Homogeneous metric and matrix product codes over finite commutative principal ideal rings

In this paper, a necessary and sufficient condition for the homogeneous distance on an arbitrary finite commutative principal ideal ring to be a metric is obtained. We completely characterize the lower bound of homogeneous distances of matrix product codes over any finite principal ideal ring where the homogeneous distance is a metric. Furthermore, the minimum homogeneous distances of the duals of such codes are also explicitly investigated.     

Asymptotic behaviour of codes in rank metric over finite fields

In this paper, we recall some basic facts about the rank metric. We derive an asymptotic equivalent of the minimum rank distance of codes that reach the rank metric Gilbert–Varshamov bound. We show that the random codes reach GV-bound. Finally, we show that the optimal codes in rank metric have a packing density which is bounded by functions depending only on the base field and on the minimum distance. We show the potential interest in cryptographic applications.     

Skew codes of prescribed distance or rank

In this paper we generalize the notion of cyclic code and construct codes as ideals in finite quotients of non-commutative polynomial rings, so called skew polynomial rings of automorphism type. We propose a method to construct block codes of prescribed rank and a method to construct block codes of prescribed distance. Since there is no unique factorization in skew polynomial rings, there are much more ideals and therefore much more codes than in the commutative case. In particular we obtain a [40, 23, 10]₄ code by imposing a distance and a [42,14,21]₈ code by imposing a rank, which both improve by one the minimum distance of the previously best known linear codes of equal length and dimension over those fields. There is a strong connection with linear difference operators and with linearized polynomials (or q-polynomials) reviewed in the first section.      

Hartmann–Tzeng bound and skew cyclic codes of designed Hamming distance

The use of skew polynomial rings allows to endow linear codes with cyclic structures which are not cyclic in the classical (commutative) sense. Whenever these skew cyclic structures are carefully chosen, some control over the Hamming distance is gained, and it is possible to design efficient decoding algorithms. In this paper, we give a version of the Hartmann–Tzeng bound that works for a wide class of skew cyclic codes. We also provide a practical method for constructing them with designed distance. For skew BCH codes, which are covered by our constructions, we discuss decoding algorithms. Detailed examples illustrate both the theory as the constructive methods it supports.     

A symmetric Roos bound for linear codes

The van Lint-Wilson AB-method yields a short proof of the Roos bound for the minimum distance of a cyclic code. We use the AB-method to obtain a different bound for the weights of a linear code. In contrast to the Roos bound, the role of the codes A and B in our bound is symmetric. We use the bound to prove the actual minimum distance for a class of dual BCH codes of length q²−1 over Fq. We give cyclic codes [63,38,16] and [65,40,16] over F₈ that are better than the known [63,38,15] and [65,40,15] codes.     

Linear codes using skew polynomials with automorphisms and derivations

In this work the definition of codes as modules over skew polynomial rings of automorphism type is generalized to skew polynomial rings, whose multiplication is defined using an automorphism and a derivation. This produces a more general class of codes which, in some cases, produce better distance bounds than module skew codes constructed only with an automorphism. Extending the approach of Gabidulin codes, we introduce new notions of evaluation of skew polynomials with derivations and the corresponding evaluation codes. We propose several approaches to generalize Reed-Solomon and BCH codes to module skew codes and for two classes we show that the dual of such a Reed-Solomon type skew code is an evaluation skew code. We generalize a decoding algorithm due to Gabidulin for the rank metric and derive families of Maximum Distance Separable and Maximum Rank Distance codes.     

Systematic maximum sum rank codes

In the last decade there has been a great interest in extending results for codes equipped with the Hamming metric to analogous results for codes endowed with the rank metric. This work follows this thread of research and studies the characterization of systematic generator matrices (encoders) of codes with maximum rank distance. In the context of Hamming distance these codes are the so-called Maximum Distance Separable (MDS) codes and systematic encoders have been fully investigated. In this paper we investigate the algebraic properties and representation of encoders in systematic form of Maximum Rank Distance (MRD) codes and Maximum Sum Rank Distance (MSRD) codes. We address both block codes and convolutional codes separately and present necessary and sufficient conditions for an encoder in systematic form to generate a code with maximum (sum) rank distance. These characterizations are given in terms of certain matrices that must be superregular in a extension field and that preserve superregularity after some transformations performed over the base field. We conclude the work presenting some examples of Maximum Sum Rank convolutional codes over small fields. For the given parameters the examples obtained are over smaller fields than the examples obtained by other authors.     

Cardinal rank metric codes over Galois rings

In 1985, Gabidulin introduced the rank metric in coding theory over finite fields, and used this kind of codes in a McEliece cryptosystem, six years later. In this paper, we consider rank metric codes over Galois rings. We propose a suitable metric for codes over such rings, and show its main properties. With this metric, we define Gabidulin codes over Galois rings, propose an efficient decoding algorithm for them, and hint their cryptographic application.     

Schubert varieties, linear codes and enumerative combinatorics

We consider linear error correcting codes associated to higher-dimensional projective varieties defined over a finite field. The problem of determining the basic parameters of such codes often leads to some interesting and difficult questions in combinatorics and algebraic geometry. This is illustrated by codes associated to Schubert varieties in Grassmannians, called Schubert codes, which have recently been studied. The basic parameters such as the length, dimension and minimum distance of these codes are known only in special cases. An upper bound for the minimum distance is known and it is conjectured that this bound is achieved. We give explicit formulae for the length and dimension of arbitrary Schubert codes and prove the minimum distance conjecture in the affirmative for codes associated to Schubert divisors.     

