A Course In Algebraic Error Correcting Codes

This textbook provides a rigorous mathematical perspective on error-correcting codes, starting with the basics and progressing through to the state-of-the-art. Algebraic, combinatorial, and geometric approaches to coding theory are adopted with the aim of highlighting how coding can have an important real-world impact. Because it carefully balances both theory and applications, this book will be an indispensable resource for readers seeking a timely treatment of error-correcting codes. Early chapters cover fundamental concepts, introducing Shannon’s theorem, asymptotically good codes and linear codes. The book then goes on to cover other types of codes including chapters on cyclic codes, maximum distance separable codes, LDPC codes, p-adic codes, amongst others. Those undertaking independent study will appreciate the helpful exercises with selected solutions. A Course in Algebraic Error-Correcting Codes suits an interdisciplinary audience at the Masters level, including students of mathematics, engineering, physics, and computer science. Advanced undergraduates will find this a useful resource as well. An understanding of linear algebra is assumed.

This textbook provides a rigorous mathematical perspective on error-correcting codes, starting with the basics and progressing through to the state-of-the-art. Algebraic, combinatorial, and geometric approaches to coding theory are adopted with the aim of highlighting how coding can have an important real-world impact. Because it carefully balances both theory and applications, this book will be an indispensable resource for readers seeking a timely treatment of error-correcting codes. Early chapters cover fundamental concepts, introducing Shannon's theorem, asymptotically good codes and linear codes. The book then goes on to cover other types of codes including chapters on cyclic codes, maximum distance separable codes, LDPC codes, p-adic codes, amongst others. Those undertaking independent study will appreciate the helpful exercises with selected solutions. A Course in Algebraic Error-Correcting Codes suits an interdisciplinary audience at the Masters level, including students of mathematics, engineering, physics, and computer science. Advanced undergraduates will find this a useful resource as well. An understanding of linear algebra is assumed.

Assuming little previous mathematical knowledge, Error Correcting Codes provides a sound introduction to key areas of the subject. Topics have been chosen for their importance and practical significance, which Baylis demonstrates in a rigorous but gentle mathematical style.Coverage includes optimal codes; linear and non-linear codes; general techniques of decoding errors and erasures; error detection; syndrome decoding, and much more. Error Correcting Codes contains not only straight maths, but also exercises on more investigational problem solving. Chapters on number theory and polynomial algebra are included to support linear codes and cyclic codes, and an extensive reminder of relevant topics in linear algebra is given. Exercises are placed within the main body of the text to encourage active participation by the reader, with comprehensive solutions provided.Error Correcting Codes will appeal to undergraduate students in pure and applied mathematical fields, software engineering, communications engineering, computer science and information technology, and to organizations with substantial research and development in those areas.

This book is written as a text for a course aimed at advanced undergraduates. Chapters cover the codes and decoding methods that are currently of most interest in research, development, and application. They give a relatively brief presentation of the essential results, emphasizing the interrelations between different methods and proofs of all important results. A sequence of problems at the end of each chapter serves to review the results and give the student an appreciation of the concepts.

These lecture notes are the contents of a two-term course given by me during the 1970-1971 academic year as Morgan Ward visiting professor at the California Institute of Technology. The students who took the course were mathematics seniors and graduate students. Therefore a thorough knowledge of algebra. (a. o. linear algebra, theory of finite fields, characters of abelian groups) and also probability theory were assumed. After introducing coding theory and linear codes these notes concern topics mostly from algebraic coding theory. The practical side of the subject, e. g. circuitry, is not included. Some topics which one would like to include 1n a course for students of mathematics such as bounds on the information rate of codes and many connections between combinatorial mathematics and coding theory could not be treated due to lack of time. For an extension of the course into a third term these two topics would have been chosen. Although the material for this course came from many sources there are three which contributed heavily and which were used as suggested reading material for the students. These are W. W. Peterson's Error-Correcting Codes «(15]), E. R. Berlekamp's Algebraic Coding Theory «(5]) and several of the AFCRL-reports by E. F. Assmus, H. F. Mattson and R. Turyn ([2], (3), [4] a. o. ). For several fruitful discussions I would like to thank R. J. McEliece.

Starting with the elementary ideas of parity check codes, this work takes the reader via BCH and Reed-Solomon codes all the way to the geometric Goppa codes. The necessary mathematics is developed in parallel with the applications.

Algebraic coding theory is a new and rapidly developing subject, popular for its many practical applications and for its fascinatingly rich mathematical structure. This book provides an elementary yet rigorous introduction to the theory of error-correcting codes. Based on courses given by the author over several years to advanced undergraduates and first-year graduated students, this guide includes a large number of exercises, all with solutions, making the book highly suitable for individual study.

Introduction to the Theory of Error-Correcting Codes, Third Edition is the ideal textbook for senior-undergraduate and first-year graduate courses on error-correcting codes in mathematics, computer science, and electrical engineering.