On acquisition and tracking methods for SC-FDMA over satellite

In this paper we address the main opportunities and challenges related to the use of a single carrier frequency division multiple access (SC-FDMA) waveform over a geostationary (GEO) satellite return link. More in details the impact of the satellite round-trip delay on SC-FDMA synchronisation acquisition is discussed and a possible solution for an efficient log-on procedure is proposed. The effects of satellite uplink channel impairments on SC-FDMA synchronization tracking are also analyzed and a set of timing, frequency and phase offsets estimation algorithms is proposed to be efficiently used in the context of satellite return link. In addition, also a reference architecture for SC-FDMA system focused on synchronization aspects is proposed.