A study on the application of adaptive minimum bit error rate algorithms for WCDMA

This research aims to use the Adaptive Minimum Bit Error Rate (AMBER) for Wideband Code Division Multiple Access (WCDMA). AMBER and Normalized AMBER (NAMBER) algorithms for WCDMA systems are derived and implemented. Its Bit Error Rate (BER) performance is measured using a WCDMA Frequency Division Duplex (FDD) Downlink Physical Layer model. The new methods are compared to the original WCDMA system and the NLMS Adaptive Combiner. Results show around 5 dB performance gain over the single antenna system, and around 2 dB performance gain over the Dual Antenna Normalized Least Mean Squares (NLMS) Adaptive Combiner system in an Additive White Gaussian Noise channel at a BER of 10^-2.5. However, complex computation requirements render the algorithms impractical for widespread use. Simplifications and alternative implementations have to be investigated.