Maximum likelihood detection in spatial multiplexing with FBMC

In FBMC transmission systems, the bit rate is maximized when OQAM modulation is employed. One of the characteristics of this modulation is that the received data symbols are accompanied by interference terms, which complicates the application of ML techniques in optimal decoders. Two approaches are proposed to cope with this situation. The first one exploits the MMSE estimation of the interference terms and it introduces no additional delay. In the second one, the interference terms are calculated from past, present and future data symbols, either already decided or estimated. The gains provided by these approaches, with respect to MMSE, are assessed and illustrated by simulation.