Design of distributed space time trellis codes with DF relaying in slow Rayleigh fading channels

In this paper, a design criterion for distributed space time trellis codes (DSTTCs) with decode-and-forward (DF) relaying in slow Rayleigh fading channels for the case of one relay is derived. The results show that the DF relay-based DSTTCs derived by the new criterion provide a performance gain over the single relay case of conventional space time trellis codes (STTCs).