Integer frequency offset estimation and preamble identification in WiMAX systems

In this work we investigate the joint estimation of the integer carrier frequency offset (CFO) and the preamble index in a multicarrier system compliant with the WiMAX specifications. Since the exact ML solution is prohibitively complex in its general formulation, a suboptimal algorithm is developed to provide a reasonable trade-off between estimation accuracy and processing load. Compared to existing alternatives, the resulting scheme exhibits improved accuracy and reduced sensitivity to residual timing errors.