Amplitude-Phase-Time Block Modulation for Resisting Nonlinear Amplification and Its Application for Energy-Efficient Wireless Communications

A large proportion of the carbon emissions associated with wireless communications stem from electricity consumption during operation. Spectral efficiency (SE) and energy efficiency (EE) are fundamental considerations in wireless communications. However, nonlinear amplification results in a trade-off between these factors. Various techniques have been developed to address this issue, including the frequently-used amplifier linearization. Nonetheless, these approaches have limitations in terms of versatility and complexity, making them impractical for modern broadband multiantenna wireless communications. Here, an amplitude-phase-time block modulation (APTBM) scheme and a corresponding demodulation scheme for resisting amplifier nonlinearity are proposed, establishing a new paradigm for balancing the SE and EE. At the transmitter, the symbol block, consisting of two time-domain consecutive symbols, is used to carry information. Simultaneously, specific amplitude and phase constraints are imposed on the symbols within a block. At the receiver, nonlinearly distorted symbols can be effectively demodulated by utilizing these constraints. Numerical and experimental results show that the proposed APTBM demonstrates excellent nonlinear transmission characteristics compared with conventional offset quadrature amplitude modulation.