Prof Emanuele Viterbo - Researcher Profile

Emanuele Viterbo

Address

Electrical & Computer Systems Eng
Faculty of Engineering, Clayton

Contact Details

Tel: +61 3 990 53473

Email: Emanuele.Viterbo@monash.edu


Biography

Code breaker takes on faster data challenge

It’s all about speed and accuracy for Professor Emanuele Viterbo – faster information transfer with fewer errors or information losses. His creative approach to coding is proving invaluable in improving the future of wired and wireless communication networks.

As leader of the new Software Defined Telecommunications Laboratory at Monash University, one of Emanuele’s latest challenges is “cognitive radio”. The aim is to develop smart wireless devices that can access unused bandwidth in existing communication networks – be they cable, optical or wireless.
 
“It would mean, for example, that a mobile phone could call another mobile phone in the same building by accessing radio bandwidth or wi-fi in the building, rather than connecting to the cellular network,” he says.

His research sits under the umbrella of information theory. The ultimate objective is to take the speed of communication as close as possible to the theoretical “ultimate limit”. This is the maximum speed at which data can be transferred without error. Emanuele says that in reality this limit is unattainable, but worldwide research efforts bring us at least closer to it, year by year.
 
“You design codes that keep your error probability as low as possible,” he explains. Errors in image files should not be detectable to the naked eye. In sound files they should be unheard. In computers the error rate should be almost nil, as a missing bit or two of information can stop a program from running. 

He says working on these codes brings him into collaborations with pure mathematicians, who delve more deeply into complex, conceptual maths than even he does. It gives them an opportunity to put their theories into practical applications.

The Monash telecommunications lab will also be a testing ground for new hardware. Special computers in the laboratory will be capable of “pretending” to be several different communication devices – depending on what the software tells it to be.
For example, a computer could act as if it were a new mobile phone, giving the designer a chance to see how the phone’s signalling would work – even before the prototype has been built.

“It makes it very easy to test new algorithms, new transmission schemes, new network schemes,” Emanuele says. Other uses for the lab include research into radar and defence applications, powerline communications and underground communications for mining.

Emanuele established his international reputation through two major radio communication breakthroughs that have already been incorporated into new technologies. In 2010 these earned him the highest honour from his peers internationally; he was awarded a fellowship to the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineering (IEEE).

It is a success he did not foresee when he stumbled on to this career path during a two-year stint at the European Patent Office in the early 1990s, after finishing his bachelor degree.

“I would see all these nice ideas – or not-so-nice ideas – in telecommunications but then I couldn’t really go and dig into improving them, or think about the application,” he says. Frustrated by the restrictions of the patent office, he returned to university to develop his own ideas through a PhD.

Emanuele says that in a sense coding runs in his blood. His great-great uncle, an amateur Egyptologist, developed his own alphabet that he used to write a 355-page memoir of late 19th century life. Family members and hired experts all failed to crack the code in almost a century of trying. But in 1997, Emanuele spent three months cracking and translating the 250-symbol code, revealing intimate details of his forebear’s private life.

Keywords

coding and information theory

Qualifications

PHD IN TELECOMMUNICATIONS
Institution: Politecnico Di Torino
Year awarded: 1995
ELECTRONIC ENGINEERING
Institution: Politecnico Di Torino
Year awarded: 1989

Publications

Book Chapters

Kalansuriya, P., Karmakar, N.C., Viterbo, E., 2012, A novel approach in the detection of chipless RFID, in Chipless and Conventional Radio Frequency Identification: Systems for Ubiquitous Tagging, eds Nemai Chandra Karmakar, Information Science Reference, Hershey PA USA, pp. 218-233.

Viterbo, E., Hong, Y., 2011, Algebraic coding for fast fading channels, in Wireless Communications Over Rapidly Time-Varying channels, eds Franz Hlawatsch and Gerald Matz, Academic Press, Burlington MA USA, pp. 117-153.

Chiasserini, C., Nordio, A., Viterbo, E., 2006, On data acquisition and field reconstruction in wireless sensor networks, in Distributed Cooperative Laboratories: Networking, Instrumentation, and Measurements, eds Franco Davoli, Sergio Palazzo and Sandro Zappatore, Springer, USA, pp. 161-171.

Journal Articles

Fernando, T.N.C., Hong, Y., Viterbo, E., 2012, Flip-OFDM for unipolar communication systems, IEEE Transactions on Communications [P], vol 60, issue 12, IEEE Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Piscataway NJ USA, pp. 3726-3733.

