ORIGINAL RESEARCH

published: 17 May 2022

doi: 10.3389/frcmn.2022.850781

A Survey on Robust Modulation

Requirements for the Next Generation
Personal Satellite Communications
Julius Ssimbwa, Byungju Lim, Ju-Hyung Lee and Young-Chai Ko *
School of Electrical Engineering, Korea University, Seoul, South Korea

The unrelenting technological advancement in the generation of wireless networks in

recent years has awakened the motion concerning the inclusion of satellites in personal
communications. Leveraging their ability to provide wide coverage, uniform services, wide
bandwidth, and so forth, Satellite systems will be expected to co-exist with the current
state-of-the-art infrastructure of terrestrial networks. Herein, we present a comparative
study on the representative digital modulation techniques for use in personal satellite
communications. We discuss the advantages and limitations of different modulation
techniques, such as phase shift keying, continuous phase modulation, amplitude
phase shift keying, and quadrature amplitude modulation. We also perform evaluations
based on spectral efficiency, power efficiency, modulation error ratio, error vector
Edited by: magnitude, and peak-to-average power ratio in the presence of high power amplifier
Tetsuya Kawanishi,
Waseda University, Japan
nonlinearities and Doppler effects. Comparisons in the form of tables, illustrations, and
Reviewed by:
curves are also presented. In correspondence to the comparisons made basing on the
Talha Faizur Rahman, aforementioned metrics, we conclude that continuous phase modulation is the best
Mississippi State University, candidate modulation scheme for personal satellite communications since it
United States
Dat Pham, outperforms other schemes by compromising the trade-off between power efficiency,
National Institute of Information and bandwidth efficiency, and immunity to errors. We further present open issues that would
Communications Technology, Japan
reinforce personal satellite communications in terms of reliability, throughput and latency,
*Correspondence:
Young-Chai Ko
other than power and spectral efficiency, if combined with appropriate modulation
koyc@korea.ac.kr schemes.
Keywords: digital modulation techniques, personal satellite communications, high power amplifier nonlinearities,
Specialty section:
Doppler effects, non-terrestrial networks
This article was submitted to
Aerial and Space Networks,
a section of the journal 1 INTRODUCTION
Frontiers in Communications and
Networks
The unrelenting technological advancement in the generation of wireless networks has spawned an
Received: 08 January 2022 exponential increase in the demand for spectrum to support the resulting traffic. One of the reasons
Accepted: 08 March 2022
for the skyrocketing demand for resources could be arising from the dramatic increase in the
Published: 17 May 2022
manufacturing of complex very large scale integration (VLSI) chips that enable swift data
Citation: transmission between devices (Insights, 2021). Consequently, these unprecedented challenges by
Ssimbwa J, Lim B, Lee J-H and Ko Y-C
traffic increase could overwhelm the existing terrestrial network (TN) infrastructure in the future.
(2022) A Survey on Robust Modulation
Requirements for the Next Generation
One of the promising solutions could be data traffic offloading (Dimatteo et al., 2011; Lee et al., 2013)
Personal Satellite Communications. supported by different networks, such as wireless local area networks (WLANs) and heterogeneous
Front. Comms. Net 3:850781. networks. Nevertheless, performing data offloading to the existing networks has several concerns,
doi: 10.3389/frcmn.2022.850781 such as the implementation cost, complexity, power consumption, security, and privacy, to mention

Frontiers in Communications and Networks | www.frontiersin.org 1 May 2022 | Volume 3 | Article 850781
Ssimbwa et al. Modulations for Personal Satellite Communications

TABLE 1 | List of abbreviations.

3GPP 3rd generation partnership project

5/6G fifth/sixth generation
ACI adjacent channel interference
AM-AM/PM amplitude modulation-amplitude/phase modulation
ACM adaptive coding and modulation
APSK amplitude phase shift keying
BER bit error rate
BCH Bose-Chaudhuri-Hocquenghem
BPSK binary phase shit keying
BSS broadcasting satellite service
CC convolutional coding
CCDF complementary cumulative distribution function
CDPD cellular digital packet data
CE-SC-FDMA constant-envelope single-carrier frequency division multiple access
CPFSK continuous phase frequency shift keying
CPM continuous phase modulation
DECT digital enhanced cordless telecommunications
DSL digital subscriber line
DVB-C/S/T digital video broadcasting-cable/satellite/terrestrial
DQPSK differential quadrature phase shift keying
EVM error vector magnitude
FBMC filter-bank multi-carrier
FEC forward error correction
FSS fixed satellite services
GEO geostationary orbit
GFDM generalized frequency division multiplexing
GMSK Gaussian minimum shift keying
GPS global positioning system
GSM global system for mobile communication
HAPS high altitude platform station
HARQ hybrid automatic repeat request
HEO high elliptical orbit
HPA high power amplifier
HSDPA high speed downlink packet access
IMUX input multiplexer
IS-54 international standard-54
ISI inter-symbol interference
ISL inter-satellite link
I/Q in-phase/quadrature
LDPC low-density parity check
LEO low elliptical orbit
LTE long term evolution
MEO medium earth orbit
MER modulation error ratio
ModCod modulation and coding
MSK minimum shift keying
MSS mobile satellite services
NTN non-terrestrial networks
OBP on-board processing
OFDM orthogonal frequency division multiplexing
OMUX output multiplexer
OOB out-of-band
OQPSK offset quadrature phase shift keying
PAPR peak-to-average power ratio
PSD power spectral density
PSK Phase shift keying
QAM quadrature amplitude modulation
QPSK quadrature phase shift keying
RS Reed Solomon
RTT round trip transmission
SAT/SATCOM satellite/satellite communications
SNR signal-to-noise ratio
SSPA solid-state power amplifier
TN/TNT terrestrial/non-terrestrial networks
TWTA traveling-wave tube amplifier
UAS unmanned aircraft system
(Continued on following page)

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Ssimbwa et al. Modulations for Personal Satellite Communications

TABLE 1 | (Continued) List of abbreviations.

WLAN wireless local area network

VCM variable coding and modulation
VLSI very large scale integration

FIGURE 1 | Section structure of the paper.

coverage, in the presence of terrain constraints, network

overloads, and emergency situations.
Moreover, in the next generation of networks, other
technologies, such as free space optical and millimeter wave
communications could be considered. However, these are
constrained by atmospheric channel, transmission distances,
and frequencies (Rangan et al., 2014; Kaushal and Kaddoum,
2017). Hence, this makes the application of SATs to personal
communications substantial. A personal communication system
relates to the liberty possessed by an individual to access reliable
communication while on the move. Personal communications
may include wireless communications in the form of data, voice,
video, and beyond.
Over the recent years, next-generation SAT systems have been
conceived as a key reinforcement for future TN, such as 5G and
6G, with the aim of supporting versatile applications (Kodheli
FIGURE 2 | Categories of SAT orbits.
et al., 2017; Boero et al., 2018; Gopal and BenAmmar, 2018; Su
et al., 2019). Rigorous research is underway by both academia and
industry towards this common cause. For example, one of the
but a few. Another way to improve spectrum usage could be world’s leading communications standardization bodies known
through modulation. However, it poses a threat to power as the 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3 GPP) 1 has been
efficiency of the communications system as discussed in the pivotal in conducting studies to determine the specifications for
next sections. More research will be needed to overcome the the anticipated integrated SAT-TN. In (3GPP TR 38.811 V15.4.0,
aforementioned problems to realize optimal network 2020), 3 GPP presents studies on 5G to support non-terrestrial
architectures, which are bandwidth- and power-efficient, networks (NTN). Therein, discussions related to NTN
reliable, and high throughput with low latency. architecture, channel modeling, and potential impact
In the light of such requirements, satellites (SATs) can be
considered as a complement to the existing TN to support
personal communications, especially during insufficient 1
[Online]. Available at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kuiper_Systems.

