An efficient resource-allocation scheme for spatial multiuser access in MIMO/OFDM systems

Fast adaptive transmission has been recently identified as a key technology for exploiting potential system diversity and improving power-spectral efficiency in wireless communication systems. An adaptive resource-allocation approach, which jointly adapts subcarrier allocation, power distribution, and bit distribution according to instantaneous channel conditions, is proposed for multiuser multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO)/orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing systems. The resultant scheme is able to: 1) optimize the power efficiency; 2) guarantee each user´s quality of service requirements, including bit-error rate and data rate; 3) ensure fairness to all the active users; and 4) be applied to systems with various types of multiuser-detection schemes at the receiver. For practical implementation, a reduced-complexity allocation algorithm is developed. This algorithm decouples the complex multiuser joint resource-allocation problem into simple single-user optimization problems by controlling the subcarrier sharing according to the users´ spatial separability. Numerical results show that significant power and diversity gains are achievable, compared with nonadaptive systems. It is also demonstrated that the MIMO system is able to multiplex several users without sacrificing antenna diversity by using the proposed algorithm.