ECM and SAGE based joint estimation of timing and frequency offset for DMIMO-OFDM system

Distributed multiple-input multiple-output (DMIMO) technology is a key enabler of coverage extension and enhancement of link reliability in wireless networks through distributed spatial diversity. DMIMO employs classic relay channels in between the source and the destination to opportunistically form a virtual antenna array (VAA) for emulating cooperative diversity. Use of multiple antennas at the relays further increases capacity and reliability of the relay-destination channel through multiplexing and diversity of MIMO antennas respectively. In such network, the signal received at the destination is characterized by multiple timing offsets (MTO) due to different propagation delay and multiple carrier frequency offsets (MCFO) due to independent oscillators of the relays. Hence, synchronization becomes a crucial issue in DMIMO in order to realize the distributed coherence. In this paper, we address joint estimation of MCFO and MTO in DMIMO orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) with MIMO configuration at the relays for estimate-and-forward (EF) relaying protocol. Two iterative algorithms, based on expectation conditional maximization (ECM) and space alternating generalized expectation-maximization (SAGE) are proposed for joint estimation in presence of inter carrier interference (ICI). The robustness of both the estimators to ICI is evaluated by mathematical analysis and supported by extensive simulations. The performance of the proposed estimators is assessed in terms of mean square error (MSE) and bit error rate (BER). The theoretical Cramer-Rao lower bound (CRLB) of estimator error variance is also derived.