Trellis codes for time-selective Rician-fading channels

A communication system is considered that employs trellis-coded modulation and interleaving of code symbols and for which the code symbols are subjected to correlated Rician fading. The performance is compared between trellis codes that are designed for AWGN channels and trellis codes that are designed to provide time diversity as protection against fading. Performance is considered as a function of the interleaving depth, the specular-to-diffuse energy ratio of the channel, and the Doppler spread of the channel. Appropriate code-selection criteria are identified for several applications of practical interest.