AFF3CT: A Fast Forward Error Correction Toolbox!

Abstract

AFF3CT is an open source toolbox dedicated to Forward Error Correction (FEC or channel coding). It supports a broad range of codes: from widespread turbo codes and Low-Density Parity-Check (LDPC) codes to more recent polar codes. The toolbox is written in C++ and can be used either as a simulator to quickly evaluate algorithms characteristics, or as a library in Software Defined Radio (SDR) systems or for other specific needs. Most of the decoding algorithm implementations aim at low latency and high throughput, targeting multiple Gb/s on modern CPUs. This is crucial in both simulation and SDR use cases: Monte Carlo simulations require high performance implementation as they commonly target the estimation of approximately 1012bits. On the other hand, the implementations in real systems have to be very efficient to be competitive against dedicated hardware ones. Finally, AFF3CT emphasizes the reproducibility of state-of-the-art results by providing public references and open, modular source code. Keywords: Communication chain, Channel coding, Monte Carlo simulation, Forward error correction library, Digital modulation, Reproducible science, Multi-node, Multi-thread, Vectorization