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Ssimbwa et al. Modulations for Personal Satellite Communications

considerations are provided. The authors in (Su et al., 2019) resources results in maximization of the bandwidth efficiency
discuss SAT constellations, interference, and resource which is attained at the minimum cost of the average signal
management for broadband low earth orbit (LEO) SAT power. In this paper, it should be noted that the terms “spectral”
deployment. The authors in (Sadek and Aissa, 2012) present and “bandwidth” are used interchangeably.
the challenges facing SATCOMs and the state-of-art SATs. They To improve bandwidth efficiency, spectral-efficient
discuss challenges concerning SAT-TN integration with a focus modulation schemes could be deployed, albeit at the cost of
on transparency and interference. higher power requirement and degraded bit error rate (BER)
performance. On the other hand, error-correction can be used to
1.1 Motivation attain a given BER performance level with reduced power
Unlike TNs, which are mainly limited by adjacent channel requirement at the expense of decreased bandwidth efficiency
interference (ACI), NTNs are mainly limited by power due to and increased complexity. This trade-off between bandwidth and
thermal noise and bandwidth due to bandwidth restrictions power attracts the quest for not only bandwidth-efficient but
(Rydbeck et al., 1996). Therefore further studies will be power-efficient modulation schemes. It is also important for
required to address several challenges related to modulation power budget, HPA, and waveform designs, etc. Another
and coding, link margin requirements, frequency planning and driving point for this study comes from the fact that
orbit choice all together. modulation significantly contributes to latency, reliability, and
This paper contains the study of modulation techniques to throughput. For example, higher-order modulation techniques
find suitable solutions that can optimize efficiencies while allow faster transmission rates, and hence higher throughput and
minimizing the trade-offs which exist during the design of low latency. On the other hand, deploying low-order modulation
personal satellite communication (SATCOM) systems. schemes can guarantee reliability.
Additionally, the studies seek to explore the drawbacks that
are introduced by modulation in the pursuit of long-distance 1.2 Major Contributions
transmission and boosting the signal’s immunity to interference. In this paper, we provide literature reviews on SATs and the
The motivation of this work is derived from three intriguing influence of HPA nonlinearities and Doppler effect on digital
aspects, namely the integration of NTN and TN (3GPP TR 38.811 modulation schemes for suitable adoption in personal
V15.4.0, 2020), the existence of nonlinear distortions during SATCOMs. We summarize our contributions in this paper as
signal amplification (Simon, 2005), and the inevitable Doppler follows.
effects in communications (Jakes and Cox, 1994; Ali et al., 1998).
From the network perspective, TNs have proved capable of • We introduce detailed personal SATCOMs aspects and
providing low-latency and higher data rates. However, due to share various design rationales. We discuss the need for
uncertain changes in customers’ appetite for traffic, and need for transition from the traditional stationary SAT networks to
wider coverage, TNs are incapacitated, hence drawing attention the highly mobile SATs, accompanied with the expected
to the need for integration between NTN and TN. High power personal SATCOM architecture, on-board processing
amplifier (HPA) nonlinearities, Doppler shift, and propagation (OBP) capability, channel characteristics, and HPA
delay are some of the most prominent setbacks in SATs, which requirements. We also present the expected benefits and
need immediate solutions. Owing to long-distance transmission hurdles related to the integration between NTN and TN.
in SATs, a high transmit output power is required to guarantee • We provide holistic treatment of modulation requirements
sufficient reception power at the receiver side. Therefore, it would for personal SATCOM. This comprehensive contribution
require that the HPAs be operated very close to the saturation enriches the existing surveys and tutorials, which are mostly
point to maximize power efficiency. As a result, HPA limited to the study carried out for traditional stationary
nonlinearities are introduced into the transmitted signal. SAT networks. We examine the strengths and limitations of
Additionally, the highly mobile nature of SATs and terrestrial phase shift keying (PSK), continuous phase modulation
users induces variations in carrier frequency and longer (CPM), amplitude phase shift keying (APSK), and
propagation delays, which can affect channel estimation. quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM). We also
Consequently, frequent handovers, and large signaling subject representative modulation schemes to HPA
overhead are necessary to maintain service continuity (Del Re nonlinearities and Doppler effects, and conduct
and Pierucci, 2002a) 2. evaluations based on spectral efficiency, power efficiency,
Going forward, the discussion herein seeks to pursue power- modulation error ratio (MER), error vector magnitude
and spectral-efficient modulation schemes with the given (EVM), and peak-to- average power ratio (PAPR).
transmitted power and channel bandwidth requirements. Such • Finally, we discuss the future directions that would reinforce
principal resources require considerable attention since they are personal SATCOMs, not only in terms of spectral and
not only vulnerable to channel uncertainty but also other power efficiency, but also reliability, throughput and
constraints, such as HPA nonlinearities and Doppler effect, latency if combined with appropriate modulation schemes.
which are associated with SATCOMs. The utilization of such
The remainder of this article is organized as follows. In Section
2, we present a summary of works related to modulation schemes
2
[Online]. Available at: https://oneweb.net. for TN and NTN. A brief background about SAT orbits, their

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Ssimbwa et al. Modulations for Personal Satellite Communications

features, and corresponding services is also presented in this TABLE 2 | Comparison of state-of-the-art industry SATCOM project (Sadek and
section. In Section 3, we provide a review of the system Aissa, 2012; Evans, 1997; Minoli, 2015; Sheriff and Hu, 2001; Penttinen,
2015; Del Portillo et al., 2019; Hindin, 2019) 2–11.
requirements. In Section 4, modulation techniques for
personal SATCOM are introduced. A glimpse of performance Operator Project Orbit Band Modulation Coding Rate
comparisons for selected modulation techniques is presented in
SpaceX Starlink LEO Ku, Ka 16-APSK 2/3, 3/4
Section 5. Finally, future and open topics, and a conclusion are OneWeb OneWeb LEO Ku, Ka 16-APSK 3/4
presented in Section 6 and Section 7, respectively. To allow the Telesat Telesat LEO Ka 16-APSK 28/45
proper flow of this survey, we also the provide a list of Amazon Kuiper LEO Ka — —
abbreviations in Table 1 and the structure of the paper in
Figure 1

