Puncturing scheme for polar codes based on channel reliability estimation

Abstract

The compiled code algorithms for polar codes, which were proposed by Arikan, are of low complexity, with excellent performance for a given code length when using optimized decoding algorithms. They have attracted widespread attention and gained popularity since its inception. The construction of punctured polar codes allows for more flexibility in coding, making them suitable for a greater variety of scenarios. This paper proposes an improved puncturing scheme for polar codes. With the constraints imposed by conventional punctured polar codes, the error probability of each polarized sub-channel is then calculated on the basis of the channel reliability estimation methodology, so as to puncture the less reliable polarized sub-channels. Furthermore, to achieve better decoding performance, this scheme sets the initial log-likelihood rate (LLR) of the punctured bits to infinity (or negative infinity). The simulation outcomes indicate that the improved punctured polar codes as proposed in this paper perform better than the conventional punctured polar codes.