The main objective of our research is to design practical low-density parity-check (LDPC) codes which provide a wide range of code rates in a rate-compatible fashion. To this end, we first propose a rate-compatible puncturing algorithm for LDPC codes at short block lengths (up to several thousand symbols). The proposed algorithm is based on the claim that a punctured LDPC code with a smaller level of recoverability has better performance. The proposed algorithm is verified by comparing performance of intentionally punctured LDPC codes (using the proposed algorithm) with randomly punctured LDPC codes. The intentionally punctured LDPC codes show better bit error rate (BER) performances at practically short block lengths. Even though the proposed puncturing algorithm shows excellent performance, several problems are still remained for our research objective. First, how to design an LDPC code of which structure is well suited for the puncturing algorithm. Second, how to provide a wide range of rates since there is a puncturing limitation with the proposed puncturing algorithm. To attack these problems, we propose a new class of LDPC codes, called efficiently-encodable rate-compatible (E2RC) codes, in which the proposed puncturing algorithm concept is imbedded. The E2RC codes have several strong points. First, the codes can be efficiently encoded. We present low-complexity encoder implementation with shift-register circuits. In addition, we show that a simple erasure decoder can also be used for the linear-time encoding of these codes. Thus, we can share a message-passing decoder for both encoding and decoding in transceiver systems that require an encoder/decoder pair. Second, we show that the non-systematic parts of the parity-check matrix are cycle-free, which ensures good code characteristics. Finally, the E2RC codes having a systematic rate-compatible puncturing structure show better puncturing performance than any other LDPC codes in all ranges of code rates.

In this thesis, we extend applications of Low-Density Parity-Check (LDPC) codes to a combination of constituent sub-channels, which is a mixture of Gaussian channels with erasures. This model, for example, represents a common channel in magnetic recordings where thermal asperities in the system are detected and represented at the decoder as erasures. Although this channel is practically useful, we cannot find any previous work that evaluates performance of LDPC codes over this channel. We are also interested in practical issues such as designing robust LDPC codes for the mixture channel and predicting performance variations due to erasure patterns (random and burst), and finite block lengths. On time varying channels, a common error control strategy is to adapt the coding rate according to available channel state information (CSI). An effective way to realize this coding strategy is to use a single code and puncture it in a rate-compatible fashion, a so-called rate-compatible punctured code (RCPC). We are interested in the existence of good puncturing patterns for rate-changes that minimize performance loss. We show the existence of good puncturing patterns with analysis and verify the results with simulations. Universality of a channel code across a broad range of coding rates is a theoretically interesting topic. We are interested in the possibility of using the puncturing technique proposed in this thesis for designing universal LDPC codes. We also consider how to design high rate LDPC codes by puncturing low rate LDPC codes. The new design method can take advantage of longer effect block lengths, sparser parity-check matrices, and larger minimum distances of low rate LDPC codes.

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Low density parity check (LDPC) codes with iterative decoding based on belief propagation achieve astonishing error performance close to Shannon limit. No algebraic or geometric method for constructing these codes has been reported and they are largely generated by computer search. As a result, encoding of long LDPC codes is in general very complex. This paper presents two classes of high rate LDPC codes whose constructions are based on finite Euclidean and projective geometries, respectively. These classes of codes a.re cyclic and have good constraint parameters and minimum distances. Cyclic structure adows the use of linear feedback shift registers for encoding. These finite geometry LDPC codes achieve very good error performance with either soft-decision iterative decoding based on belief propagation or Gallager's hard-decision bit flipping algorithm. These codes can be punctured or extended to obtain other good LDPC codes. A generalization of these codes is also presented.Kou, Yu and Lin, Shu and Fossorier, MarcGoddard Space Flight CenterEUCLIDEAN GEOMETRY; ALGORITHMS; DECODING; PARITY; ALGEBRA; INFORMATION THEORY; PROJECTIVE GEOMETRY; TWO DIMENSIONAL MODELS; COMPUTERIZED SIMULATION; ERRORS; BLOCK DIAGRAMS...