ranges from 8 to 50 km (20 km for HAPS), and high elliptical

2 RELATED WORKS AND BACKGROUND orbit (HEO) SATs located between 400 and 50,000 km (Su et al.,
2019; 3GPP TR 38.811 V15.4.0, 2020).
2.1 Related Works GEO SATs provide the largest footprint as well as high
Several works involving diverse modulation-based approaches to throughput. However, these experience long round-trip time.
support various applications both in TN and NTN have been Furthermore, servicing a SAT in GEO is quite complex and
proposed. However, it cannot be inferred that these would be costly, for instance, replacing faulty components. On the other
long-lasting solutions to the unprecedented changes in traffic hand, SATs in MEO and LEO orbits can achieve lower delays
demands especially with the inclusion of SATs in personal compared to GEO but are greatly affected by radiation in the
communications. Hence, further studies will be necessary. inner Van Allen belt and atmospheric drag (International
The authors in (Flohberger et al., 2010) proposed a feature- Telecommunications Union, 2002). Another highly
based method for classification of modulation schemes to aid the pronounced bottleneck problem in LEO is the Doppler effect
design of intelligent receivers in SATCOMs. In (Cardarilli et al., (Ali et al., 1998) resulting from high mobility. The aforesaid
2002), viable strategies for implementing flexible and fully problems create a trade-off when deciding which orbit to use for a
programmable digital modulator architectures for SAT and given service.
space applications were proposed. The BER comparison of
advanced modulation schemes for LEO SAT downlink 2.2.2 Category of SAT Services
communications was discussed in (Belce, 2003). The authors Incorporating SAT systems into personal communications is
in (Keysight Technologies, 2020) provided an analysis of the potential for global connectivity and enhancing improved
impact of phase noise on the quality of signals for modulation service delivery in different economies of the world. Moreover,
techniques applicable to SATCOMs. In (Oetting, 1979), the SATs provide ubiquitous coverage with a possibility of co-existing
author summarizes the characteristics of modulation with TN. Consequently, this co-existence would enable
techniques most applicable to digital radios. Therein, the main integration of SATs with TN, hence, resulting in higher data
comparison is centered on BER which is presented in the form of rates and high quality of service anywhere anytime. SAT services
tabled numerical results. can be categorized into three (F. R. Group, 2021), namely fixed
With the acknowledgement of the existing and ongoing works, SAT services (FSS) which provide links between terminals at fixed
supplemental attention towards achieving spectral efficiency and locations on earth, mobile SAT services (MSS) which provide
power efficiency, such as adopting robust modulation schemes in links from or to mobile terminals and broadcast SAT services
integrated SAT-TN, is paramount. Moreover, most of the (BSS) for broadcasting to multiple receiving stations. Table 2
available works focused on either modulation with application summarizes some of the service providers for the current state-of-
to geostationary orbit (GEO) SATs or cellular systems as the-art SATs, while Table 3 presents several SAT services with
standalone networks but not as an integrated system. In our corresponding frequency bands.
studies we consider an integrated system of LEOs and TN with
emphasis on the severe HPA nonlinearities and Doppler effects.
Furthermore, our performance metrics go beyond BER which is 3 SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS
widely considered by most authors3.
3.1 Channel Characteristics
2.2 Background In traditional SATCOMs, the user terminal is connected to non-
2.2.1 Different Platforms of NTN stationary SAT networks and receives the signal mainly through
Generally, SATs operate in three main orbits namely, LEO, the gateway (ground station). In contrast, the next generation of
medium earth orbit (MEO) and GEO (see Figure 2). Other personal SATCOMs (see Figure 3) will require a direct link
NTN platforms constitute unmanned aircraft system (UAS) between the SAT and user terminal. Similar to the traditional
including high altitude platform station (HAPS) whose altitude links, the signal quality of the direct link is affected by several
environmental factors, such as rain and cloud attenuation,
scintillation, and atmospheric absorption with corresponding
3
[Online]. Available at: https://www.3gpp.org/about-3gpp. elevation angle, altitude above sea level, frequency, and water

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Ssimbwa et al. Modulations for Personal Satellite Communications

TABLE 3 | Characteristics of spectrum for SATCOM (F. R. Group, 2021; Penttinen, 2015; EMEA Satellite Operators Association, 2021; T. E. S. Agency, 2021).

Band S-DAB L-band S-band C-band X-band Ku-band Ka-band Q/V-bands

Frequency 1.467 GHz 1.518 GHz 1.97 GHz 3.4 GHz 7.25 GHz 10.7 GHz 17.3 GHz 37.5 GHz

range to 1.497 GHz to 1.675 GHz to 2.69 GHz to 7.025 GHz to 8.4 GHz to 14.5 GHz to 30 GHz to 51.4 GHz

Features — Less Less susceptible to Less susceptible — Possible higher More bandwidth, More bandwidth,
susceptible to rain fading but large to rain fading but data rates but smaller antenna smaller antenna,
rain fading but antenna size large antenna susceptible to size, high data rate size, high data
large antenna required size required rain fading and high rain rate and higher
size required fading rain fading

Service SAT audio Civilian mobile- SAT television and Fixed-SAT Military, Fixed-SAT Fixed-SAT Fixed and mobile
broadcasting to SAT services radio broadcasting television and SAT television and television and data high-speed
fixed and mobile (two-way) and mobile broad- data services imagery data services services including broad- band
units band services (including and radar (including fixed and mobile services
including in-flight broadcasting) broadcasting) two way including in-flight
connectivity broadband connectivity
services

Example — Inmarsat, Sirius XM, Intelsat, XTAR SpaceX, SpaceX, OneWeb —

of Thuraya, OneWeb

providers — Iridium Globalstar Thuraya Paradigm Intelsat, Eutelsat Telesat, Amazon —

TABLE 4 | Summary of strengths, limitations, and major applications for selected modulation schemes.

Modulation Ref Strengths Limitations Major Applications

Scheme

M-PSK (Agilent Technologies, • Good BER • BER and power efficiency deteriorate with • Deep space telemetry, cable modems, SAT,
2000; Ziemer, 2001) increase in modulation size M aircraft, telemetry, CDMA, DVB-S, HSPA, IS-
• Good power efficiency • Poor spectral efficiency 54, LTE
• Robust to HPA
distortions

APSK (Morello and Mignone, • Good spectral • Poor BER • SAT, DVB-S2
2006; Liu et al., 2011) efficiency
• Robust to HPA • Complexity in receiver design
nonlinearities • No gray mapping exists for APSK
constellations, leading to high
independent demapping loss

QAM (Agilent Technologies, • Good spectral • Poor BER • DVB-T/C, cable modems, microwave links,
2000; Ziemer, 2001) efficiency digital modems, broadband set top boxes,
• Low complexity • Prone to distortion by HPA nonlinearities HSDPA, LTE
receiver design • Poor power efficiency
CPM (Sundberg, 1986; • Good BER • GMSK enhances ISI at higher bit rate • GSM, CDPD, DECT, telemetry
Anderson et al., 2013) transmission
• Robust to HPA • Complexity in transmitter and receiver
nonlinearities design
• Good spectral
efficiency

OFDM (Stuber, 1996; Ziemer, • Good spectral • High PAPR • Wi-Fi, Wimax, LTE, power line
2001) efficiency communications, digital subscriber line (DSL)
• Low complexity • High OOB
receiver design
• Robustness against • Highly sensitive to frequency and timing
multipath propagation offsets

TABLE 5 | Comparison of modulation schemes based on the simulation results and other studies.

Scheme BER Power Efficiency Spectral Efficiency Robustness to Robustness to Receiver Complexity
HPA Distortions Doppler Effects

QPSK Low High Low High High High

16-APSK High Low High Average Low High
16-QAM High Low High Low Low Low
16-CPM Low High High High High High

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Ssimbwa et al. Modulations for Personal Satellite Communications

FIGURE 3 | An illustration of Personal SATCOMs.

