6] we have for Ω=1 and m≥ 0.5

∞

f γ (s)=∫ exp(−s γ) p γ ( γ) d γ
0
m
m
= ( ) ............(3.21)
m+s γ

Putting in equation (3.13) equation (3.8) and equation (3.20) and using the expression
stated in equation (3.21) we can write the analytical expression for SER in Nakagami-m
fading channel as

4 θi m
1 m
Pe(Nakagami)= ∑ ∫ (
2 π i =1 0 m+γ ' w (θ)
) dθ ...........(3.22)

23
 M p a i sin 2 ( ϕi )
where , w (θ)= ...............(3.23)
(1+L2 )sin 2 (θ+ϕi)

From equation (3.22) it can be easily deduced that if we put m=1 then we get exactly the
same expression as was derived for Rayleigh distribution (equation (3.15)).
In the next section we have established the validity of the expressions derived hitherto by
matching the values obtained from these equations with the values of SER obtained using
Monte-Carlo's simulation method. The results have been found to be in close agreement.

3.5. BER Estimation

It is common knowledge that the most important parameter for merit determination of any
digital communication model is the Bit Error Rate (BER) of the scheme. Though in this
section we do not proceed to derive any expressions as done previously for SER but we
merely state the fact that if we assume Gray mapping then we can approximately relate the
SER(Ps) and the BER(Pb) by the following equation.

Ps
Pb ≈ ..................(3.24)
log 2 M
Equation (20) is closely approximates the AWGN channel for SNR >5 dB. The above model
is not applicable for high noise channels. In fading channels the model fails for high sevierity
of fading.
A detailed analysis of BER for 2-D signalling models can be found in [5].

24
 4
OBSERVATIONS
AND RESULTS
In this section we will verify our results obtained in the previous section using the simulation
techniques given in Appendix A and B.All simulations has been done using MATLAB 7.10.0.

4.1. For AWGN Channel

0
10
A n a ly t ic a l
S im u la t e d

-1
10
S y m b o l e rro r ra te

-2
10

-3
10

-4
10
-1 0 -5 0 5 10 15 20
S N R in d B

Fig. 4.1: SER vs SNR curve for 16-ary Star QAM in AWGN channel

From the above and the following two figures we can unequivocally state that the analytical
expressions derived for AWGN channe previously is in close comformity with the simulated
results. For M=64 and higher we see that the analytical values are less than the simulated
value. This is because we have only considered error between neighbouring points in our
derivations. Though this is appropriate for smaller schemes but as the number of points on
each ring increases the probability that error may be due to overlap with points other than its
immediate neighbours is considerable and hence the actual error is more than the calculated
error. The deviation will be higher for higher order modulation schemes.

25
 0
10
A n a ly t ic a l
S im u la t e d
S y m b o l e rro r ra te

-1
10

-2
10
-1 0 -5 0 5 10 15 20
S N R in d B

Fig. 4.2: SER vs SNR curve for 32-ary Star QAM in AWGN channel

A n a ly t ic a l
-0 .1
10 S im u la t e d

-0 .2
10

-0 .3
S y m b o l e rro r ra te

10

-0 .4
10

-0 .5
10

-0 .6
10

-0 .7
10

-0 .8
10
-1 0 -5 0 5 10 15 20
S N R in d B

Fig. 4.3: SER vs SNR curve for 64-ary Star QAM in AWGN channel
26
4.2. For Rayleigh Fading Channel

0
10
A n a ly t ic
S im u la t e d
S y m b o l e rro r ra te

-1
10

-2
10
-1 0 -5 0 5 10 15 20
S N R in d B

Fig. 4.4: SER vs SNR curve for 16-ary Star QAM in Rayleigh channel
0
10
A n a ly t ic
S im u la t e d
S y m b o l e rro r ra te

-1
10

-2
10
-1 0 -5 0 5 10 15 20
S N R in d B

Fig. 4.5: SER vs SNR curve for 32-ary Star QAM in Rayleigh channel
27
 0
10
A n a ly t ic
S im u la t e d
S y m b o l e rro r ra te

-1
10

-2
10
-1 0 -5 0 5 10 15 20
S N R in d B

Fig. 4.6: SER vs SNR curve for 64-ary Star QAM in Rayleigh channel.

From the above graph we can conclude that the expressions derived for Rayleigh fading
channel closely approximates the simulated results. Hence our analytical model can be
considered to be correct.

