An iterative approach to frequency offset estimation for multicarrier communication systems

An iterative approach to estimate the carrier frequency offset in multicarrier communication systems is proposed in this work. Based on the previous estimated channel coefficients and provided a sufficiently large number of sub-carriers, we have an approximate maximum likelihood (ML) estimate of the normalized frequency offset, which in turn can be used to refine the previous obtained estimation of channel coefficients. Simulation results show that the proposed algorithm requires a reliable estimation of the channel fading coefficients. Through a fast acquisition of the frequency offset at the beginning symbol block of each frame, the proposed iterative process can be better initiated, and the possible drift of the carrier frequency offset can therefore be tracked accurately.