the overall integrated system, such as estimating fade margins,

assessing the efficiency of modulation and coding schemes, to
mention but a few. Some of the notable land mobile SAT channel
models are described in (Abdi et al., 2003; Corazza and Vatalaro,
1994; Chun Loo, 1985). Over the past years, due to an increase in
the number of service providers and change in traffic demand,
lower frequency bands, such as L (1.518 GHz ~1.675 GHz), S
(1.97 GHz ~2.69 GHz), and C (3.4 GHz ~7.025 GHz), became
saturated, which led to the scramble for higher frequency bands,
namely Ku (10.7 GHz ~14.5 GHz), Ka (17.3 GHz ~30 GHz), and
Q/V (37.5 GHz ~51.4 GHz) (EMEA Satellite Operators
Association, 2021). We briefly summarize the available bands
for SAT and their features in Table 3. It is worth noting that there
is a trade-off that exists between the choice of band and
performance. For instance, lower frequency bands are
characterized by less susceptibility to rain attenuation but only
FIGURE 4 | Characterizing the impact of Doppler shift on the orbital
height (h). achieve lower data rates and require large antenna sizes, whereas
higher frequency bands are more susceptible to rain fading
though they allow deployment of smaller antenna sizes and
higher data rates can be achieved due to availability of more
vapor densities (Panagopoulos et al., 2004; Kanatas and bandwidth. More research about fade mitigation techniques for
Panagopoulos, 2012). Besides, by considering the deployment personal SATCOMs is required to improve interference control,
scenario of personal SATCOMs, Doppler, shadowing, and system capacity, and availability. For example, in (Castanet et al.,
multipath effects become severe. Especially, the Doppler effect 2003), the authors discuss interference and fade mitigation
becomes a serious issue for the personal SATCOMs, due to its fast techniques for Ka and Q/V band SATCOMs based on power
orbital speed (e.g., around 7.8 km/s) and its high operating control, adaptive waveforms, and diversity5.
frequency (10 ~30 GHz) (3GPP TR 38.811 V15.4.0, 2020).
Figure 4 illustrates the variation of Doppler shift with orbital 3.2 High Power Amplifiers
height. It shows that the lower the altitude of the SAT, the more With the help of a chain of components (transponder), the SAT is
severe the Doppler effect becomes. Since lower orbits are able to process uplink signals and retransmit them towards the
characterized by large gravitational forces, SATs accelerate earth station receiver via the downlink. Figure 5 shows the block
faster to minimize the effect of gravity while maintaining the diagram of a regenerative SAT transponder whose basic function
orbit. This leads to increased relative motion associated with high is to recover, amplify and frequency shift the input signal. The
velocities between the SAT and user terminal4. input multiplexer (IMUX) splits the received wide band signals
Therefore the choice of channel model and the band of into narrow band channels Processes, such as signal
operation will be important in designing several parameters of predistortion, demodulation and remodulation, are done by

4 5
[Online]. Available at: https://www.eutelsat.org. [Online]. Available at: https://www.globalstar.com.

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Ssimbwa et al. Modulations for Personal Satellite Communications

FIGURE 5 | A schematic of a regenerative SAT transponder.

FIGURE 7 | HPA model.

By operating these HPAs in the linear region with a large input

back-off, spectral regrowth in the transmitted signal can be
mitigated. Otherwise, spectral regrowth can lead to build up of
out-of-band (OOB) side lobes which might result in severe ACI.
FIGURE 6 | Characteristics of nonlinearities in HPAs. However, it is costly to deploy linear HPAs with a large dynamic
range. Therefore, to maximize power efficiency, it would require
that the HPAs be operated very close to the saturation point
OBP (3GPP TR 38.811 V15.4.0, 2020; Perez-Neira et al., 2019). (Mulinde et al., 2013). As a consequence, undesirable amplitude
Output signals from the HPA are combined by the output modulation-amplitude modulation (AM-AM) and amplitude
multiplexer (OMUX) and redirected towards the earth station modulation-phase modulation (AM-PM) conversions
receiver. Therefore, modulation techniques customized for (distortions) are introduced into the transmitted signal (see
personal SATCOMs will be required to support the OBP Figure 6). AM-AM is due to the change in output voltage,
requirements. To this end, HPA serves as one of the most while AM-PM results from change in phase angle of the
important stages of the SATCOM system. The HPA output voltage for several input signal levels. The desired
performance may be evaluated basing on output power, levels of AM-AM and AM-PM conversions are 1dB/dB and
efficiency, and sideband regrowth (Gard et al., 1999). 0rc/dB, respectively (Lohmeyer et al., 2016).
Regardless of the transmission distance, the existence of path- On the other hand, operating in a nonlinear mode at or near
loss and atmospheric-induced fading requires digital saturation incurs spectral spreading which results from the
communications systems to sustain adequate reception power nonlinearity caused by band-limiting the modulation prior to
at the receiver side. Moreover, HPAs consume about 65% amplification. A replica of distortion terms for the TWTAs and
(Gruber et al., 2009) and 80–90% (Lohmeyer et al., 2016) of SSPAs can be characterized using models, such as Saleh, Rapp, and
the available power in TN and SATCOMs, respectively. It is Gorbani (Saleh, 1981; Ghorbani and Sheikhan, 1991; Rapp, 1991). It
therefore of great necessity to deploy a device capable of should be noted that the TWTA model is mostly used to characterize
generating sufficient transmitter output power based on fixed- HPA nonlinearities in this paper as illustrated by Figure 7.
but-limited available power. Some of the examples of such devices Figure 8A, Figure 8D, and Figure 8G illustrate the
include solid-state power amplifiers (SSPAs) and traveling-wave deformation on the constellations due to AM-AM distortions
tube amplifiers (TWTAs). Generally, the frequency band of for 16-QAM, 16-APSK, and 16-CPM, respectively. They show the
operation and the type of application are the key constraints occurrence of the warping effect whereby the amplified signal’s
when selecting an amplifier for deployment. For example, for a constellation points get compressed inwards, and they no longer
typical HPA output power range (10–300 W), TWTAs provide lie on the original lattice points. 16-QAM is the most affected
more output power at higher frequency bands while SSPAs whereas 16-APSK and 16-CPM maintain their shapes. Figure 8B,
achieve greater power output at lower frequency bands Figure 8E, and Figure 8H display the deformation on the
(Lohmeyer et al., 2016)6. constellations due to AM-PM distortions for 16-QAM, 16-
APSK, and 16-CPM, respectively. They show the clustering
effect as the amplified signal constellation points are spread
6
[Online]. Available at: https://www.inmarsat.org. out in small clusters resulting from nonlinear inter-symbol

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Ssimbwa et al. Modulations for Personal Satellite Communications

FIGURE 8 | Effect of amplification on the constellation structures of 16-QAM, 16-APSK and 16-CPM, modeled using TWTA (Saleh model). Here, (A,D,G) represent
AM/AM distortions, (B,E,H) represent AM/PM distortions, while combined AM/AM and AM/PM distortions are illustrated in (C,F,I).

interference (ISI). The impact is most pronounced in 16-QAM. It should be noted that besides HPA nonlinearities, other
Figure 8C, Figure 8F, and Figure 8I portray the resultant impairments (Horlin and Bourdoux, 2008) on the NTN-TN
constellation structures after subjecting the 16-QAM, 16- channel which are not discussed in this paper such as phase
APSK, and 16-CPM signals to a combination of AM-AM and noise, carrier frequency offset and I/Q imbalance, are important
AM-PM distortions. It is shown that 16-CPM is the least sensitive and therefore equally require research to ensure a joint boost in
to HPA nonlinearities compared to APSK and QAM. system performance7.
Several techniques have been proposed to combat the effect of
nonlinear distortions at the transmitter side in the form of pre-
distortion and post-distortion at the receiver side through 4 MODULATION TECHNIQUES
nonlinear equalization (Ding et al., 2004; Beidas, 2011; Beidas
et al., 2015; Joung et al., 2015). Authors in (Joung et al., 2015) Modulation involves pre-conditioning the signal into a suitable
provide a summary of HPA centric techniques with an emphasis form for transmission over the communication channel. Other
on the design of HPAs, signals, and networks to improve HPA than analog, this work focuses more on digital modulation
linearity and efficiency. It should be noted that the extent to schemes since the latter have exhibited better features, such as
which nonlinearity affects the communications system is mainly more resilience to distortion, reliable and flexible circuitry, cost
dependant on the power requirement and modulation scheme in effectiveness, to mention but a few. Through digital modulation,
use (Corazza, 2007). Leveraging the ramifications of HPA it is possible to symmetrically split and combine signal
nonlinearities due to modulation and hardware drawbacks, we
are motivated to examine the various modulation schemes for
suitability in personal SATCOMs. 7
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Ssimbwa et al. Modulations for Personal Satellite Communications

