Implementing Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing Using IFFT/FFT
Implementing Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing Using IFFT/FFT
Abstract-Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing The realization of OFDM was a challenge as at that time; a
(OFDM) is a modulation system that offers many advantages large number of oscillators were needed to replicate the
over other modulation scheme. OFDM is a particular form of parallel modulation and demodulation needed for its
Multi-carrier transmission and is suited for frequency selective implementation. The challenge was resolved when in 1971
channels and high data rates; it overcomes the Inter Symbol
Interference(ISI) problem by modulating multiple narrow-
Weinstein and Ebert used Discrete Fourier Transform to
band sub-carriers in parallel. In this paper, analysis of OFDM perform baseband modulation and demodulation; this
is carried out with emphasis on the implementation using eliminated the need for oscillator banks, and made its
IFFT/FFT as against multiple Oscillators and demodulators. implementable on integrated circuit possible at affordable
The concept of orthogonality of carriers is used to explain the cost. The process of moving a signal from the time domain
ability to transmit multi-carriers without interference and the to the frequency domain involves finding the Fourier
ease of decoupling the signal information at the receivers. transform, while the process of moving it from the
Matlab simulations were carried out to show these concepts frequency to the time domain involves the inverse Fourier
transform. Orthogonality of modulating and modulated
Index Term--FFT, IFFT, Modulation, Multi-carrier, OFDM,
Orthogonality
signal is an indispensable property of OFDM, and this is
achieved by introducing Cyclic Prefix.
I INTRODUCTION
To obtain a high spectral efficiency, the frequency response
Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM) is a of the sub- channels are made to overlap and orthogonality
techniques that involves transmitting signal information is completely maintained by introducing cyclic prefix; the
using smaller subcarriers, instead of a single large carrier. orthogonality of OFDM overcomes the ISI problem by
OFDM is a form of multi-carrier modulation. The basic modulating multiple narrow-band sub-carriers in parallel.
principle of multicarrier modulation is to divide the data Orthogonality is a property that allows the signals to be
perfectly transmitted over a common channel and detected
stream, , into parallel data streams with a reduced data
without interference; loss of orthogonality results in blurring
rate of ; low rate data streams are then modulated on between the transmitted signals and loss of
a separate narrow band subcarriers and summed together for information[1].In OFDM, to maintain the orthogonality of
transmission, thereby providing the same data rate as an the subcarrier channels, the correlation between signals
equivalent single large carrier system[3]. At the receiver a transmitted on subcarriers must be zero[4] as will be
set of filter banks separate the wide-band signal into the mathematically shown later. The OFDM scheme has the
original narrowband subcarriers for demodulation. In other inherited advantage over single carrier modulation
words, OFDM involves dividing the available spectrum into techniques to mitigate ISI and frequency selectivity of the
several narrow sub-channels/sub carriers which experience channel.
differential flat fading as they propagate; this make The first deployment of OFDM was in Digital Video
equalization at the receiver end simple. Broadcasting (DVB) and Digital Audio Broadcasting (DAB)
Or
and
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