Low Correlation Sequences From Linear Combinations of Characters

Abstract

Pairs of binary sequences formed using linear combinations of multiplicative characters of finite fields are exhibited that, when compared with a random sequence pairs, simultaneously achieve significantly lower mean square autocorrelation values (for each sequence in the pair) and significantly lower mean square crosscorrelation values. If we define crosscorrelation merit factor analogously to the usual merit factor for autocorrelation, and if we define demerit factor as the reciprocal of merit factor, then randomly selected binary sequence pairs are known to have an average crosscorrelation demerit factor of 1. Our constructions provide sequence pairs with a crosscorrelation demerit factor significantly less than 1, and at the same time, the autocorrelation demerit factors of the individual sequences can also be made significantly less than 1 (which also indicates better than average performance). The sequence pairs studied here provide combinations of autocorrelation and crosscorrelation performance that are not achievable using sequences formed from single characters, such as maximal linear recursive sequences (m-sequences) and Legendre sequences. In this paper, exact asymptotic formulae are proved for the autocorrelation and crosscorrelation merit factors of sequence pairs formed using linear combinations of multiplicative characters. Data is presented that shows that the asymptotic behavior is closely approximated by sequences of modest length.