complexity (Agilent Technologies, 2000). Power efficiency

ensures reliable transmission of data with minimal power
requirements. A modulation technique that is robust to
channel impairments achieves a low BER in the presence of
Doppler effects, path-loss, and other severe channel conditions.
Low complexity in system design can guarantee affordability. A
bandwidth-efficient modulation technique ensures minimum
power radiation into adjacent bands hence reducing the effect
of ACI (Stuber, 1996). From a practical network perspective,
bandwidth is a scarce resource that can only guarantee seamless
service if used effectively. In that regard, the transmitted signal is
filtered to reduce radiation into adjacent bands. Proper filtering
can alleviate the occurrence of ISI, resulting in a drastic boost in
spectral efficiency. Contrastingly, the rise and fall times of the
filter may also introduce ISI, which could further degrade the
performance. Filter design and implementation is also quite
complicated especially at higher frequencies. Furthermore, if
the filtering is done before amplification, HPA nonlinearities
FIGURE 9 | Constellation diagrams for BPSK (A), QPSK (B), OQPSK can revert the effect of the filter. To this end, some advanced
(C), and DQPSK (D). modulators with integrated predistortion functionalities will be
necessary for the next generation of personal SATCOM networks.
In this paper, the discussed modulation schemes are grouped
into near constant or constant envelope modulations including
PSK and CPM, and nonconstant phase envelope modulations,
such as APSK and QAM (Stuber, 1996; Agilent Technologies,
2000; Proakis, 2000; Ziemer, 2001; Anderson et al., 2013). The
term constant envelope is derived from the fact that all points on
the constellations have a fixed distance from the center. In other
words, no signal is modulated on the amplitude (Lee, 1998). It
should be noted that in some literature, for instance, the authors
in (Xiong, 2006) describe APSK as a constant envelope
modulation scheme, however, based on the APSK constellation
design and definition of a constant envelope modulation scheme
from (Lee, 1998), we consider APSK as a nonconstant envelope
modulation scheme. Table 4 presents a summary of strengths,
limitations, and major applications for the selected modulation
schemes.

4.1 PSK
PSK waveforms may include, binary phase shift keying (BPSK),
quadrature phase shift keying (QPSK), and M-ary phase shift
keying (M-PSK). PSK schemes, such as BPSK and QPSK are
known for their good BER and good power efficiency, hence are
FIGURE 10 | Constellation diagrams for 16-PSK (A), 16-APSK (B) and suitable for poor channel conditions. However, the performance
16-QAM (C). of PSK schemes is limited by some constraints. For example, for
the case of BPSK, coherent detection requires carrier phase
recovery, hence making receiver design quite complex (Lee,
1998; Goldsmith, 2005), whereas QPSK incurs rapid phase
components at transmission and reception stages, i.e., in-phase variations between symbols which results in poor spectral
and quadrature components. Modulation has several benefits, efficiency8.
such as boosting the signal’s immunity to interference, supporting In SATCOMs, the variants of QPSK, namely offset quadrature
long-distance transmissions, and multiplexing of different phase shift keying (OQPSK) (Gronemeyer and McBride, 1976)
signals. Modulation also makes it possible to reduce and differential quadrature phase shift keying (π/4-DQPSK) (Lee,
antenna sizes. 1998), can be deployed to achieve better spectral efficiency since
Generally, the criterion of choosing modulation techniques
depends on factors, such as power efficiency, robustness to
channel impairments, bandwidth efficiency, and system 8
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Ssimbwa et al. Modulations for Personal Satellite Communications

they prevent the problem of zero crossings in conventional QPSK. 4.4 QAM
These schemes can support the use of less linear but power- Compared to other modulation schemes, the rings of QAM
efficient amplifiers in SATCOMs. Figure 9 portrays the (Proakis, 2000) constellation are usually greater in number
constellation diagrams of BPSK, QPSK, and the variants of (see Figure 10). This yields higher amplitude levels and hence
QPSK. Spectral efficiency as well as higher data rates can poor PAPR. Additionally, the uneven spacing of the rings with
further be achieved by increasing the size of modulation size some closer to others makes it harder to mitigate HPA
(M), i.e., deploying higher order M-PSK schemes (Haykin, 2008; nonlinearities (Stuber, 1996; Keysight Technologies, 2020).
Rice, 2009). However, this is achieved at the cost of BER Although QAM exhibits a high BER and poor power
performance since the constellation points draw closer to each efficiency compared to constant and low-order modulation
other as the phase difference between carrier states decreases, schemes, such as BPSK and QPSK, it boosts of high
thereby rendering the system more sensitive to channel bandwidth efficiency since it conveys more information via
impairments. both the amplitude and phase (Ziemer, 2001). Therefore, it
can be used when the channel conditions are good to achieve
4.2 APSK higher data rates while maintaining tolerable spectral efficiency in
APSK (Liu et al., 2011; Thomas et al., 1974) seeks to solve the personal SATCOMs. QAM is widely used in mobile
problem of increased risk of errors resulting from the increment communications, cable TV, Wi-Fi, and others (Agilent
of the modulation size of PSK by distributing the same number of Technologies, 2000).
constellation points across different concentric circles. The APSK
constellation makes it easy to implement the predistortion of 4.5 Waveforms
HPA nonlinearities through varying the space between rings. Over the recent years, multitone modulation techniques, such as
Moreover, compared to schemes like QAM, APSK systems have a OFDM have exhibited good performance in TN and therefore
lower number of amplitude levels (see Figure 10), thus exhibit a attract attention for their applicability in the next generation of
lower PAPR. Consequently, having a low PAPR can promote SAT systems. OFDM (Bingham, 1990; Stuber, 1996) is widely
good spectral efficiency and robustness to HPA nonlinearities in used in mobile and power-line communications. In SATCOMs,
SATCOMs. Due to the aforementioned features, an optimized OFDM scheme has been adopted in DVB-SH (ITU-R S.2173-1,
version of APSK was adopted in digital video broadcasting SAT- 2014). OFDM is a successor waveform to the prominent CDMA
second generation (DVB-S2) (ETSI, 2006). Unfortunately, it is yet (Pickholtz et al., 1982; Cook and Marsh, 1983) which is widely
to find its application in cellular networks since it is used in both TN and SATCOMs because of its good capacity and
computationally complex and no Gray mapping exists for robustness to ACI. However, compared to SATCOMs, due to
APSK constellations, which results in a high independent topography and terrestrial environment, the problem of ISI in TN
demapping loss (Liu et al., 2011; Xie et al., 2012). However, resulting from extreme multipath conditions makes it complex to
efforts to further optimize APSK for extended application in perform equalization. Hence, giving OFDM the edge over CDMA
communications have been going on over the past years (De in terms of maximizing data rate and the aforementioned
Gaudenzi et al., 2006; Morello and Mignone, 2006; Kayhan and interference problems (Chang, 1966; Saltzberg, 1967)9, 10.
Montorsi, 2012). OFDM is famous for its simplicity to implement the equalizer,
which results from its ability to convert a frequency-selective
4.3 CPM channel into several parallel independent frequency-flat
Linear modulation techniques, such as PSK and QAM exhibit subchannels (Saltzberg, 1967; Weinstein and Ebert, 1971;
phase discontinuity, a complication which can lead to the Bingham, 1990). In this way, OFDM achieves a double
widening of the frequency spectrum. Fortunately, by performance gain from modulation and multiplexing. OFDM
deploying CPM (Aulin et al., 1981; AulinSundberg and has several advantages, such as high spectral efficiency, low
Sundberg, 1981; Anderson et al., 2013), phase discontinuity complexity receiver design, and robustness against multi-path
can be eliminated, resulting in improved spectral efficiency propagation (Bingham, 1990; Dahlman et al., 2013; Rohde and
and noise immunity of SATCOMs. CPM also induces a coding Schwarz, 2021). Nevertheless, OFDM harbors imperfections,
gain resulting from the inherent memory introduced by the such as a high PAPR (Yiyan Wu and Wu, 2008), sensitivity to
phase-shaping filter (Rimoldi, 1988). However, BER analysis of frequency and timing offsets (Rohde and Schwarz, 2021), and
CPM signals, such as continuous phase frequency shift keying OOB emission (Van De Beek and Berggren, 2008; Michailow
(CPFSK) is quite complex (Aulin and Sundberg, 1984; et al., 2012). Since OFDM has a high PAPR, to prevent
Goldsmith, 2005). In practical scenarios, more correlators compression at a high output power level, a large back-off is
would be required. required (Keysight Technologies, 2020). Hence more research is
Besides CPFSK, other notable examples of CPM waveforms, required to attain a waveform that is both spectral- and power-
distinguished by frequency pulse responses, include minimum efficient with considerable sensitivity to frequency and timing
shift keying (MSK) (Pasupathy, 1979), Gaussian minimum offsets. For instance, the authors in (Tan and Stuber, 2002;
shift keying (GMSK) (Murota and Hirade, 1981), to mention
but a few. CPM has been adopted in SATCOMs (ETSI, 2012),
deep space (Simon, 2005), optical communications (Ho, 2005), 9
[Online]. Available at: https://www.starlink.com.
and so on. 10
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Ssimbwa et al. Modulations for Personal Satellite Communications