Mohammed, S.K., Viterbo, E., Hong, Y., Chockalingam, A., 2012, Modulation diversity in fading channels with a quantized receiver, IEEE Transactions on Wireless Communications [P], vol 11, issue 1, IEEE, USA, pp. 316-327.

Hong, Y., Lowery, A., Viterbo, E., 2012, Sensitivity improvement and carrier power reduction in direct-detection optical OFDM systems by subcarrier pairing, Optics Express [P], vol 20, issue 2, Optical Society of America, Washington DC USA, pp. 1635-1648.

Mohammed, S., Viterbo, E., Hong, Y., Chockalingam, A., 2011, MIMO Precoding with X- and Y- Codes, IEEE Transactions on Information Theory [P], vol 57, issue 6, IEEE-Inst. Electrical Electronics Engineeers, Piscataway NJ USA, pp. 3542-3566.

Mohammed, S., Viterbo, E., Hong, Y., Chockalingam, A., 2011, Precoding by pairing subchannels to increase MIMO capacity with discrete input alphabets, IEEE Transactions on Information Theory [P], vol 57, issue 7, IEEE-Inst. Electrical Electronics Engineers Inc., Piscataway NJ USA, pp. 4156-4169.

Nordio, A., Chiasserini, C., Viterbo, E., 2010, Asymptotic analysis of multidimensional jittered sampling, IEEE Transactions on Signal Processing [P], vol 58, issue 1, IEEE, Piscataway, pp. 258-268.

Nordio, A., Chiasserini, C., Viterbo, E., 2010, The impact of quasi-equally spaced sensor topologies on signal reconstruction, ACM Transactions on Sensor Networks [P], vol 6, issue 2, Assoc. Computer Machinery, New York, USA, pp. 1-31.

Hong, Y., Viterbo, E., 2009, Algebraic multiuser space-time block codes for a 2 x 2 MIMO, IEEE Transactions on Vehicular Technology [P], vol 58, issue 6, IEEE, Piscataway NJ USA, pp. 3062-3066.

Cerato, B., Masera, G., Viterbo, E., 2009, Decoding the golden code: a VLSI design, IEEE Transactions on Very Large Scale Integration (VLSI) Systems [P], vol 17, issue 1, IEEE, Piscataway NJ USA, pp. 156-160.

Luzzi, L., Othman, G., Belfiore, J., Viterbo, E., 2009, Golden space-time block-coded modulation, IEEE Transactions on Information Theory [P], vol 55, issue 2, IEEE, Piscataway NJ USA, pp. 584-597.

Matz, G., Calderbank, R., Mecklenbraeuker, C., Naguib, A., Viterbo, E., 2009, Introduction to the issue on managing complexity in multiuser MIMO systems, IEEE Journal on Selected Topics in Signal Processing [P], vol 3, issue 6, IEEE, Piscataway NJ USA, pp. 906-909.

Lu, H., Vehkalahti, R., Hollanti, C., Lahtonen, J., Hong, Y., Viterbo, E., 2009, New space-time code constructions for two-user multiple access channels, IEEE Journal on Selected Topics in Signal Processing [P], vol 3, issue 6, IEEE, Piscataway NJ USA, pp. 939-957.

Biglieri, E., Hong, Y., Viterbo, E., 2009, On fast-decodable space-time block codes, IEEE Transactions on Information Theory [P], vol 55, issue 2, IEEE, Piscataway NJ USA, pp. 524-530.

Viterbo, E., Hong, Y., 2009, On the performance of golden space-time trellis coded modulation over MIMO block fading channels, IEEE Transactions on Wireless Communications [P], vol 8, issue 6, IEEE, Piscataway NJ USA, pp. 2737-2741.

Nordio, A., Chiasserini, C., Viterbo, E., 2009, Signal reconstruction errors in jittered sampling, IEEE Transactions on Signal Processing [P], vol 57, issue 12, IEEE, Piscataway NJ USA, pp. 4711-4718.

Cerato, B., Masera, G., Viterbo, E., 2008, Decoding the golden space-time trellis coded modulation, IEEE Communications Letters [P], vol 12, issue 8, IEEE, Piscataway NJ USA, pp. 569-571.

Cerato, B., Masera, G., Viterbo, E., 2008, Enabling VLSI processing blocks for MIMO-OFDM communications, VLSI Design [P], vol 2008, Hindawi Publishing Corporation, New York, USA, pp. 1-10.

Pace, P., Viterbo, E., 2008, Fast and accurate video PQoS estimation over wireless networks, Eurasip Journal On Advances In Signal Processing [P], vol 2008, Hindawi Publishing Corporation, New York USA, pp. 1-10.

