MIMO-Aided Index Modulation-Based Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiple Access

Index modulation-aided orthogonal frequency division multiple access (IM-OFDMA) is envisioned as an advanced solution for the upcoming wireless communication systems. This paper proposes a highly efficient scheme by combining multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) and IM-OFDMA to leverage both techniques collectively, offering a new possibility to boost spectrum efficiency compared with the IM-OFDMA and MIMO-OFDMA schemes. The basic principle of the resulting MIMO-IM-OFDMA scheme is to independently perform the IMOFDMA process on each transmit antenna, thereby achieving higher diversity. Considering different system configurations, Monte Carlo simulations demonstrate that the MIMO-IMOFDMA scheme not only enhances the communication error’s performance but also improves the spectral efficiency compared to the conventional IM-OFDMA and MIMO-OFDMA schemes.