28
4.3. For Rician Fading Channel
S y m b o l e rro r ra te
0
10

-1
10

-2
10

-3
10

-4
10

A n a ly t ic
S im u la t e d
-5
10
-1 0 -5 0 5 10 15 20
S N R in d B

Fig. 4.7: SER vs SNR curve for 16-ary Star QAM in Rician channel.
S y m b o l e rro r ra t e
0
10

-1
10

-2
10

-3
10

A n a ly t ic
S im u la t e d
-4
10
-1 0 -5 0 5 10 15 20
S N R in d B

Fig. 4.8: SER vs SNR curve for 32-ary Star QAM in Rician channel.

From figure 7 and 8 we can conclude that our expressions closely approximates the simulated
results for both valuse of K.
29
4.4. For Nakagami-m Fading Channel

0
10
A n a ly t ic
S im u la t e d

-1
10

-2
SER

10

-3
10

-4
10
-1 0 -5 0 5 10 15
S N R in d B

Fig. 4.9: SER vs SNR curve for 16-ary Star QAM in Nakagami-m channel with m=0.8

0
10
A n a ly t ic
S im u la t e d
-1
10

-2
10
SER

-3
10

-4
10

-5
10
-1 0 -5 0 5 10 15
S N R in d B

Fig. 4.10: SER vs SNR curve for 16-ary Star QAM in Nakagami-m channel with m=1.5

30
 0
10
A n a ly t ic
S im u la t e d

-1
10
SER

-2
10

-3
10
-1 0 -5 0 5 10 15
S N R in d B

Fig. 4.11: SER vs SNR curve for 32-ary Star QAM in Nakagami-m channel with m=0.7

0
10
A n a ly t ic
S im u la t e d

-1
10
SER

-2
10

-3
10
-1 0 -5 0 5 10 15
S N R in d B

Fig. 4.12: SER vs SNR curve for 32-ary Star QAM in Nakagami-m channel with m=1.3

31
 Thus for both 16 and 32-sry Star QAM we find that our model holds good with various
degrees of fading.

4.5. On the Ring Ratio 'L'

In all our simulations we have considered L=2. Though this is not an optimum value. The
optimum value of ring ratio is 1.77([3]). Though this is not a constant value and L opt varies for
various channels. In our simulations calculating Lopt is not a matter of paramount importance.
Moreover by using an suboptimal value we have furthur enhanced the process of
generalisation. Optimisation of the value of ring ratio (L) has been teated thoroughly in [3]
and interested readers may browse through their analysis.

32
 5
CONCLUSION

5.1. OVERVIEW
The star QAM or APSK modulation schemes have genearted much interest in the research
domain for the past two decades or so. It is being considered for replacing the square QAM
modulation scheme widely being used now a days in broadband digital transmission systems like
im modems and set top boxes. The main obstacle in switching over from square QAM to star
QAM is that the star QAM structure have not been studied as much as square QAM and neither
has expressions for its SERs and BERs been calculated as opposed to the square QAM where
analysis is much simpler and hence we have a simple expression for BER and SER which well
approximates actual values of the modulation parameters.
As QAM structures are generally used for modulation in the wireless domain hence we have
modelled the star QAM structure in common fading channels like Ricean, Rayleigh and
Nakagami-m. The salient points of our project can be summarised as given below:
• A study of fading in wireless domain, reasons for fading and their governing statistics.
• A thorough study of the method proposed by J.W. Craig in [1] to analyse any given signal
constellation in AWGN channel.
• Extention of the above method to calculate the SER for the said star QAM structure in
AWGN channel. The results were valid for any any values of bits/symbol.
• Using the expression of SER derived in AWGN, calculations have been undertaken to
find out the expression for SER in slow fading channels.
All the results have been verified using MATLAB simulations and were found to be correct by
the authors.
Here we need to mention that the expressions derived for 16-star QAM in [2] are in close
conformity with our general results. We vouch for the correctness of paper [2] in providing a
model for 16-star QAM.
Here it should also be mentioned that the analysis provided in paper [4] had been studied by the
group and the results derived from their method and the one given in the paper itself does not
conform with simulated data. Though studied, the mentioned paper was not used in our analysis.

