Turbo Multi-User Detection for OFDM/SDMA Systems Relying on Differential Evolution Aided Iterative Channel Estimation

A differential evolution (DE) algorithm aided iterative channel estimation and turbo multi-user detection (MUD) scheme is proposed for multi-user multi-input multiple-output aided orthogonal frequency-division multiplexing / space-division multiple-access (OFDM/SDMA) systems. The proposed scheme iteratively exchanges the estimated channel information and the detected data between the channel estimator and MUD employing a turbo technique, which gradually improves the accuracy of the channel estimation and the MUD, especially for the first iteration. Quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM) is employed in most wireless standards by virtue of providing a high throughput. However, the optimal maximum likelihood (ML)-MUD becomes extremely complex for employment in QAM-aided multi-user systems. Hence, two different DE aided MUD schemes, the DE aided minimum symbol error rate (MSER)-MUD as well as the discrete DE aided ML-MUD, were developed, and their achievable performance versus complexity was characterized. The simulation results demonstrate that the proposed DE aided channel estimator is capable of approaching the Cramer-Rao lower bound with just two or three iterations. The ultimate bit error rate lower-bound of the single-user additive white Gaussian noise scenario has been approached in the range of E_b / N₀ ≥ 10 dB and E_b / N₀ ≥ 6 dB for the DE aided MSER-MUD and the discrete DE aided ML-MUD, respectively.