Indian Journal of Science and Technology

Abstract

Background/Objectives: Tremendous growth in the mobile communication services in this technology driven era has made possible for the people to exchange information (data, voice or image) with each other while they are on the move. These wireless systems have brought a revolution in the current market for their high data rates and performance enhanced features. Methods/Statistical Analysis: One of the key issues affecting the performance of a wireless channel is the random variations in the signal strength which may be resulted due to some obstructions like buildings, trees, etc. or due to the movement of the mobile user. This leads to stochastic behavior of the radio channel.. A highly faded Two-Wave with Diffuse Power (TWDP) environment is discussed along with hybrid diversity combining technique. The effectiveness of this scheme is further evaluated by analyzing the system performance in terms of Bit Error Rate (BER) vs Signal to Noise Ratio (SNR). Binary Phase Shift Keying (BPSK) and Quadrature Phase Shift Keying (QPSK) modulation techniques were employed. Findings: It has been shown clearly that TWDP forms the poorer link when compared with other fading channels as BER is higher in this case. Moreover, TWDP fading environment can serve as the worst case scenario in wireless communication system. Also it has been shown as the diversity order increases system’s performance is improved in terms of BER and reduction in SNR requirement to achieve a constant BER value. Application/Improvement: This paper presents the need to obtain a clear perception of channel characteristics and to model a system for combating fading and improving the system performance by considering a TWDP fading channel instead of Rayleigh channel while designing a wireless communication system in worst channel conditions.. 

Keywords: Bit Error Rate (BER), Diversity Combining, Maximal Ratio Combining (MRC), Selection Combining (SC), TwoWave with Diffuse Power (TWDP)