33
5.2. FUTURE SCOPE OF WORK
This work can be extended for otherwise distributed fading channels like Hoyt, Weibull etc. A
small extension will be sufficient for that purpose.
The same concepts can also be extended for 3 ring star QAM structures and other arbitary signal
constellations.
The authors ardently hope that this work will be of some use in future research in error
characteristics of modulation schemes.

34
 REFERENCES
[1] J. W. Craig, “A new simple and exact result for calculating the probability of error for
two- dimensional signal constellations,” in MILCOM’91, 1991, pp. 571–575.
[2] Xiaodai Dong, Norman C. Beaulieu, and Paul H. Wittke, “ Error Probabilities of Two-
Dimensional M-ary Signalling in Fading,” IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON
COMMUNICATIONS, VOL. 47, NO. 3, MARCH 1999, pp.352-355.
[3] Ioannis S. Barbounakis, Aris M. Papadakis, “Closed-form SER expressions for Star
MQAM in frequency non-selective Rician and Nakagami-m channels”, International
Journal of Electronica and Communication, Elsevier,2005, pp.-417-420.
[4] Le Nguyen Binh,” Dual-ring 16-Star QAM direct and coherent detection in 100 Gb/s
optically amplified fiber transmission: simulation”, Springer Opt Quant Electron (2008)
40:707–732
[5] Lei Xiao, Xiaodai Dong, “The Exact Transition Probability and Bit Error Probability of
Two-Dimensional Signaling”, IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON WIRELESS
COMMUNICATIONS, VOL. 4, NO. 5, SEPTEMBER 2005, pp.-2600-2609.
[6] A. Annamalai, and C. Tellambura , “Error Rates for Nakagami-m Fading Multichannel
Reception of Binary and M-ary Signals,” IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON
COMMUNICATIONS, VOL. 49, NO. 1, JANUARY 2001, pp.-58-68.
[7] William C. Lindsey, “Error Probabilities for Rician Fading Multichannel Reception of
Binary and N-ary Signals,” IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON INFORMATION THEORY,
October 1965, pp-339-350.
[8] P R Gould, W T Webb and R Steele, “Communication to the home via Star QAM,”
Multiple Access Communications Limited, Southampton, UK.
[9] D. Di Zenobio and M. Celidonio, “An alternative modulation scheme in digital television
for terrestrial broadcasting(DTTB),” IEEE Transactions on Consumer Electronics, Vol.
40, No. 4, NOVEMBER 1994, pp.-913-919.
[10] William T. Webb, “Modulation Methods for PCNs, For optimal efficiency,
macrocellular and microcellular personal communications systems may require different
modulation schemes,” IEEE Communications Magazine December 1992, pp-90-95.
[11] Aeroflex,"Application note: An Introduction to Digital and Vector Modulation,”
can be obatined from,
http://www.aeroflex.com/ats/products/prodfiles/appnotes/863iss1.pdf
[12] Simon Haykin, Digital Communications, John Wiley & Sons. Inc.,2007
[13] Athanasios Papoulis ans S. Unnikrishana Pillai, Probability, Random Variables
and Stocastic Processes, Fourth edition, Tata McGraw-Hill,2002.
[14] Theodore S. Rappaport, Wireless Communication: Principles and Practice,
Pearson Education India, 2007.
35
 APPENDIX A

SIMULATION METHODS
A.1. Simulation of SEP/ BEP with Monte Carlo Technique

Monte Carlo is a stochastic simulation process that use random sampling to estimate the
output of an experiment. It is a very general method in the sense that unlike the quasi-analytic
or other simulation methods, there is neither a linearity restriction on the system, nor any
apriori knowledge of the noise/ fading characteristics at the decision block is needed. For
estimating SEP (or BEP) of a digital communication system with Monte Carlo procedure, a
large number of digital symbols (or bits) are passed through the system and errors are counted
at the receiver output. If Countsym number of symbols are processed by the system out of
which Counterr errors occur, then the estimate of error probability is

Count err
P̂ e = ............(A.1)
Count sym

The SEP (or BEP) calculated using (A.1) is in perfect conjunction with the relative frequency
approach of probability that states
Count err
P e = lim ...........(A.2)
Count sym →∞ Count sym

Usually the number of symbols (or bits) examined at a SNR point is 10 3 times higher than the
inverse of the expected error rate, i.e. to test a SEP (or BEP) of 10 - 4, 107 symbols (or bits)
were examined to ensure a confidence band of 99%. Further, an average of 30 individual runs
was taken to smooth any variation about the mean.

