Simulation issues for binary digital communication systems using BCH and RS codes

Simulation is a useful tool for empirically estimating the bit error rate (BER) of a digital communication system. When an error correcting code is included in the simulation, care must be taken to construct a statistically accurate simulation so that empirical estimates of the decoded BER match known theoretical performance results. We consider using simulation to estimate the coding gain resulting from the use of an error correcting code on a simple digital communication system. With the following assumptions: (1) the system uses a BCH or RS code and (2) the channel noise is additive white Gaussian. Simulation issues are discussed which significantly affect the statistical robustness of the simulation BER estimates. Simulation estimates are compared to known theoretical performance results to demonstrate the simulation accuracy.