Natalizio, E., Loscri, V., Viterbo, E., 2008, Optimal placement of wireless nodes for maximizing path lifetime, IEEE Communications Letters [P], vol 12, issue 5, IEEE, Piscataway NJ USA, pp. 362-364.

Nordio, A., Chiasserini, C., Viterbo, E., 2008, Performance of linear field reconstruction techniques with noise and uncertain sensor locations, IEEE Transactions on Signal Processing [P], vol 56, issue 8, IEEE, Piscataway NJ USA, pp. 3535-3547.

Nordio, A., Chiasserini, C., Viterbo, E., 2008, Reconstruction of multidimensional signals from irregular noisy samples, IEEE Transactions on Signal Processing [P], vol 56, issue 9, IEEE, Piscataway NJ USA, pp. 4274-4285.

Fabregas, A.G.i., Viterbo, E., 2008, Sphere lower bound for rotated lattice constellations in fading channels, IEEE Transactions on Wireless Communications [P], vol 7, issue 3, IEEE, Piscataway NJ USA, pp. 825-830.

Hong, Y., Viterbo, E., Belfiore, J., 2007, Golden space-time trellis coded modulation, IEEE Transactions on Information Theory [P], vol 53, issue 5, IEEE, Piscataway NJ USA, pp. 1689-1705.

Bayer-Fluckiger, E., Oggier, F.E., Viterbo, E., 2006, Algebraic lattice constellations: bounds on performance, IEEE Transactions on Information Theory [P], vol 52, issue 1, IEEE, Piscataway NJ USA, pp. 319-327.

Oggier, F.E., Rekaya, G., Belfiore, J., Viterbo, E., 2006, Perfect space-time block codes, IEEE Transactions on Information Theory [P], vol 52, issue 9, IEEE, Piscataway NJ USA, pp. 3885-3902.

Belfiore, J., Rekaya, G., Viterbo, E., 2005, The Golden code: A 2 x 2 full-rate space-time code with nonvanishing determinants, IEEE Transactions on Information Theory [P], vol 51, issue 4, IEEE, Piscataway NJ USA, pp. 1432-1436.

Bayer-Fluckiger, E., Oggier, F.E., Viterbo, E., 2004, New algebraic constructions of rotated Zn-lattice constellations for the rayleigh fading channel, IEEE Transactions on Information Theory [P], vol 50, issue 4, IEEE, Piscataway NJ USA, pp. 702-714.

Gaudino, R., Viterbo, E., 2004, Transmitter optimization and theoretical bounds for dispersion-limited optical fiber links, IEEE Transactions on Communications [P], vol 52, issue 9, IEEE, Piscataway NJ USA, pp. 1558-1565.

Conference Proceedings

Sakzad, A., Viterbo, E., Hong, Y., Boutros, J.J., 2012, On the ergodic rate for compute-and-forward, 2012 International Symposium on Network Coding (NetCod), 29 June 2012 to 30 June 2012, IEEE, USA, pp. 131-136.

Hollanti, C., Viterbo, E., 2011, Analysis on wiretap lattice codes and probability bounds from Dedekind zeta functions, The 3rd International Congress on Ultra Modern Telecommunications and Control Systems and Workshops (ICUMT 2011), 5 October 2011 to 7 October 2011, IEEE, Piscataway NJ USA, pp. 1-8.

Fernando, T.N.C., Hong, Y., Viterbo, E., 2011, Flip-OFDM for optical wireless communications, 2011 IEEE Information Theory Workshop, 16 October 2011 to 20 October 2011, IEEE, New York USA, pp. 5-9.

Kalansuriya, P., Karmakar, N., Viterbo, E., 2011, Signal space representation of chipless RFID tag frequency signatures, Proceedings of 2011 IEEE Global Telecommunications Conference - GLOBECOM 2011, 5 December 2011 to 9 December 2011, IEEE, USA, pp. 1-5.

Lahtonen, J., Vehkalahti, R., Lu, H.(., Hollanti, C., Viterbo, E., 2010, On the decay of the determinants of multiuser MIMO lattice codes, Proc. 2010 IEEE Information Theory Workshop, 6 January 2010 to 8 January 2010, IEEE, Piscataway NJ USA, pp. 1-5.

Mohammed, S.K., Viterbo, E., Hong, Y., Chockalingam, A., 2010, Precoding with x-codes to increase capacity with discrete input alphabets, Proceedings of the 2010 IEEE International Symposium on Information Theory, 13 June 2010 to 18 June 2010, IEEE, Piscataway NJ USA, pp. 2148-2152.