FIGURE 11 | MER and EVM performance for QPSK, 16-CPM, 16-QAM, FIGURE 13 | Power and bandwidth efficiency for QPSK, 16-CPM, 16-
and 16-APSK in the presence of nonlinearities modeled using TWTA (Saleh QAM, and 16-APSK in the presence of nonlinearities modeled using TWTA
model). (Saleh model).

FIGURE 12 | MER and EVM performance for QPSK, 16-CPM, 16-QAM,

and 16-APSK in the presence of Doppler effects with the velocity of the FIGURE 14 | Power and bandwidth efficiency for QPSK, 16-CPM, 16-
terminal, 500 km/h, carrier frequency, 20 GHz, SAT at a height of 600 km, QAM, and 16-APSK in the presence of Doppler effects with the velocity of the
maximum elevation angle, 60rc, and the inclination angle of the SAT terminal, 500 km/h, carrier frequency, 20 GHz, SAT at a height of 600 km,
orbit, 52rc. maximum elevation angle, 60rc, and the inclination angle of the SAT
orbit, 52rc.

Thompson et al., 2008; Mulinde et al., 2013; Rahman et al., 2018;

Rohde and Schwarz, 2021) discuss generalized frequency shift that all the results provided in this paper are obtained through
keying (GFDM), filter-bank multi-carrier (FBMC), constant- simulations in Matlab. The channel model considered in this
envelope single-carrier frequency division multiple access (CE- paper is adopted from (Lin et al., 2016). Doppler shift
SC-FDMA), and others, as alternative waveforms for OFDM due computation is done using the approach in (3GPP TR 38.811
to their property of low PAPR. V15.4.0, 2020). The theoretical equations in (E. TR101290, 2001)
are used to compute MER and EVM. To simulate power and
bandwidth efficiency, we adopt the theoretical approach in
5 COMPARISON OF MODULATION (Akhtman and Hanzo, 2009). We carryout PAPR
SCHEMES computations using the formulation in (Cho et al., 2010).

This section presents a comparative study of the representative 5.1 Error Performance
modulation techniques subject to HPA nonlinearities and Besides BER, MER and EVM can be used to measure the accuracy
Doppler effects as a backup for the discussions given in the of the modulation technique by comparing the demodulated
earlier sections. Table 5 provides a summarized comparative signal with the reference signal. MER reflects the ratio
analysis for the selected modulation schemes. It is worth noting between the transmitted signal power and the power of error

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Ssimbwa et al. Modulations for Personal Satellite Communications

From the above results, it can be noted that a high MER and a
low EVM would be desirable for a stable communication system.
All modulations are affected by HPA nonlinearities and Doppler
shift; however, CPM strikes a balance between MER and EVM,
hence, proving suitable for applicability to personal SATCOMs.

5.2 Spectral Performance

We consider bandwidth efficiency, power efficiency, and PAPR as
metrics to evaluate the spectral performance of our selected
modulation schemes In conventional communication systems,
low-level modulation schemes are preferred for worst case
channel conditions due to their low power requirement which
is attained by sacrificing the bandwidth as displayed in Figure 13
and Figure 14.
Figure 13 illustrates the trade-off between power and
bandwidth efficiency for representative modulation schemes in
FIGURE 15 | CCDF of PAPR for OFDM with the n umber of subcarriers,
K
{128, 256} under QPSK, 16-CPM, 16-APSK, and 16-QAM.
the presence of HPA nonlinearities. It shows that QPSK has the
greatest power efficiency but lowest bandwidth efficiency
compared to CPM, QAM, and APSK. For example, in the
presence of HPA nonlinearities, the power efficiency at -10dB
vectors, while EVM represents the magnitude of the difference SNR is about 1.2 and 0.68 bits per second per Watt (bps/W), for
vector between the I/Q reference signal vector to the I/Q QPSK and APSK, respectively. The corresponding bandwidth
measured signal vector. We exploit MER and EVM as metrics efficiency at 20dB SNR is about 8.65 and 10.14 bits per second per
to evaluate error performance of selected modulation schemes. hertz (bps/Hz) for QPSK and APSK, respectively. It should be
Compared to higher-order modulation schemes, low-level noted that CPM has the highest bandwidth efficiency (10.64 bps/
modulation schemes exhibit lower BER performance, and are Hz) and ranks second in power efficiency (0.86 bps/W). Besides
hence highly recommended for low signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) CPM, QPSK is also robust to nonlinear distortions but preference
channel conditions. However, the reverse is true when it comes to would be given to CPM which has better spectral efficiency due to
MER and EVM regardless of the channel conditions, as depicted carrying more data.
in Figure 11 and Figure 12. Figure 14 displays the trade-off between power and
Figure 11 shows the trade-off between MER and EVM for bandwidth efficiency for representative modulation schemes in
representative modulation schemes in the presence of HPA the presence of Doppler effects. Generally, all modulation
nonlinearities. It shows that for low SNR (for example, at schemes are affected by Doppler shift. Nonetheless, CPM
-10 dB), QPSK has the lowest MER (-8.3 dB) and highest appears the most robust to Doppler effects with considerable
EVM (258%) while QAM has the highest MER (-5.62 dB) and performance in terms of power efficiency and bandwidth
the lowest EVM (190%) under the influence of HPA efficiency, i.e., the degradation in power efficiency is
nonlinearities. QAM has a larger distance between the compensated for with a relatively low degradation in
constellation points which helps maintain lower EVM. Unlike bandwidth efficiency. It also shows that nonconstant envelope
CPM, the MER and EVM of QPSK, APSK, and QAM deteriorate modulation schemes are the most prone to degradation by
due to nonlinear distortions. CPM is able to maintain its Doppler. Hence more power would be required to sustain
performance since it has a constant envelope and reduced good signal quality. For example, at -10dB SNR, the power
phase discontinuity, i.e., at -10 dB SNR, MER = -7.86 dB and efficiency is 1.6 bps/W, 1.09 bps/W, and 0.59 bps/W, for
EVM = 250% while at 20 dB SNR, MER = 22 dB and EVM = 10%. QPSK, CPM, and QAM, respectively. The bandwidth
Figure 12 portrays the trade-off between MER and EVM for efficiency at 18 dB SNR is 7 bps/Hz, 8 bps/Hz, and 6.82 bps/
representative modulation schemes in the presence of Doppler Hz, for QPSK, CPM, and QAM, respectively. In both
shift. It shows that despite all modulation schemes being affected Figure 13 and Figure 14, APSK and QAM exhibit similar
by the Doppler phenomenon, CPM is the most robust scheme performances since both carry information in both the
followed by APSK, QAM, and QPSK in that order. Having a amplitude and phase given the same modulation level.
constant envelope gives CPM an advantage over the rest of the Figure 15 compares the complementary cumulative
selected modulation schemes. For instance at 20 dB SNR, the distribution function (CCDF) of PAPR for OFDM when
MER = 4.6 dB, 11.4 dB, 6.6 dB, and 8 dB and EVM = 58.8%, subjected to selected modulation techniques. It shows a
26.4%, 46.2%, and 38% for QPSK, CPM, QAM and APSK, general degradation in performance as the number of
respectively11. subcarriers increases. Due to the absence of phase
discontinuities, CPM exhibits the best performance compared
to QPSK, APSK, and QAM. For instance, when K = 128, at the
CCDF of 10–3, the corresponding PAPR is 7.43, 7.512, and 7.562
11
[Online]. Available at: https://www.thuraya.com. for CPM, QPSK, APSK, and QAM, respectively. Therefore, CPM

