A blind coherent spatiotemporal processor of orthogonal Walsh‐modulated CDMA signals
Sofiène Affes, Paul G. Mermelstein · Wireless Communications and Mobile Computing · 2002
Abstract A more efficient detection of orthogonal Walsh‐modulated Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) signals is required not only for better exploitation of current IS‐95 CDMA systems but also for future cdma2000 3G networks. Integration of adaptive antennas at the base station has been recognized as one key lever to increasing capacity and spectrum efficiency. Prospective array‐receiver solutions such as the 2‐D‐RAKE improve performance; however, in the absence of a pilot signal, they have to implement noncoherent detection. In this work, we propose a space‐time processor that achieves coherent detection of orthogonal Walsh‐modulated CDMA signals without a pilot. We assess its performance in spatially correlated Rayleigh‐fading. Simulation results for voice links of 9.6 Kbps indicate that up to an antenna‐correlation factor of 0.8, the proposed receiver outperforms the conventional 2‐D‐RAKE's capacity by 90% in nonselective fading. This gain shrinks fast at higher correlation factors. In selective fading, however, it maintains about a 130% gain in capacity over the entire correlation range. For data links of 153.6 Kbps, this performance advantage increases up to 180–200%. With high‐speed mobiles, however, it vanishes quickly at correlation factors beyond 0.5. Overall, the capacity gains of the proposed spatiotemporal receiver structure increase with reduced relative Doppler (Doppler‐frequency/symbol‐rate ratio). This may arise from increased spatiotemporal diversity, higher transmission rates, and/or slower mobility. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.