4.2.

Binary Symmetric Channel (BSC)

In communication engineering, we are interested in conveying messages reliably

through a noisy channel at the maximum possible rate. We first look at a simple
channel called the binary symmetric channel (BSC), which is represented by the
transition diagram in Figure 4.2. In this channel both the input X and the output
Y take values in the set {0, 1}. There is a certain probability, denoted by ɛ, that
the output is not equal to the input. That is, if the input is 0, then the output is 0
with probability 1- ɛ, and is 1 with probability ɛ. Likewise, if the input is 1, then
the output is 1 with probability 1- ɛ, and is 0 with probability ɛ. The parameter ɛ
is called the crossover probability of the BSC.
Let {A, B} be the message set which contains two possible messages to be
conveyed through a BSC with 0 ≤ ɛ < 0:5. We further assume that the two
messages A and B are equally likely. If the message is A, we map it to the
codeword 0, and if the message is B, we map it to the codeword 1. This is the
simplest example of a channel code. The codeword is then transmitted through
the channel. Our task is to decode the message based on the output of the channel,
and an error is said to occur if the message is decoded incorrectly.
Consider:

𝑃 = {𝐴|𝑌 = 0} = 𝑃 {𝑋 = 0|𝑌 = 0} (4.2)

Figure 4.2. The transition diagram of a binary symmetric channel.

𝑃{𝑌 = 0} = 𝑃{𝑌 = 1} = 0.5 (4.3)

𝑃{𝐴|𝑌 = 0} = 1 − 𝜀 (4.4)

𝑃{𝐵|𝑌 = 0} = 𝜀 (4.5)
In order to minimize the probability of error, we decode a received 0 to the
message A. By symmetry, we decode a received 1 to the message B. An error
occurs if a 0 is received and the message is B, or if a 1 is received and the message
is A. Therefore, the probability of error, denoted by Pe, is given by:

𝑃𝑒 = 𝜀 (4.6)

4.3. Feedback Capacity

Feedback is common in practical communication systems for correcting possible
errors which occur during transmission. As an example, during a telephone

Figure 4.3. A channel code with feedback.

conversation, we often must request the speaker to repeat due to poor voice
quality of the telephone line. As another example, in data communication, the
receiver may request a packet to be retransmitted if the parity check bits received
are incorrect. In general, when feedback from the receiver is available at the
transmitter, the transmitter can at any time decide what to transmit next based on
the feedback so far and can potentially transmit information through the channel
reliably at a higher rate.