Timing and Carrier Synchronization in Wireless Communication Systems: A Survey and Classification of Research in the Last 5 Years

Timing and carrier synchronization is a fundamental requirement for any wireless communication system to work properly. Timing synchronization is the process by which a receiver node determines the correct instants of time at which to sample the incoming signal. Carrier synchronization is the process by which a receiver adapts the frequency and phase of its local carrier oscillator with those of the received signal. In this paper, we survey the literature over the last 5 years (2010–2014) and present a comprehensive literature review and classification of the recent research progress in achieving timing and carrier synchronization in single-input single-output (SISO), multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO), cooperative relaying, and multiuser/multicell interference networks. Considering both single-carrier and multi-carrier communication systems, we survey and categorize the timing and carrier synchronization techniques proposed for the different communication systems focusing on the system model assumptions for synchronization, the synchronization challenges, and the state-of-the-art synchronization solutions and their limitations. Finally, we envision some future research directions

Blind channel estimation and signal retrieving for MIMO relay systems

In this paper, we propose a blind channel estimation and signal retrieving algorithm for two-hop multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) relay systems. This new algorithm integrates two blind source separation (BSS) methods to estimate the individual channel state information (CSI) of the source-relay and relay-destination links. In particular, a first-order Z-domain precoding technique is developed for the blind estimation of the relay-destination channel matrix, where the signals received at the relay node are pre-processed by a set of precoders before being transmitted to the destination node. With the estimated signals at the relay node, we propose an algorithm based on the constant modulus and signal mutual information properties to estimate the source-relay channel matrix. Compared with training-based MIMO relay channel estimation approaches, the proposed algorithm has a better bandwidth efficiency as no bandwidth is wasted for sending the training sequences. Numerical examples are shown to demonstrate the performance of the proposed algorithm

Joint CFO and channel estimation for CP-OFDM modulated two-way relay networks

In this paper, we study the problem of joint carrier frequency offset (CFO) and channel estimation for amplify-andforward (AF) two-way relay network (TWRN) that comprises two source terminals and one relay node. Both the system design and the estimation problem become more challenging when CFO is non-zero in a frequency-selective environment, as compared to the conventional point-to-point communication systems. By introducing some redundancy, we propose a cyclic prefix (CP) based OFDM modulation for TWRN that is capable of maintaining the advantage of using multi-carrier transmission and at the same time facilitates the system initialization, e.g., synchronization and channel estimation. We then apply a least square (LS) approach to solve the estimation problem. The approximated Cramér-Rao Bound (CRB) has been derived as the performance benchmark of the proposed estimator. Finally, simulations are provided to corroborate the theoretical studies. ©2010 IEEE.published_or_final_versionThe IEEE International Conference on Communications (ICC 2010), Cape Town, South Africa, 23-27 May 2010. In Proceedings of the IEEE International Conference on Communications, 2010, p. 1-

Channel estimation, synchronisation and contention resolution in wireless communication networks

In the past decade, the number of wireless communications users is increasing at an unprecedented rate. However, limited radio resources must accommodate the increasing number of users. Hence, the efficient use of radio spectrum is a critical issue that needs to be addressed. In order to improve the spectral efficiency for the wireless communication networks, we investigate two promising technologies, the relaying and the multiple access schemes. In the physical (PHY) layer of the open systems interconnect (OSI) model, the relaying schemes are capable to improve the transmission reliability and expand transmission coverage via cooperative communications by using relay nodes. Hence, the two-way relay network (TWRN), a cooperative communications network, is investigated in the first part of the thesis. In the media access control (MAC) layer of the OSI model, the multiple access schemes are able to schedule multiple transmissions by efficiently allocating limited radio resources. As a result, the contention-based multiple access schemes for contention resolution are explored in the second part of the thesis. In the first part of the thesis, the channel estimation for the two-way relay networks (TWRNs) is investigated. Firstly, the channel estimation issue is considered under the assumption of the perfect synchronisation. Then, the channel estimation is conducted, by relaxing the assumption of perfect synchronisation. Another challenge facing the wireless communication systems is the contention and interference due to multiple transmissions from multiple nodes, sharing the common communication medium. To improve the spectral efficiency in the media access control layer, a self-adaptive backoff (SAB) algorithm is proposed to resolve contention in the contention-based multiple access networks