Spectral efficiency in the wideband regime

The tradeoff of spectral efficiency (b/s/Hz) versus energy-per-information bit is the key measure of channel capacity in the wideband power-limited regime. This paper finds the fundamental bandwidth–power tradeoff of a general class of channels in the wideband regime characterized by low, but nonzero, spectral efficiency and energy per bit close to the minimum value required for reliable communication. A new criterion for optimality of signaling in the wideband regime is proposed, which, in contrast to the traditional criterion, is meaningful for finite-bandwidth communication.