Performance analysis of Raptor codes in Wi-Max systems over fading channel

In modern wireless communication systems, forward error correcting codes are employed for efficient transmission of data in noisy environments. Achieving a very less bit error rate (BER) has been the major task in the field of error control coding. The recently developed Raptor codes, which are a class of Fountain codes and the extension of LT codes, tend to give better performance than the low density parity check (LDPC) codes on burst error channels. In this paper, Raptor codes are used for forward error correction in orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) , which is a popular multicarrier modulation technique in Wi-Max systems and is currently being used in the IEEE 802.16e (Wi-Max) standard. Simulations are carried out and the bit error rate performance and burst-erasure correction capability of Raptor codes are compared with that of quasi-cyclic LDPC codes over Rayleigh fading channel.