36
 Fig. A.1 : Block diagram of Monte Carlo simulation model for estimating
BEP of modulated digital signals in fading channels.

The various component blocks of the simulation model realized through MATLAB are
described in Figure. The subsystems are connected together such that the output of the former
block forms the input to the later block. The first block generates a random sequence D[n] of
binary digits {0,1} with equal probability. Next the generated bits are modulated through a
base band modulator. Since simulation is based on discrete samples of underlying continuous
signals, it is usual for pass band systems to be simulated as equivalent base band processes.
The modulated signal X[n] is then fed to the channel where both the system imperfections,
fading, and AWGN, are introduced. Accordingly, the simulation process involves generation
of two different kinds of RVs, H[n] and N[n]. Gaussian noise may be realized rather easily
with an in-built function randn() available in MATLAB. The output of the channel (or
combiner), denoted by Y [n], is passed through a base band demodulator to reproduce an
estimate ^D[n] of the original signal. The detected sequence at the demodulator output is
compared bit by bit with the (error free) transmitted sequence and errors are counted. The
estimated BEP is given by
Count err
P e,b= ….......(A.3)
Count bit
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 For SEP estimation, the same model may be used with an additional block, a bit to symbol
mapper, placed before the modulator. The demodulator, in that case, would give out
demodulated symbols, which may be compared with the original outputs from the mapper
block with the help of a comparator.
The final SEP value is calculated using

Count err
P̂ e = .............(A.4)
Count bit

A.2. Algorithm
Modulation:-
1: Setting the amplitude to 2 and 1 for MSB 1 and 0 respectively
2: Setting the phase:-
2.1: Finding binary sum of the symbol
2.2: Setting the phase using [(2*pi/Mp)*sum]
3: Symbol separated into in-phase and quadrature components and transmitted

Demodulation:-
1: The signal affected by noise has its bits checked repeatedly to find the amplitude and
phase,
1.1: The absolute value of the signal is compared with 1.5
1.1.1: If the amplitude is >1.5 then the bit is decoded as MSB=1
1.1.2: Else the bit is decoded as MSB=0
1.2: The phase is determined by using ‘atan2’ function and compared to find its
decision region
1.2.1: The phase is received as [floor(Rx.-ed Phase /(2^i))] where ‘i’ is the
bit position

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 APPENDIX B
GENERATION OF RVS
FOR SIMULATING

FADING ENVELOPE

All the fading models used in the thesis may be simulated by exploiting the relationship between
the fading RV and Gaussian RVs. Gaussian RVs are generated by using in-built function randn()
or by gamrnd() directly. From the theory of RVs, it can be shown that the modulus of a complex
Gaussian process X1(t) + jX2(t), i.e.

R(t) = [X1(t) + jX2(t)] = √X 2

1 ( t)+ X 22 (t)

where X1,2(t) are uncorrelated low pass Gaussian processes with means m 1,2 and of variances σ21,2
respectively, follows Rayleigh and Rician distribution under the following conditions:

1. Case 1: m1 = m2 = 0; σ1=σ2 Rayleigh distribution

2. Case 2: m1 = +ve; m2 = 0; σ1=σ2 Rician distribution

Although, the Nakagami-m random process cannot be expressed as a special case of the random
process R(t) like other models given above, it is also closely related with Gaussian process. If
{X1, X2,....,X2m} denotes a set of Gaussian RV with zero mean and equal variance, i.e. ,
Xi ~N(0, σ2 ),V i
then a RV, R, defined as, R= √X 2
1 +X 22+...+ X 22m follows Nakagami-m distribution.

The following are the algorithm of several fading RVs. The first line of each algorithm ensures
that the average fading power, E{α2}=Ω is kept fixed at 1.

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For Rician fading, the fading parameter K is generally expressed in dB. Thus, in the second line
of Algorithm 2, we first convert the parameter to normal scale. Next, the mean S of the in-phase
Gaussian process, and standard deviation σ(for in-phase as well as quadrature Gaussian process)
are calculated.

Nakagami RVs with only integer and half-integer values of m through the method, and the
simulation becomes computationally inefficient for higher values of m. In Algorithm 3, we have

used square root of a gamma RV G(a,b) with parameters a = m; b = Ω to generate

m
Nakagami-m RVs for arbitrary m values.

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