Introduction

Abstract

Next-generation wireless communication systems mandate data rate intensive applications like multimedia services, data transfer, audio, streaming video, leading to future wireless terminals being capable of connecting to various networks to support services like switched traffic, IP data packets and broadband streaming services. Additionally, with the growth of Internet applications and wireless users, many wireless local area network (WLAN) standards, including IEEE802.11, permit mobile connectivity to the Internet. With a surging demand for wireless Internet connectivity, new WLAN standards have been developed including IEEE802.11b, popularly known as Wi-Fi, that provides up to 11 Mb/s raw data rate, and more recently IEEE802.11g that provides wireless connectivity with speeds up to 54 Mb/s. High data rates are a requirement for not only wireless networks but also in broadcasting standards like Digital Audio Broadcast (DAB) [1], Digital Video Broadcasting-Terrestrial (DVB-T) [2] and the HiperLAN-2 standards in Europe, the Integrated Services Digital Broadcasting (ISDB) in Japan and the Korean Digital Multimedia Broadcasting- Terrestrial (DMB-T) standard [3]. As a solution to their requirements for high data rates, all these standards use multicarrier communications, and in most cases, Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplexing (OFDM).