A comparision of OFDM and non-linear SC/FDE signals: Non-linear amplification

One of the most influential parameters in today's wireless communications market is the battery lifetime, especially for mobile devices. In contrast to OFDM (Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing), SC/FDE (single carrier transmission with frequency domain equalization) allows to apply signal formats with constant envelope, such as CPM (Continuous Phase Modulations) or at least significantly lower Peak to Average Power Ratios (PAPRs) such as Offset-QPSK. This allows the signal to drive the power amplifier into its maximum power efficient region. As a consequence the batteries lifetime is extended and its size is reduced. In this work, we compare non-linear modulated, block-oriented SC/FDE signals with OFDM signals in terms of bit error rate and spectrum disturbances at the non-linear region of the power amplifier.