Properties of the EGC output SNR over correlated generalized-fading channels

In this paper, important statistical parameters, such as the k-moment and the k-central moment, of the output signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), in predetection equal-gain combining (EGC) systems operating over correlated Nakagami-m fading channels are studied. Simple closed-form expressions for the mean and variance of the output SNR are presented. Furthermore, it is shown that our general results reduce to the specific noncorrelative fading case previously published. Moreover, significant performance criteria for the EGC such as amount of fading (AoF) and spectral efficiency in the low power regime are investigated. Numerical and simulation results are presented validating the proposed mathematical analysis. These results also point out the impact of the fading correlation, the input SNRs unbalancing as well as the fading severity, on the EGC performance.