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Ssimbwa et al. Modulations for Personal Satellite Communications

does not require a highly linear HPA since it ensures that a low codes used in FEC may include Reed-Solomon (RS),
PAPR is maintained. It also shows that the APSK and QAM convolutional (CC), Bose-Chaudhuri-Hocquenghem (BCH)
exhibit a similar performance, of which APSK performance is codes, low-density parity check (LDPC), polar, and turbo
greatly attributed to the ring ratio. In this case, we used a ring codes (Hagenauer and Lutz, 1987; Costello et al., 1998; Del Re
ratio of 2. Depending on the application, system designers vary and Pierucci, 2002b; CCSDS, 2011; Clark et al., 2013). Rather than
several parameters such as the spacing between the rings, the single codes, a concatenated system of codes could be deployed to
number of rings, and the number of symbols on a ring, to achieve further boost performance (Forney, 1966). Concatenation brings
the desired performance. It is also worth noting that current state- about a double coding gain by regulating random and burst errors
of-the-art DVB-SAT deploy coded-APSK, which is optimized introduced by the channel. By employing error-correction,
specifically for SAT applications. system BER performance could be improved; however, several
Several PAPR reduction techniques have been exploited in trade-off scenarios exist between power, bandwidth, latency,
literature, such as those with distortion constituting clipping and reliability, complexity altogether. For instance, less power
filtering and amplitude clipping (Yiyan Wu and Wu, 2008; could be required to transmit signals but at the expense of
Sandoval et al., 2017). However, the reduction in PAPR is decreased bandwidth. Additional processing, such as long
achieved at a cost. For example, it can lead to increased BER, interleaving and coding overhead introduced by error
higher computational complexity, and loss in data rate. A low correction could lead to an increase in latency, especially for
PAPR results in improved spectral efficiency since it allows the long code lengths (Shirvanimoghaddam et al., 2019). Moreover,
use of a low back-off during signal amplification. whether to do HARQ at either the TN or NTN level or both has to
Due to the power limitation of HPAs described in Subsection be considered since HARQ is crucial at long round trip
3.2, modulation schemes, such as QAM, which convey transmissions (RTT). This could be done by enhancing the
information via multi-level amplitudes require a linear existing HARQ operation, limiting HARQ capabilities, and
amplifying feature, i.e., amplification requires a wider linear disabling HARQ for long RTT delays (Kodheli et al., 2017;
range of operation which leads to reduced power efficiency. 3GPP TR 38.811 V15.4.0, 2020; RP-180664, 2018).
This makes them unsuitable for use on channels operated Furthermore, decoding algorithms could make the system
beyond maximum transmitted power efficiency condition. more complex and costly. Developing efficient and less
Therefore constant envelope modulation schemes are complex FEC and HARQ techniques is an area that requires
preferable since they attain bandwidth efficiency through more research.
packing all the data in a single-level amplitude while
maintaining considerable power efficiency. 6.2 VCM/ACM
ACM can be regarded as a form of resource allocation by which
5.3 Cost and Complexity the most appropriate modulation and coding (ModCod)
Cost-effective and easy-to-implement aspects are also essential scheme is selected depending on the channel condition. For
criteria for designing modulation schemes. Several aspects, such instance, under favorable channel conditions, a high order
as the modulation level, detection techniques, and the choice of modulation technique with low coding redundancy is
application, contribute greatly to the complexity and resulting deployed in order to increase the transmission data rate.
cost of a particular modulation technique. For example, based on Conversely, during a signal fade, the system selects a more
our findings and evaluations, APSK and CPM perform better robust modulation scheme and a higher coding rate to sustain
than QAM but designing their receivers is quite complex and link availability, and connection quality without increasing the
possesses synchronization difficulties. signal power. Variations in the channel could result from
weather conditions, propagation distance, mobility, signal
obstruction by multiple reflectors, and so forth. ACM is
6 FUTURE AND OPEN TOPICS widely used in wireless communications, such as cellular
(3GPP TR 25.848 V4.0.0, 2001) and SATs (ETSI, 2006).
In addition to modulation, other complementary avenues can be Although several researchers have investigated and
exploited to achieve higher joint system performance in terms of proposed different ACM approaches (Goldsmith and Chua,
throughput, reliability, latency, and efficiency through applying 1998; Xiaoxin Qiu and Chawla, 1999; Downey et al., 2016;
other techniques, such as waveform design, error-control coding, Mota et al., 2019), more research will be necessary to design
variable/adaptive coding and modulation (VCM/ACM), spatial optimal ACM techniques for unified application in personal
diversity schemes, enhanced synchronization, and beam SATCOMs to guarantee improved throughput and error rate
management altogether. performance. Besides the channel condition, other factors may
be considered when designing ACM techniques, such as the
6.1 Error Control Coding mode of transmission (single or multi-carrier), operation
In communications systems, engineers deploy error correction band, HPA nonlinearities, spatial diversity, delay
and detection (Costello et al., 1998; Clark et al., 2013) schemes to requirements, system complexity, and others. In addition to
improve the reliability. Such techniques may include forward ACM, VCM (Toptsidis et al., 2012) is another technique for
error control (FEC), automatic repeat request (ARQ), and hybrid link adaptation that takes advantage of the variability in the
automatic repeat request (HARQ). Examples of common error SAT slant path geometry resulting from the relative movement

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Ssimbwa et al. Modulations for Personal Satellite Communications

