Receiver optimization for L-DACS1

L-DACS1 is the broadband candidate technology for the future L-band Digital Aeronautical Communications System (L-DACS). The flexible design of L-DACS1 allows the deployment as an inlay system in the spectral gaps between two adjacent channels used by the Distance Measuring Equipment (DME) as well as the non-inlay deployment in unused parts of the L-band. In this paper, the synchronization procedure in L-DACS1, when deploying it as inlay system is presented. It will be investigated how the synchronization suffers from interference in the L-band. In addition, interference mitigation techniques are briefly described and their influence onto the synchronization is examined. Finally, the performance of an appropriate combination of interference mitigation and robust synchronization is presented, showing that even under severe interference conditions, a reliable synchronization can be accomplished, hence confirming the feasibility of the inlay concept.