Comparison of sensitivity of OFDM and Wavelet Packet Modulation to time synchronization error

Abstract

Wavelet Packet Modulation (WPM) is a novel multicarrier modulation (MCM) technique and a promising alternative to the well established OFDM. However a few key research questions remain to be addressed before WPM can become practically viable. One of them is their sensitivity and vulnerability to time synchronization errors. This is particularly interesting because WPM symbols overlap in the time domain. In this paper we investigate the BER performance degradation of WPM systems in the presence of timing offset and compare it with OFDM. Several well-known wavelets such as Daubechies, Symlets, Coiflets, discrete Meyer and biorthogonal wavelets are selected and studied. The result of this research show how these wavelet-based systems cope with time synchronization errors and how their performances compare with OFDM.