between the SAT and the ground terminal. This means that the 2019) need to be conducted to harmonize transmission and
ModCods are selected based on the angle of elevation of reception procedures taking place in both TN and SATCOM.
the link. Synchronization techniques should allow the use of minimum
overhead while maintaining bandwidth efficiency.
6.3 Spatial Diversity
The application of multi-antenna systems in SATs (Arapoglou 6.5 Beam Management
et al., 2011; Kyröläinen et al., 2014; Petropoulou et al., 2014) has The size of footprint of a particular SAT is based on the beam
been triggered by the shift from lower frequency bands to higher illuminated in the direction of the receiver. Additionally, the
frequency bands such as Ku and Ka, which allow the use of deployment of LEOs and the adoption of higher frequency bands
smaller antennas (Kodheli et al., 2021). Additionally, adopting a have enabled the use of smaller antennas, which support the
shorter wavelength enables the design of compact phased array transition from a single fixed but wide beam to multiple flexible
antennas that achieve isotropic gain, and hence offsetting the but smaller beams. Consequently, the use of several spot beams
propagation loss at higher frequencies (Varrall, 2018). Boosting of allows frequency re-use, which could be catastrophic in terms of
its benefits, including reliability, throughput, and spectral ACI if not regulated. Therefore, beam management in personal
efficiency, resulting from spatial diversity, interference SATCOMs will be essential for several purposes not limited to
reduction, spatial multiplexing, and beamforming gain, interference cancellation. Due to the unpredictable nature of
multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) technology has been traffic patterns in personal communications, the SAT payloads
widely used in TNs over the past years (Paulraj et al., 2004; should be designed with the flexibility to varying traffic, power,
Boccardi et al., 2012). However, the applicability of MIMO in cost, and delivery time. The authors in (Jacomb-Hood and Lier,
SATCOMs, especially spatial multiplexing, is not yet fully 2000) present the benefits of beam-shape flexibility and design
exploited. The main hindrance being, the absence of scatterers multibeam active phase arrays for SATCOMs. In (R1-1802551,
in the domain in which SATs operate. The scattering 2018), beam modeling for handheld devices in NTN is presented
environment makes the fading paths between multi-antenna based on antenna array assumption at lower and higher
transmitter and receiver independent, hence, allowing to frequency bands. The beamforming gain is deemed necessary
leverage the benefits of MIMO. Moreover, the MIMO channel for link budget analysis and estimation of achievable data rate.
matrix becomes rank deficient, leading to performance Therefore, optimal beamforming architectures are desirable for
deterioration (Arapoglou et al., 2011). From the wireless seamless service delivery. Other promising technologies for beam
network perspective, spatial diversity (diggavi et al., 2004; management may include multi-spot beamforming (Del Re and
Sendonaris et al., 2003) can be exploited to enhance Pierucci, 2002b; Letzepis and Grant, 2008; Su et al., 2019), hybrid
performance improvement in SATCOMs in terms of higher beamforming (Molisch et al., 2017), beam hopping (Freedman
reliability and data rates. Therefore, it is of great necessity to et al., 2015; Freedman et al., 2017; Nader et al., 2020), precoding
conduct further research concerning the application of multi- (Vazquez et al., 2016), altogether.
antenna systems in a personal SATCOM scenario at the SAT,
user terminal, and earth station level. For example, the antenna 6.6 Waveform Design
size, the number of antennas required, interference mitigation, Besides the detrimental effects of HPA nonlinearities, other
the use of codes, resource allocation, optimal beamforming channel impairments, such as Doppler shift, and multipath
architectural design, to mention but a few (Yingda et al., 2006; effects are significant in determining the performance of
Alegre-Godoy and Vazquez-Castro, 2013; Mysore et al., 2021). personal SATCOMs. These greatly contribute to ISI and ACI
during transmission. Hence waveform design is very important.
6.4 Enhanced Synchronization Whereas transmission in present-day TN is dominated by multi-
Following the paradigm shift in network generations, there is an carrier transmissions (ITU-R S.2173-1, 2014), more research is
expected substantial increase in speed requirements; hence still required to reinforce the implementation of multi-carrier
synchronization will be a key streamliner to the seamless transmissions in SATCOMs. In the light of such differences in
delivery of extended services (Lin, 2018). In a radio network, transmission, a joint or similar mode of transmission could be of
radio clocks that are not well synchronized are prone to time great necessity to ensure efficiency in the performance of
shifts and are less accurate, resulting in interference between cells. integrated SAT and TN air-interfaces. For instance, OFDM
From the network perspective, exacerbated problems of Doppler can be adopted for transmission in personal SATCOMs due to
effects could be faced in out-of-sync integrated SATs and TNs. simplicity of the receiver design in multipath channels. However,
Moreover, OBP functionality is vulnerable to synchronization OFDM has a higher PAPR compared to single-carrier waveforms.
failures. Hence further research related to synchronization Moreover, in SAT channels, due to absence of scatterers, the effect
requirements for personal SATCOMs is required. Unlike of multipath channels is negligible, which makes single-carrier
legacy network generations, such as 3G and 4G whose waveforms desirable. Therefore single-carrier waveforms such as,
synchronization was mainly through frequency, next network SC-FDMA, can be adopted in the uplink (Papathanassiou et al.,
generations, including 5G and beyond will require the 2001; Dalakas et al., 2012). Alternatively, advanced OFDM-like
enhancement of phase and time synchronization as well (Li single-carrier and multi-carrier waveforms can be deployed (Tan
et al., 2017; Mahmood et al., 2019; Ericsson, 2021). Further and Stuber, 2002; Thompson et al., 2008; Mulinde et al., 2013;
studies (RP-180664, 2018; R1-1802064, 2018; R1-1904245, Farhang-Boroujeny and Moradi, 2016; Guidotti et al., 2016;

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Ssimbwa et al. Modulations for Personal Satellite Communications

Rahman et al., 2018). For that matter, the limitations of multi- in power saving at SAT transceiver sides but at the expense of
carrier transmissions discussed in 4.5 should not be neglected. performance loss in the uplink. This may be compensated for
through increasing power or the antenna gain of the ground
station. We have also shown that all the representative
7 CONCLUSION modulation schemes are affected by Doppler; hence, advanced
Doppler mitigation techniques are required. To counteract the
In this paper, the literature review on the performance of the problem of HPA nonlinearity and Doppler effects, it would be
representative digital modulation techniques was presented for beneficial to deploy modulation techniques that are cost-effective,
implementation in SATs to support personal communications. easy-to-implement, and adaptive to channel conditions with
Power efficiency, spectral efficiency, pros and cons of different associated HPA limitations in order to achieve quality of
schemes alongside several SAT system requirements have been service in personal SATCOMs. To this end, we therefore hope
discussed. We have carried out performance comparisons backed this work will be a valuable guide to both academia and industry
up by simulations and to support our findings. Among the for the development of the next generation networks but not
representative modulation techniques, CPM has the best limited to personal SATCOMs.
performance subject to the different evaluation metrics. Simply
put, CPM presents the best compromise between power
efficiency, bandwidth efficiency, and error performance. DATA AVAILABILITY STATEMENT
Moreover, by replacing APSK with CPM, system performance
can be improved by 20 ~ 40% in terms of power and bandwidth The original contributions presented in the study are included in
efficiency. the article/Supplementary Material, further inquiries can be
By combining our studies and results, we have shown that directed to the corresponding author.
several trade-offs exist when determining the choice of a
modulation technique to use. For instance, to attain high data
rates and spectral efficiency, higher-order modulation schemes AUTHOR CONTRIBUTIONS
could be adopted. However, such modulation schemes are prone
to nonlinear signal distortions and have a high BER performance. JS has worked on writing the original draft and surveyed the
Nonconstant envelope modulation schemes are bandwidth- various modulation schemes used for the satellite
efficient, nevertheless, power inefficient. On the other hand, communications. BL and J-HL has worked on reviewing and
constant envelope modulation schemes are not only power- editing the draft. Y-CK set up the conceptualization and did the
efficient but also spectrally efficient. For the case of supervision.
nonconstant envelope modulation schemes, linear
amplification is required. Additionally, advanced predistortion
techniques may be deployed in the uplink station to minimize the ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
nonlinearity effect. High efficiency saturated HPAs can be
deployed to improve performance in constant envelope This work was supported by Institute of Information &
modulation schemes. By deploying a modulation scheme that communications Technology Planning & Evaluation (IITP)
is of less power efficiency but simple to modulate in the uplink, grant funded by the Korea government (MSIT) (No. 2021-0-
and a more power-efficient scheme in the downlink would result 00260, Research on LEO Inter-Satellite Links.

Alegre-Godoy, R., and Vazquez-Castro, M. A. (2013). Spatial Diversity with

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Frontiers in Communications and Networks | www.frontiersin.org 19 May 2022 | Volume 3 | Article 850781