Multiuser detection in flat fading non-Gaussian channels

This paper deals with the problem of multiuser detection in direct-sequence code-division multiple-access (CDMA) fading channels with impulsive noise. This issue arises in practical situations because in many realistic wireless channels, the ambient channel noise is impulsive, resulting from various natural and man-made impulsive sources. In this paper, an M-estimator-based structure for noncoherent demodulation of differentially phase-shift keyed (DPSK) signals transmitted simultaneously via a CDMA flat-fading channel and embedded in impulsive noise, is proposed and analyzed. Analytical and numerical results show that, in highly impulsive noise, the performance gain afforded by the proposed multiuser detector can be substantial when compared to the linear decorrelating detector for DPSK, with little attendant increase in algorithmic complexity.