An efficient multiuser loading algorithm for OFDM-based broadband wireless systems

In this paper we present a novel loading algorithm for OFDM-based multiuser communication system to maximize the total system throughput while satisfying the total power and users' rate constraints. The new scheme determines the subcarrier, bit, and power allocation by decoupling an NP-hard combinatorial problem into two steps: (1) resource allocation (how much power and how many subcarriers for each user) based on users' average channel gains and their rate requirements; and (2) subcarrier assignment and bit loading based on users' channel profiles across all subcarriers. Compared to existing iterative methods, the two-step approach offers comparable capacity gain with much lower complexity.