The Structure of 1-Generator Quasi-Twisted Codes and New Linear Codes

One of the most important problems of coding theory is to construct codes with best possible minimum distances. Recently, quasi-cyclic (QC) codes have been proven to contain many such codes. In this paper, we consider quasi-twisted (QT) codes, which are generalizations of QC codes, and their structural properties and obtain new codes which improve minimum distances of best known linear codes over the finite fields GF(3) and GF(5). Moreover, we give a BCH-type bound on minimum distance for QT codes and give a sufficient condition for a QT code to be equivalent to a QC code.     

AMDS symbol-pair codes from repeated-root cyclic codes

Symbol-pair codes are proposed to guard against pair-errors in symbol-pair read channels. The minimum symbol-pair distance is of significance in determining the error-correcting capability of a symbol-pair code. One of the central themes in symbol-pair coding theory is the constructions of symbol-pair codes with the largest possible minimum symbol-pair distance. Maximum distance separable (MDS) and almost maximum distance separable (AMDS) symbol-pair codes are optimal and sub-optimal regarding the Singleton bound, respectively. In this paper, six new classes of AMDS symbol-pair codes are explicitly constructed through repeated-root cyclic codes. Remarkably, one class of such codes has unbounded lengths and the minimum symbol-pair distance of another class can reach 13.     

Skew quasi-cyclic codes over Galois rings

Recently there has been a lot of interest on algebraic codes in the setting of skew polynomial rings. In this paper we have studied skew quasi-cyclic (QC) codes over Galois rings. We have given a necessary and sufficient condition for skew cyclic codes over Galois rings to be free, and determined a distance bound for free skew cyclic codes. A sufficient condition for 1-generator skew QC codes to be free is determined. Some distance bounds for free 1-generator skew QC codes are discussed. A canonical decomposition of skew QC codes is presented.     

Maximum Distance Separable Codes in the ρ Metric over Arbitrary Alphabets

We give a bound for codes over an arbitrary alphabet in a non-Hamming metric and define MDS codes as codes meeting this bound. We show that MDS codes are precisely those codes that are uniformly distributed and show that their weight enumerators based on this metric are uniquely determined.     

Projective Reed–Muller type codes on rational normal scrolls

In this paper we study an instance of projective Reed–Muller type codes, i.e., codes obtained by the evaluation of homogeneous polynomials of a fixed degree in the points of a projective variety. In our case the variety is an important example of a determinantal variety, namely the projective surface known as rational normal scroll, defined over a finite field, which is the basic underlining algebraic structure of this work. We determine the dimension and a lower bound for the minimum distance of the codes, and in many cases we also find the exact value of the minimum distance. To obtain the results we use some methods from Gröbner bases theory.     

Rank metric codes and zeta functions

We define the rank metric zeta function of a code as a generating function of its normalized q-binomial moments. We show that, as in the Hamming case, the zeta function gives a generating function for the weight enumerators of rank metric codes. We further prove a functional equation and derive an upper bound for the minimum distance in terms of the reciprocal roots of the zeta function. Finally, we show invariance under suitable puncturing and shortening operators and study the distribution of zeroes of the zeta function for a family of codes.     

Some New Results on Optimal Codes Over F5

We present some results on almost maximum distance separable (AMDS) codes and Griesmer codes of dimension 4 over over the field of order 5. We prove that no AMDS code of length 13 and minimum distance 5 exists, and we give a classification of some AMDS codes. Moreover, we classify the projective strongly optimal Griesmer codes over F₅ of dimension 4 for some values of the minimum distance.     

一类循环码的极小距离

循环码的极小距离大于或等于BCH界。本文考虑的是极小距离等于BCH界的特殊情形。利用一类自反循环码的事实。证明了使循环码的极小距离等于其BCH界的两个充分条件；并指出极小距离等于任意给定值，维数任意大的循环码可以构造。     

Codes of Small Defect

The parameters of a linear code C over GF(q) are given by [n,k,d], where n denotes the length, k the dimension and d the minimum distance of C. The code C is called MDS, or maximum distance separable, if the minimum distance d meets the Singleton bound, i.e. d = n-k+1 Unfortunately, the parameters of an MDS code are severely limited by the size of the field. Thus we look for codes which have minimum distance close to the Singleton bound. Of particular interest is the class of almost MDS codes, i.e. codes for which d=n-k. We will present a condition on the minimum distance of a code to guarantee that the orthogonal code is an almost MDS code. This extends a result of Dodunekov and Landgev Dodunekov. Evaluation of the MacWilliams identities leads to a closed formula for the weight distribution which turns out to be completely determined for almost MDS codes up to one parameter. As a consequence we obtain surprising combinatorial relations in such codes. This leads, among other things, to an answer to a question of Assmus and Mattson 5 on the existence of self-dual [2d,d,d]-codes which have no code words of weight d+1. Actually there are more codes than Assmus and Mattson expected, but the examples which we know are related to the expected ones.     

Polycyclic codes as invariant subspaces

Polycyclic codes are a powerful generalization of cyclic and constacyclic codes. Their algebraic structure is studied here by the theory of invariant subspaces from linear algebra. As an application, a bound on the minimum distance of these codes is derived which outperforms, in some cases, the natural analogue of the BCH bound.