Mohammed, S.K., Viterbo, E., Chockalingam, A., 2010, X- and Y-Codes for MIMO precoding, Proceedings of 2010 IEEE International Symposium on Information Theory, 13 June 2010 to 18 June 2010, IEEE, Piscataway NJ USA, pp. 2143-2147.

Mohammed, S.K., Viterbo, E., Hong, Y., Chockalingam, A., 2010, X-Codes, Proceedings of the International Zurich Seminar on Communications (2010), 3 March 2010 to 5 March 2010, Eidgenossische Technische Hochschule Zurich, Zurich Switzerland, pp. 1-4.

Mohammed, S.K., Viterbo, E., Hong, Y., Chockalingam, A., 2010, X-Codes: A low complexity full-rate high-diversity achieving precoder for TDD MIMO systems, 2010 IEEE International Conference on Communications (ICC 2010), 23 May 2010 to 27 May 2010, IEEE, Piscataway NJ USA, pp. 1-5.

Hottinen, A., Heikkinen, T., Viterbo, E., 2009, Device collaboration in ad-hoc MIMO networks, 2009 International ITG Workshop on Smart Antennas, 16 February 2009 to 18 February 2009, The European Association for Signal Processing (EURASIP), Berlin Germany, pp. 1-4.

Cerato, B., Viterbo, E., 2009, Hardware implementation of a low-complexity detector for large MIMO, 2009 IEEE International Symposium on Circuits and Systems, 24 May 2009 to 27 May 2009, IEEE, Piscataway NJ USA, pp. 593-596.

Nordio, A., Chiasserini, C., Viterbo, E., 2009, Linear signal reconstruction from jittered sampling, 8th Int. Conference on Sampling Theory and Applications (SAMPTA'09), 8 May 2009 to 22 May 2009, Centre International de Rencontres Mathematiques, Marseille, Marseille, France, pp. 1-4.

Loscri, V., Hong, Y., Viterbo, E., 2009, RQ precoding for the cooperative broadcast channel, 2009 IEEE Information Theory Workshop (ITW2009), 11 October 2009 to 16 October 2009, IEEE, USA, pp. 26-30.

Hong, Y., Viterbo, E., 2008, Algebraic multiuser space-frequency block codes, Proceedings of 2008 IEEE 10th Int. Symposium on Spread Spectrum Techniques and Applications, 25 August 2008 to 28 August 2008, IEEE, Piscataway NJ USA, pp. 329-333.

Hong, Y., Shamai (Shitz), S., Viterbo, E., 2008, Algebraic-phase scrambling sequences for code-spread code-division multiple-access, Proceedings 2008 IEEE International Symposium on Information Theory, 6 July 2008 to 11 July 2008, IEEE, USA, pp. 1368-1372.

Loscri, V., Natalizio, E., Viterbo, E., Mauro, D., D'Aquila, G., Brasili, G., 2008, Carrier independent localization techniques for GSM terminals, 2008 IEEE 19th Int. Symposium on Personal, Indoor and Mobile Radio Communications, 15 September 2008 to 18 September 2008, IEEE, USA, pp. 1-5.

Boutros, J.J., Viterbo, E., Cohen, G., 2008, Convolutional tanner-structures for non-ergodic wireless channels, Proceedings 2008 IEEE International Symposium on Information Theory, 6 July 2008 to 11 July 2008, IEEE, USA, pp. 1163-1167.

Pace, P., Belcastro, M., Viterbo, E., 2008, Fast and accurate PQoS estimation over 802.11g wireless network, Proceedings of the 2008 IEEE International Conference on Communications (ICC 2008), 19 May 2008 to 23 May 2008, IEEE, USA, pp. 262-267.

Luzzi, L., Rekaya-Ben Othman, G., Belfiore, J., Viterbo, E., 2008, Golden space-time block coded modulation, IEEE Information Theory Workshop 2008 (ITW 2008), 5 May 2008 to 9 May 2008, IEEE, USA, pp. 86-90.

Nordio, A., Chiasserini, C., Viterbo, E., 2008, On quasi-equally spaced sampling in wireless sensor networks, 2008 IEEE 19th Int. Symposium on Personal, Indoor and Mobile Radio Communications, 15 September 2008 to 18 September 2008, IEEE, USA, pp. 1-5.

Hollanti, C., Lahtonen, J., Ranto, K., Vehkalahti, R., Viterbo, E., 2008, On the algebraic structure of a silver code: a 2x2 perfect space-time block code, IEEE Information Theory Workshop 2008 (ITW 2008), 5 May 2008 to 9 May 2008, IEEE, USA, pp. 91-94.

