PE2-2.5 Wireless Communication, MIMO & OFDM
You can describe orthogonal signalling and non-coherent detection including DPSK, explain propagation and fading, and introduce MIMO and OFDM.
Non-coherent detection is the practical answer to a hard problem: acquiring and holding a carrier phase reference costs hardware and fails in fading, so DPSK encodes information in phase changes instead and pays a small penalty. MIMO is the unit's most striking result — multiple antennas turn multipath from a defect into extra capacity, which took the field decades to see. Simulating a fading channel in MATLAB makes both points vivid in a way the equations do not.
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Orthogonal signalling
Signals chosen so they do not interfere with each other, which is the basis of several schemes below. It is the same orthogonality idea as in the signal spaces above.
Non-coherent detection
Detecting without knowing the carrier phase, which costs performance and removes a hard requirement. The trade is the same one seen in the communication subject.
DPSK
The practical scheme that exploits the item above by encoding the change in phase. It is the standard example of trading a small penalty for a large simplification.
Introduction to wireless communications
Moving to a channel that varies, which is where the remaining topics live. The change from a fixed to a random channel is the important step.
Propagation and fading
How the signal reaches the receiver by several paths, and what that does. Simulating a fading channel is what makes the effect concrete.
Introduction to MIMO
Using several antennas at both ends, which multiplies capacity without more spectrum. It is the biggest idea in modern wireless and the course ends near it.
Introduction to OFDM
Splitting a wide channel into many narrow ones so each sees a simple channel. It closes the course on the scheme every current standard uses.
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