Exploiting Phase Memory in Multicarrier Waveforms for Robust Underwater Acoustic Communication

Reliable underwater acoustic (UWA) communication is fundamental to marine sensing applications, including environmental monitoring, underwater sensor networks, and autonomous platforms, yet remains severely challenged by multipath propagation, Doppler effects, and limited bandwidth. This paper investigates a memory-based multicarrier modulation framework in which controlled phase continuity is introduced at the symbol-mapping stage to enhance robustness against channel-induced distortions. Unlike conventional memoryless multicarrier schemes, the proposed approach embeds intentional phase memory at the transmitter and exploits it at the receiver, improving reliability in highly dispersive underwater environments. A comprehensive bit-error-rate (BER) evaluation is conducted using extensive simulations over realistic shallow-water acoustic channel models. The analysis examines rational modulation indices, pulse-shaping filters, roll-off factors, transmitter–receiver separation distances, and receiver structures. Both matched-filter and zero-forcing receivers are considered to assess trade-offs between interference mitigation and noise amplification. Results demonstrate consistent and significant BER improvements compared with conventional memoryless multicarrier systems. A modulation index of 7/16 achieves the minimum BER with matched-filter detection, while 3/10 yields optimal performance with zero-forcing detection. The Dirichlet pulse provides the most robust performance across operating conditions. These findings establish phase-memory-aware multicarrier design as a practical strategy for reliable underwater sensing and communication systems.