Error Floor Approximation for LDPC Codes in the AWGN Channel

This paper addresses the prediction of error floors of low-density parity-check codes transmitted over the additive white Gaussian noise channel. Using a linear state-space model to estimate the behavior of the sum-product algorithm (SPA) decoder in the vicinity of trapping sets (TSs), we study the performance of the SPA decoder in the log-likelihood ratio (LLR) domain as a function of the LLR saturation level. When applied to several widely studied codes, the model accurately predicts a significant decrease in the error floor as the saturation level is allowed to increase. For nonsaturating decoders, however, we find that the state-space model breaks down after a small number of iterations due to the strong correlation of LLR messages. We then revisit Richardson's importance-sampling methodology for estimating error floors due to TSs when those floors are too low for Monte Carlo simulation. We propose modifications that account for the behavior of a nonsaturating decoder and present the resulting error floor estimates for the Margulis code. These estimates are much lower, significantly steeper, and more sensitive to iteration count than those previously reported.