Amplitude and phase-shift keying

Amplitude and phase-shift keying (APSK) is a digital modulation scheme that conveys data by modulating both the amplitude and the phase of a carrier wave. In other words, it combines both amplitude-shift keying (ASK) and phase-shift keying (PSK). This allows for a lower bit error rate for a given modulation order and signal-to-noise ratio, at the cost of increased complexity, compared to ASK or PSK alone.^[1]

Quadrature amplitude modulation (QAM) can be considered a subset of APSK because all QAM schemes modulate both the amplitude and phase of the carrier. Conventionally, QAM constellations are rectangular and APSK constellations are circular, however this is not always the case. The distinction between the two is in their production; QAM is produced from two orthogonal signals. The advantage of APSK over conventional QAM is a lower number of possible amplitude levels and therefore a lower peak-to-average power ratio (PAPR).^[2] The resilience of APSK to amplifier and channel non-linearities afforded by its low PAPR have made it especially attractive for satellite communications, including DVB-S2.^[3]

^ Thomas, C; Weidner, M; Durrani, S (February 1974). "Digital Amplitude-Phase Keying with M-ary Alphabets". IEEE Transactions on Communications. 22 (2): 168–180. doi:10.1109/TCOM.1974.1092165. Retrieved 11 June 2021.
^ Ershov, A.N., Berezkin, V.V., Petrov, S.V., Petrov, A.V. and Pochivalin, D.A., 2018. Features of Calculation and Design of High-Speed Radio Links for Earth Remote Sensing Spacecraft.
^ De Gaudenzi, Riccardo; Guillén i Fàbregas, Albert; Martinez, Alfonso (19 May 2006). "Turbo-coded APSK modulations design for satellite broadband communications". International Journal of Satellite Communications and Networking. 24 (4): 261–281. doi:10.1002/sat.841. S2CID 9245178. Retrieved 11 June 2021.
^ "Standard + Customized APSK Schemes For Satellite Transmission" By Donald Vanderweit, Agilent Technologies, Inc.

[thomas-et-al_1974-1] Thomas, C; Weidner, M; Durrani, S (February 1974). "Digital Amplitude-Phase Keying with M-ary Alphabets". IEEE Transactions on Communications. 22 (2): 168–180. doi:10.1109/TCOM.1974.1092165. Retrieved 11 June 2021.

[2] Ershov, A.N., Berezkin, V.V., Petrov, S.V., Petrov, A.V. and Pochivalin, D.A., 2018. Features of Calculation and Design of High-Speed Radio Links for Earth Remote Sensing Spacecraft.

[3] De Gaudenzi, Riccardo; Guillén i Fàbregas, Albert; Martinez, Alfonso (19 May 2006). "Turbo-coded APSK modulations design for satellite broadband communications". International Journal of Satellite Communications and Networking. 24 (4): 261–281. doi:10.1002/sat.841. S2CID 9245178. Retrieved 11 June 2021.

[4] "Standard + Customized APSK Schemes For Satellite Transmission" By Donald Vanderweit, Agilent Technologies, Inc.

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