Nordio, A., Chiasserini, C., Viterbo, E., 2008, Signal reconstruction in multidimensional sensor fields, Proceedings of 2008 International Zurich Seminar on Communications, 12 March 2008 to 14 March 2008, IEEE, USA, pp. 56-59.

Biglieri, E., Hong, Y., Viterbo, E., 2008, Silver space-time trellis-coded modulation, Proceedings of the 16th European Signal Processing Conference (EUSIPCO-2008), 25 August 2008 to 29 August 2008, European Association for Signal Processing, Switzerland, pp. 1-5.

Hottinen, A., Hong, Y., Viterbo, E., Christian, M., Mecklenbrauker, C., 2007, A comparison of high rate algebraic and non-orthogonal STBCs, The International ITG/IEEE Workshop on Smart Antennas - Proceedings, 26 February 2007 to 27 February 2007, IEEE, Austria, pp. 1-5.

Biglieri, E., Hong, Y., Viterbo, E., 2007, A fast-decodable, quasi-orthogonal space-time block code for 4x2 MIMO, 45th Annual Allerton Conference on Communication, Control and Computing, 26 September 2007 to 28 September 2007, Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics, Philadelphia USA, pp. 921-926.

Viterbo, E., Hong, Y., 2007, Applications of the golden code, 2007 Information Theory and Applications Workshop - Conference Proceedings, 29 January 2007 to 2 February 2007, IEEE, USA, pp. 393-400.

Nordio, A., Chiasserini, C., Viterbo, E., 2007, Quality of field reconstruction in sensor networks, Proceedings of 26th IEEE International Conference on Computer Communications (INFOCOM 2007), 6 May 2007 to 12 May 2007, IEEE, USA, pp. 2406-2410.

Viterbo, E., Hong, Y., 2007, Robust codes for 2 x 2 MIMO block fading channels, 2007 IEEE International Symposium on Information Theory - Proceedings, 24 June 2007 to 29 June 2007, IEEE, New York USA, pp. 2621-2625.

Nordio, A., Chiasserini, C., Viterbo, E., 2007, The impact of quasi-equally spaced sensor layouts on field reconstruction, Proceedings of 6th International Symposium on Information Processing in Sensor Networks (IPSN 2007), 25 April 2007 to 27 April 2007, IEEE, USA, pp. 274-282.

Viterbo, E., Hong, Y., Grant, A., 2007, Timing errors in distributed space-time communications, Proceedings of the 2007 Australian Communications Theory Workshop, 5 February 2007 to 7 February 2007, IEEE, Piscataway NJ USA, pp. 1-6.

Cerato, B., Masera, G., Viterbo, E., 2006, A VLSI decoder for the Golden code, Proceedings of the 13th IEEE International Conference on Electronics, Circuits and Systems, 10 December 2006 to 13 December 2006, IEEE, New York USA, pp. 549-552.

Hong, Y., Viterbo, E., Belfiore, J., 2006, A space-time block coded multiuser MIMO downlink transmission scheme, 2006 IEEE International Symposium on Information Theory - Proceedings, 9 July 2006 to 14 July 2006, IEEE, New York USA, pp. 257-261.

Fabregas, A., Viterbo, E., 2006, Performance of rotated lattice constellations in fading channels, 2006 IEEE International Symposium on Information Theory - Proceedings, 9 July 2006 to 14 July 2006, IEEE, New York USA, pp. 1046-1050.

Belfiore, J., Viterbo, E., 2005, Approximating the error probability for the independent Rayleigh fading channel, 2005 IEEE International Symposium on Information Theory - Proceedings, 4 September 2005 to 9 September 2005, IEEE, New York USA, p. 362.

Rekaya, G., Belfiore, J., Viterbo, E., 2004, A very efficient lattice reduction tool on fast fading channels, International Symposium on Information Theory and its Applications (ISITA 2004), 10 October 2004 to 13 October 2004, IEEE, Piscataway NJ USA, pp. 714-717.

Rekaya, G., Belfiore, J., Viterbo, E., 2004, Algebraic 3 x 3, 4 x 4 and 6 x 6 space-time codes with non-vanishing determinants, International Symposium on Information Theory and its Applications (ISITA 2004) - Proceedings, 10 October 2004 to 13 October 2004, IEEE, Piscataway NJ USA, pp. 325-329.

Other

Hottinen, A., Viterbo, E., 2009, Method, apparatus and computer program for relay selection, USA.

Viterbo, E., Hottinen, A., 2009, Optimal user pairing for downlink multiuser MIMO, USA.

Viterbo, E., Hottinen, A., 2009, Optimal user pairing for multiuser MIMO, USA.