Low-PAPR condition for 5G-candidate waveforms

To meet 5G networks challenges in terms of high data rates and spectral efficiency, one solution might be using multicarrier modulations (MCM)s. However, using MCMs is synonymous with low energy efficiency due to their high peak-to-average power ratio (PAPR). Indeed, high PAPR signals drive power amplifiers to operate most of the time in the linear zone. This latter corresponds to low power efficiency. This leads to a trade-off between spectral and energy efficiency. For this reason, PAPR reduction techniques have been highly addressed in literature. In this work, this trade-off is addressed differently: a necessary condition to achieve better PAPR performance than orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (OFDM) is established. This theoretical condition is verified by simulation results carried on Fourier-based and wavelet-based MCMs. The established condition classifies the MCMs into three categories regarding the PAPR: same as, higher than and lower than the OFDM PAPR level.