Comparative Analysis of Multiple Access Techniques: NOMA vs OMA for 5G Networks

Nowadays the growing number of connected devices play a crucial role in our daily life posing significant challenges thanks to the demand for high-speed data, especially with the introduction of 5 G networks. While traditional Orthogonal Multiple Access (OMA) techniques have been widely used in previous generations, they face limitations in meeting the spectral efficiency and massive connectivity requirements of 5 G. NonOrthogonal Multiple Access (NOMA) has emerged as a key multiple access technique in 5G, enabling multiple users to share the same resources while managing interference through Successive Interference Cancellation (SIC). However, SIC increases the complexity of the receiver. The main advantages of the increased receiver complexity are the improved spectral efficiency and the enhanced connectivity. Our paper highlights the comparison between NOMA and OMA in terms of Bit Error Rate (BER), while presenting the advantages and disadvantages associated with both multiple access techniques.